Three out of every four older adults say they have experienced a fraud attempt by phone, text, email, mail or online in the last two years, according to new data from the National Poll on Healthy Aging from the University of Michigan and NORC at the University of Chicago.
The poll reveals an especially strong link between an older adult’s health and their vulnerability to scams – both being able to spot one and becoming the victim of one.
Among older adults, fraud from scams results in more than $1 billion in individual losses each year and can severely impact health and well-being. In July and August 2023, the feedback was collected from a national sample of adults age 50–80 about their experiences with scams and their views on ways to protect against them.
The poll data reveals an especially strong link between an older adult’s health and their vulnerability to scams – both being able to spot one and becoming the victim of one.
Scam attempts were more frequently reported by men (78% vs. 73% women), those with a bachelor’s degree or higher (79% vs. 71% some college or less), and those who reported that their memory is fair or poor (83% vs. 74% with better memory).
Nearly two in five of those who reported a scam attempt (39%) said they experienced one or more of the following types of fraud: 25% had their credit card or bank account compromised, 15% had other accounts hacked, 9% had money stolen, and 3% had their identity stolen. Overall, 30% of all adults age 50–80 said they had experienced fraud.
There was also a gap in scam experiences by income, with 46% of those who have annual household incomes under $60,000 more likely to report that they’d experienced fraud from a scam, compared with 36% of those with higher incomes.
Overall, more than half (57%) of older adults expressed uncertainty about their ability to spot a scam.
AARP offers information and support for fraud victims through its Fraud Watch Network program. Learn more at https://aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork. The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office also has online resources on avoiding fraud and scams along with the Elder Hotline (1-888-243-5337), which can assist citizens over the age of 60.