A Guide for Older Adults to Understand AI-Powered Scams

With AI tools, online and phone scams have entered a scary new chapter: now the scammer might look or sound like someone you know. But there are simple steps everyone can take to stay safe. BY ANDREW LEKASHMAN

Today, scammers wield AI with alarming proficiency, employing it as a tool to deceive and exploit unsuspecting individuals. It was a simpler time when a scammer’s greatest tool was a persuasive email or a convincing phone script.

While technology has provided incredible reach, allowing families to stay in contact across countries, it has also allowed unprecedented communication to strangers who are only interested in separating us from our savings.

The battle against online scams is not just about technological safeguards, it’s also a test of our awareness, critical thinking, and the collective effort to shield our family and community from harm. 

How Is AI Used in Scams Today? 

Artificial intelligence, for all its potential, has a dark side when applied to the world of online scams. It’s a bit like fire, a tool that can warm your home or burn it down, depending on how it’s used.

At its core, AI use in fraudulent activity simply accelerates the process for criminals to learn about their victims and decreases the workload for the perpetrator of the scam. It allows people from anywhere in the world to learn how we talk, how we write, and what we’re likely to believe. 

To avoid being tricked, we need to understand the types of scams out there and how bad actors use AI to perpetuate them. Think of it as learning the rules of the road before you start driving: without this knowledge, you’re far more likely to end up in an accident. The first and most important rule to follow is that if money or investments come up in casual conversation, you should act much more carefully and require additional proof and verification of the facts before proceeding. 

Tools that use Large Language Models (LLMs) are providing the ability for anyone to have a conversation in any language and sound like any person. Deepfake tools allow for the creation of video and images that very strongly resemble loved ones. It is shockingly easy to copy someone’s voice. It is easier than ever to create extremely convincing digital copies of friends, loved ones, and family members using combinations of tools like ChatGPT (text), D-ID (video), and Eleven Labs (audio). Many of these tools operate in near-real time, so it can be very difficult to detect if someone is using one (Glick, 2024). 

So, if it is no longer possible to fully trust what you read, watch, and hear, how do you adapt to this new environment? It starts with knowing what is possible and building from there. Scammers build entire apps and websites that resemble trusted sites, with one major difference: you never receive goods ordered on those sites, and you can never withdraw money “earned” from investing. Be cautious! Check reviews and website domains, and ask for advice from someone you trust before sending money anywhere for the first time. 

Cybersecurity education is critical to help equip people with the knowledge and skills to safely navigate the Internet and all forms of communication. By encouraging basic practices like asking for proof on multiple platforms and employing critical thinking, users can become active participants in their defense against cyber threats. Learning to recognize the signs of a potential scam, understanding the common attack vectors, and using good online practices such as not oversharing sensitive information, are essential steps in protecting yourself and your loved ones. 

Who Is Being Targeted Today? 

While you may think that these scams are a small problem affecting only the gullible, the FBI reports tens of thousands of these crimes yearly. The average amount lost in a scam is estimated to be $35,000 (Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2022). Recently and very publicly, the CEO of a regional bank in the United States was a victim, and the scammers took nearly $50 million dollars and bankrupted the company (Saulsbery, 2024). It’s important to be aware these scams have a playbook, which is effective. Regardless of how clever you may be, it could happen to you if you aren’t careful. 

Older adults are especially targeted by scammers for a number of reasons. First, bad actors perceive the older population to be financially well-off, whether or not this is true for any individual (Waterman, 2023). Also, some older adults are not as familiar with Internet culture and may not have the same instinctive distrust and boundary setting behavior that younger generations exhibit. This does not mean that only older adults fall victim to scams. During the past few years, cryptocurrency-related scams have successfully stolen nearly $100 billion dollars from people of all ages (Chainanalysis, 2024). 

Beyond the immediate financial risks posed by online scams, there is also a significant psychological toll that can result from falling victim to these deceptive practices. The sense of betrayal, embarrassment, and violation of trust can have lasting effects on an individual’s mental well-being and potentially sabotage future relationships. 

Scams vary significantly, but they all have common elements that bind them together. Someone contacts you on the phone, via email, or through a messenger or dating app. They talk with you for a bit, sometimes as a wrong number, or they pose as a family member or a potential romantic partner. The glaring red flag to look for is a request for money. It may start as a plea for help with an emergency, but the pressure on you from the scammer starts to grow as they try to create a sense of urgency. 

How AI Shows Up in Common Scams 

WRONG NUMBER SCAM Let’s start with the wrong number scam. Many scammers will use automated systems, now bolstered by AI, to contact hundreds of thousands of people at once. This makes this scam both extremely common and easy to avoid. The simplest way to prevent the wrong number scam is to block calls and texts from unknown numbers. Nearly every mobile phone offers this as a setting, and it is very easy to activate or deactivate whenever you want. If you want to be able to receive calls from people you don’t know, perhaps for business or social reasons, there is just one simple lesson to learn to protect yourself. No one is going to text you accidentally and then start a relationship or give you useful financial advice. 

ROMANCE SCAM More people are meeting their partners online today than ever before, but bad actors are now posing as potential romantic partners with a very different motive. Always be wary of too much too soon, and always take a moment to consider if something is too good to be true. It’s very easy to use tools like ChatGPT to create the perfect flirtatious response to continue a conversation. Declarations of love within days and plans for a future together before you’ve even met are not the hallmarks of a whirlwind romance, but of a scam in progress. 

GRANDPARENT SCAM The grandparent scam is one of the more sophisticated scams and can employ multiple AI tools. The core of the scam is that someone will pose as a family member, often a grandchild, niece or nephew, and request money from a grandparent ( Jones, 2024). It can be an “emergency” where they are abroad and need help for a flight home, or even something as simple as needing a loan to buy textbooks for school. These days, sophisticated scammers will use AI to create a realistic copy of the family member’s voice and then call the grandparent on the phone and make the request. Sometimes entire videos are faked, and context can be pulled from social profiles to help create scripts for what to say. These approaches can be very difficult to spot and can cause strife within families, as sometimes people may not believe it is the work of a scammer. 

How Can You Tell If Someone Is a Scammer? 

One of the easiest ways to uncover a person trying to trick you is to see how motivated they are to talk to you. My family has received many messages from wrong numbers over the years. We even have some fun stories where a wrong number was added to a group chat and joined in our conversation. Humans are social creatures and sometimes we send messages to wrong numbers and then briefly follow basic etiquette to explain and resolve the situation. But people who push to have a connection with you when they have no reason to do so almost always have an ulterior motive. 

Scams follow a consistent flow. It’s important to realize that scammers are sending out thousands to millions of messages, then seeing who replies. They test initial messages to discover what works to get you talking, and then push you beyond normal polite manners to establish a connection with you to keep the conversation going. Often, they try to ask about your life or express an interest in your well-being, simply as a tactic to expand your comfort zone. Their goal is to be able to discuss finances or make recommendations about apps in order to get you to take an action that grants them access to your money. 

Scammers can be highly attentive to you because this is their primary occupation. They have access to Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools that can help them keep track of your specific details. They can use AI tools to imitate language varieties that will be familiar and persuasive to you, whether or not they really speak that way. In particular, the ability of tools like ChatGPT to produce coherent and persuasive language has significantly increased the ability of criminals to present themselves as being either family or someone located locally to their targets. 

Once you are in the flow of the scam, it’s only a matter of time before they ask about your finances, either to help with a loan, explore an opportunity, or teach you about cryptocurrency. Here is another lesson to understand: Even if you think it’s safe, if you send money to someone you don’t know or add them to an unknown account, it is very likely that money is NOT recoverable. New apps and websites come out frequently, which can make it look like you are making an investment under your control. Actually, you are just depositing money into a scammer’s account. This money is almost never recovered, even if the police are able to get involved. 

What Can We Do? 

Fundamentally, a scam takes place when you willingly give money to someone or make an investment in something that proves to be fraudulent. The obvious solution is to simply never to send money to anyone— but most of us need to make transactions. What you can do is designate a specific list of people you are willing to send money to, and establish hidden phrases or passwords ahead of time. Before making a transaction, ask for and share those passwords verbally. The key is to pause and consider, to research and reach out for advice from a trusted party when something seems amiss. This simple habit can be the barrier that keeps a scam at bay. 

Critical thinking is our ally in the digital realm. Scammers rely on emotional manipulation, urgency, fear, and pretense of affection to bypass our logical reasoning. By remaining grounded and questioning motives behind unsolicited requests, especially those involving money, we can protect our financial assets and emotional well-being. 

Educating ourselves and our circles can play a pivotal role. In today’s digital age, knowledge truly is power. Learning about the latest scams and sharing that knowledge can help to protect you along with your friends, family, and even acquaintances online. It’s remarkable how a simple conversation or shared article can enlighten and help protect others from falling victim to potential scams. 

Keeping the lines of communication open about our online experiences invites wisdom into our digital lives. When we talk openly about the scams we’ve encountered or heard about, we break down the isolation that scammers rely on. It’s this isolation that makes scams believable. By sharing our stories, we not only protect ourselves but also help others to defend from criminals.

A Tool For Families to Teach About Online Scams 

To further this goal, I would like to share how you might talk with clients or aging loved ones about the threat of AI-powered scams. In this kind of conversation, it can help to note that scammers use advanced technology to fool even government officials and CEOs. Emphasize the importance of using skepticism towards unsolicited requests for money or personal information. Make a plan to verify the identity of the requester through secondary channels or shared passphrases. The goal is to empower the whole family to protect themselves from devastating scams and to reinforce open communication and support. 

BEGINNING THE CONVERSATION “Mom/Dad, I’ve been reading a lot about how much the Internet has changed recently and how it can affect our safety. There’s something important I think we should discuss. It’s about staying safe online and using caution on the phone to make sure we’re not taken advantage of by people who may be predators.” 

EXPLAINING THE SITUATION “The truth is, the Internet has given people all over the world access to everyone else. This has introduced new risks. Scammers are using more sophisticated technology and artificial intelligence to trick people, especially older adults, into giving away their money or personal information. Thanks to AI, today they can easily pretend to be me, sound like me, and even look like me on a video call.” 

THE IMPORTANCE OF CAUTION “The number one rule for staying safe online: Never send money or personal information in response to an unsolicited request, whether it comes through an email, a phone call, a text message, or social media. If someone you don’t know contacts you asking for money or personal info, it’s almost certainly a scam. Unfortunately, even if you know them, it can still be a scam, since it might be an impersonator and not actually the person they claim to be. We can create a ‘family password’ to verify our identity in the future.” 

PRACTICAL STEPS “If you ever get contacted by someone claiming to be from a company you know, or even a family member in distress, use rule number two: hang up or ignore the message, take a moment to breathe, and then contact the company or person directly using a phone number or email address you know is real. This step alone can protect you from most scams.” 

ENCOURAGING OPEN DIALOGUE “I want you to know that you can always talk to me if you’re unsure about something you’ve received online or over the phone. It’s okay to ask questions or to say ‘no’ to requests for money or information, even if it seems like I’m the one asking. Protecting yourself doesn’t mean you’re being rude; it means you’re being smart and safe.” 

EMPOWERING THROUGH EDUCATION “Let’s also spend time together going over some common types of scams and how to identify them. I think it would be great for us to learn more about this together. There are resources and articles available to help us get better at spotting scams. What do you think?” 

CLOSING WITH SUPPORT “I know this can be a lot to take in, but I’m here to help you through it. Together, we can make sure you’re as protected as possible. It’s not about living in fear; it’s about being informed and prepared. I love you, and want to make sure you’re safe in this digital age.” 

Andrew Lekashman is an experienced management consultant with a passion for helping businesses create and evolve their brands, products, and eCommerce strategies. With an impressive track record of building consumer electronics, AI healthcare software, consumer packaged goods, online community platforms, and digital media libraries, Andrew has the expertise and experience to bring innovative ideas to life. Reach him at andrew@lekashman.com. 

REFERENCES 

Chainanalysis. (2024, January 18). 2024 Crypto crime trends: Illicit activity down as scamming and stolen funds fall, but ransomware and darknet markets see growth. https://www.chainalysis.com/ blog/2024-crypto-crime-report-introduction/ 

Internet Crime Complaint Center. (2022). Elder fraud report 2022. Federal Bureau of Investigation. https://www.ic3.gov/Media/ PDF/AnnualReport/2022_IC3ElderFraudReport.pdf 

Glick, M. (2024, March 24). Facebook is filled with AI-generated garbage—and older adults are being tricked. Daily Beast. https:// www.thedailybeast.com/how-seniors-are-falling-for-ai-generatedpics-on-facebook 

Jones, A. (2024, March 25). 80-year-old grandmother scammed out of $30,000 after thinking her grandson needed help. KCRA3 News. https://www.kcra.com/article/grandmother-grandsonscam-30000-dollars/60288750 

Saulsbery, G. (2024, February 8). Ex-Heartland Tri-State CEO charged with embezzling $47M in crypto. Banking Dive. https:// www.bankingdive.com/news/ex-heartland-tri-state-ceoshan-hanes-charged-embezzling-47m-crypto-kansas-bankfailure/706992/ 

Waterman, G. (2023, December 8). Top 5 financial scams targeting older adults. National Council on Aging. https://www.ncoa.org/ article/top-5-financial-scams-targeting-older-adults