artificial intelligence and cybercrime

Evaluating Vulnerabilities and AI Fraud in 55+ Communities 3

Evaluating Vulnerabilities and Ai-Driven Fraud in 55+ Communities

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CRJ 233 Cyber Crimes and the Law

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EVALUATING VULNERABILITIES AND AI-DRIVEN FRAUD IN 55+ COMMUNITIES 3

Current and emerging communication technologies have changed how we interact with friends, family, and essential business resources. However, for many people who do not have the resources or skills needed, these changes pose a significant obstacle in their daily lives. The 55+ community is one such target group. Since members of this group have not grown up with the technologies, many of them are hesitant about changing their old patterns of communication and how they do business. Beyond the learning curve to navigate these technologies, this population is also affected by age-related cognitive, fine motor and mobility issues that make it difficult for them to interact modern technologies and devices.

These vulnerabilities leave this population open to being targeted and exploited by bad actors. When they do attempt to use these modern technologies, they find themselves navigating a “landmine” of social engineering tactics and advanced digital fraud. The increased use of AI generated texts, emails and malware has generated highly convincing romance, family emergency, and banking scams that are directly targeting this population. To protect 55+ communities from the growing threat of AI-enhanced emotional and financial scams, society must tackle the current limitations posed by skills gaps in digital literacy, physical accessibility issues, and the deceptive nature of modern social engineering.

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