Revealing the Unexpected Age Group Most Vulnerable to Financial Scams

Surprise: It’s Not the Elderly

For decades, the common belief was that seniors were the main victims of financial scams. Yet, fresh research reveals a surprising trend: younger adults are disproportionately falling prey to fraud. This shift is largely fueled by their extensive use of digital platforms, which scammers exploit expertly.

"Many young people mistakenly think being tech-savvy makes them immune to scams," says Adewale Adeife, a senior cybersecurity consultant at EY. "This false confidence often leads them to lower their defenses, making them prime targets for quick-money fraud schemes."

This article delves into the specific scams targeting various age groups and the psychological reasons why younger adults are especially vulnerable.

Key Insights

• Data from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission reveals that young adults lose money to scams nearly twice as often as seniors, challenging traditional assumptions about fraud victims.
• Common scams targeting younger people include fake e-commerce sites, cryptocurrency fraud, and bogus job offers circulated via social media.

Age-Related Vulnerabilities: Facts Over Myths

While older adults were once seen as the primary fraud victims, recent studies show younger adults are losing money at higher rates, even as scam success rates rise across all ages.

Scammers leverage age-related factors such as online behavior, social habits, financial status, and psychological tendencies. According to 2024 FTC data, 44% of people aged 20-29 who reported fraud experienced financial losses, compared to just 24% of those aged 70-79. Similarly, a 2024 study by PYMTS Intelligence and Featurespace found 83% of young adults fell for suspicious links at least once, with 39% of millennials and 36% of Gen Z reporting household scam losses, versus only 19% of Baby Boomers and older.

Important Reminder

Fraud affects all demographics—no one is too savvy to be targeted. Between 2023 and 2024, the FTC reported a 40% increase in scams resulting in financial loss.

Digital Natives at Risk

Being a "digital native" doesn’t guarantee immunity. A March 2025 study on Instagram users aged 16-29 found that frequent social media use often prompts snap decisions instead of careful risk evaluation, explains Jennifer Klütsch, one of the study’s authors, in the Wall Street Journal.

The research also highlights that young users tend to trust messages from known senders without scrutinizing suspicious links and act impulsively due to fear of missing out on social events. These traits align perfectly with scammers’ tactics. Messages from followers and those offering social opportunities significantly increase phishing susceptibility among youth.

"Social media’s trusted and habitual nature, combined with its design, makes it a fertile ground for social engineering attacks," the researchers concluded.

Scams Specifically Targeting Young Adults

Young people face scams tailored to their lifestyle and online habits, including:

• Employment scams: Fake recruiters request training fees or use fraudulent check schemes where victims deposit bogus checks and send money for "training" or "equipment," says Adeife.
• Online shopping scams: Young consumers are over twice as likely as those over 40 to pay scammers with credit cards for products like event tickets, salon services, jewelry, clothing, and eyewear.
• Cryptocurrency fraud: This scam type boasts a 60% success rate among younger targets, making it highly lucrative for fraudsters.
• Social media scams: Platforms like Instagram have become hotspots for fraud, with scammers impersonating influencers or friends and creating urgency through fake threats like "Your account will be closed." Since 69% of Gen Z report being "always online" compared to 32% of Baby Boomers, scammers have greater access to younger users, exploiting trust in messages from supposed followers.

Final Thoughts

"Young adults are particularly vulnerable to phishing attacks that exploit their expectations and needs," Klütsch and her team noted in their 2025 study. The global reach of scammers means young people are defrauded at rates far exceeding those of older generations. The FTC emphasizes, "While many believe scams mainly affect seniors, reports reveal that anyone can become a victim."

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