Cromwell, CT - A newly-released study from Better Business Bureau shatters the notion that seniors are at greatest risk of being defrauded. According to "Cracking the Invulnerability Illusion: Stereotypes, Optimism Bias, and the Way Forward for Marketplace Scam Education," the stereotype could not be further from reality.
"There is a mistaken belief that typical fraud victims are vulnerable and elderly, or gullible and poorly educated," according to Connecticut Better Business Bureau spokesman Howard Schwartz. "The survey paints quite a different picture. Those at highest risk of being scammed are young and educated Millennials. In fact, none of us is invulnerable. We are all at risk of becoming victims of fraud."
The study, by the BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust, is based on a survey of more than 2,000 adults in the U.S. and Canada. Participants were asked about their perceived vulnerability to scams, who they think are most likely to be defrauded, and factors that helped them avoid becoming a victim. The participants did not know BBB was the sponsor of the survey.
Marketplace scams affect an estimated one in four North American households every year, at an annual cost to the economy of $50 billion. Despite the growing numbers of fraud victims, most consumers believe they are invulnerable to scams.
The study addresses the concept of "optimism bias, the belief that we think other people are more vulnerable than we are. This works to the advantage of criminals because optimism bias is associated with risk-taking and failure to heed precautionary advice.
Consumers 65 and older may be more fraud-savvy than other age groups. They do not believe they are invulnerable and understand they are at risk. Seniors are less impulsive buyers than younger consumers and less likely to conduct commerce over the internet where so many scams take place.
Download "Cracking the Invulnerability Illusion" at BBB.org/TruthAboutScams
The new research also confirms some trends noted in BBB Scam Tracker, a crowd-sourced reporting tool. More than 30,000 consumers have reported details of scams to BBB since the site was launched in late 2015, and reports are shared with law enforcement to drive investigations.
- Leverage Technology, Crowdsourcing and Altruism: Targets of scams feel empowered when they can take back some control by reporting what has happened to them in order to help warn others. This altruistic impulse is the number one motivator for reporting scams. As noted in the report, "The voices and stories of others have the potential to normalize the problem in a positive way, shedding the shame and stigma of victimization with the message that, if it can happen to other people like me, it can happen to me."
- Take Aim at the Optimism Bias: Consumer education must heighten perceptions of personal risk and provide information that boosts confidence in one's ability to protect oneself. Motivation to take protective action requires both the sense that one is vulnerable and the tools to do something about it. Effective public education must take a twofold approach; it must confront its audience with messaging that runs counter to stereotypes and perceived invulnerability, while simultaneously providing information that empowers individuals to avoid becoming victims.
- Provide Preemptive Information: When asked what might have prevented them from being scammed, survey participants said prior knowledge about different scam types and understanding criminals' methods would have helped. Nearly 80% of respondents identified one of these two factors as most protective; only one in five felt doing research after being approached by a scammer was most protective.