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Senior Alerts
Are "Wired Seniors" Sitting Ducks?
by Susannah Fox
Pew Internet & American Life Project
April 12, 2006 - Currently, the
vast majority of Americans age 65 and older do not go online. But that
will likely change in a big way as the "silver tsunami" of
internet-loving Baby Boomers swamps the off-line senior population in
the next 10 years. That demographic shift, paired with a rising tide of
viruses, spyware, and other online critters, is cause for concern since
there is evidence that older users are less likely than younger ones to
take precautions against software intrusions and fraud.
The truth about "wired
seniors"
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Senior Alerts |
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"Wired seniors" (internet users age
65 or older) are often cited as the fastest-growing demographic group
online, but that description can be misleading. Most of the growth in
this group over the last few years has come from long-time internet
users in their early sixties aging into senior status. There is little
evidence that many non-users in their seventies and eighties are
suddenly getting the internet bug.
In January 2006, the Pew Internet &
American Life Project found that 34% of Americans age 65 and older go
online, up from 29% in January 2005. But a closer look at the data
reveals that just 28% of Americans age 70 and older go online -
essentially the same percentage as in January 2005 (26%).
By contrast, internet access is
near-universal for Americans under the age of 60: 89% of 18-28
year-olds, 86% of 29-40 year-olds, 78% of 41-50 year-olds, and 72% of
51-59 year-olds go online. About half (54%) of 60-69 year-olds go
online.
The common perception of the timid
older internet user is quite accurate, even for relative newcomers to
the ranks of seniors.
Wired seniors are less likely than
internet users under the age of 65 to have tried a wide range of online
activities, possibly because they are not in the market for as many
types of information as younger users who might be doing schoolwork,
trolling for dates, or scanning employment listings online.1
 In
addition, researchers at Fidelity Investments have identified "cautious
clicking" as a behavior trait of many older internet users who may share
a sense that one false move on the Web could land them in unknown or
unsafe territory.2
Younger internet users take
more chances online, but also take more precautions
Internet users in their twenties
are more likely than those in their fifties and sixties to have traveled
far and wide online, trying new things and possibly learning hard
lessons about the dangers that lurk on the network.
In a survey focused on the impact
of software intrusions on the internet, the Pew Internet Project found
that younger internet users are more likely than older users to say they
have spyware on their home computers (45% of internet users ages 18-28
report having spyware, compared to 27% of internet users ages 51-59).
With the exception of reading user
agreements more carefully, internet users between 18 and 28 years old
are also more likely than those in their fifties to make changes in
their online behavior to avoid getting unwanted software programs on
their computer.3
Older people are less vulnerable
- but also less careful - in their offline security
Online behavior patterns echo
offline experiences of both older and somewhat younger Americans.
According to a January 2006 report by the Council of Better Business
Bureaus and Javelin Strategy, Americans between the ages of 25 and 34
are twice as likely as Americans age 65 or older to be victims of
identity fraud.4 However, in a further
parallel with the Internet Project's spyware findings, a 2004 study by
the AARP found that younger people--at least those in their middle
years--are more likely than older people to take action to protect
themselves against fraud.
Among Americans ages 45-54, 84% say
they have regularly reviewed their credit card or other financial
statements in the past two years, compared with 69% of Americans age 65
and older who have done so.
Forty-one percent of Americans ages
45-54 have ordered and reviewed a copy of their credit report, compared
with 19% of Americans age 65 and older who have taken this action in the
past two years. Thirty percent of Americans ages 45-54 have told the
three major credit bureaus that they do not want to receive unsolicited
financial offers in the mail, compared with 22% of Americans age 65 and
older who have done so.5
Perhaps as they attain the status
of seniors, these now cautious and experienced internet users will
continue their prudent habits. And there is another reason to hope that
older Americans will adapt to an increase of threats. Internet users who
say they have had spyware infiltrate their computer are more likely than
other users to say they have taken action to prevent another intrusion.
Old and young alike adhere to the old adage, "once burned, twice shy."
Notes
1
Susannah Fox and Mary Madden. "Generations
online," Pew Internet & American Life Project: Jan. 22, 2006.
2
Ann Chadwick-Dias, Michelle McNulty, and Tom Tullis. "Web
Usability and Age," Fidelity Investments: Fidelity Center for
Applied Technology, Human Interface Design.
3
Susannah Fox. "Spyware."
(Pew Internet & American Life Project: July 6, 2005).
4
Javelin Strategy & Research. "2006
Identity Fraud Survey Report."
5
S. Ledbetter & L.H. Choi-Allum. "2004 Multicultural Study -
Perspectives Past, Present and Future: Traditional and Alternative
Financial Practices of the 45+ Community." (AARP Knowledge Management)
Pew Research Center -
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Pew Internet and American Life Project Reports -
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