New research reveals young, busy and financially stretched people are most targeted by scammers
New research by cyber intelligence company OXIL overturns assumptions that elderly people are those most vulnerable to the online scammers – with situational factors rather than a person’s age emerging as more significant correlations. Being tired, going through a break-up or struggling with a gambling problem are some of the factors that make people more likely to be targeted by scammers. That is the central finding of new research from OXIL (Oxford Information Labs), the cyber intelligence company behind the Global Signal Exchange (GSE) – the world’s first global, multi-stakeholder and cross-sector clearing house for threat signals.
The data reframes what fraud risk actually looks like. It is not a demographic profile – it is a situational one. More than one in four people who consider themselves impulsive (26%) have experienced attempted scams. The same is true for people going through a major life change (23%) – such as a divorce, a house move or the arrival of a new baby – and those with a gambling problem (29%). Across every group, the pattern is the same: disruption, distraction and dependency create the gaps that scammers exploit.
Carolina Caeiro, Director of Policy at OXIL Research said: “The fraud conversation has been stuck on the wrong question for years. We keep asking who is targeted, and the answer we assume is older people on their own. But our research shows the real question is when. When someone is exhausted, financially pressured, going through a break-up or managing a dependency, their ability to pause and question what’s in front of them drops. That’s not a character flaw. That’s a human condition. And it’s exactly what modern scams are built to exploit.”
Of those who acknowledged that situational factors had affected their ability to spot a scam, tiredness and lack of sleep was the single most cited factor at 29%. Financial worry came second at 22%, followed by having a hectic work-life balance at 21%. Nationally, 81% of people aged 18-29 acknowledged that situational factors had played a role in making them more vulnerable, compared to a national average of 62%.
The OXIL research also identifies the specific types of scam that map onto specific situations. People going through a house-move are disproportionately targeted by urgency-based scams involving fake deadlines, fines and demands. Those with a gambling problem are more than twice as likely to encounter fake romance scams. People in financial difficulty are drawn towards get-rich-quick schemes and cash prize fraud at rates well above the national average.
Alice Taylor, senior scam and fraud researcher at OXIL Research adds: “This research matters for how fraud intelligence is built and applied. Tackling scammers is not about telling victims what they could have done differently, how they could have educated themselves, or leaving them to blame themselves. Instead, we need organisations across sectors to do more to safeguard people. We are developing Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Training on Safeguarding Adults Against Scams and Fraud. This will enable practitioners from law enforcement, healthcare, and social services to add scam and fraud awareness to their existing safeguarding frameworks.”
The OXIL research found that 89% of people have received what they believe to be a scam attempt. Among the groups most likely to be targeted are those with linguistic disabilities (35%), parents of pre-school-age children (23%) and people who have recently been through a bereavement (21%).
