Senate hearing on AI-enabled fraud against senior citizens
A bipartisan US Senate committee held a hearing on AI-enabled fraud against senior citizens, where older adults reported scams involving deepfakes, voice cloning, and AI chatbots. Seniors reportedly lost $7.7 billion to scams in 2025, with projections reaching $40 billion by 2027 as criminals use AI to make traditional fraud schemes more convincing and accessible.
What happened
The Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing on Wednesday to address AI-enabled fraud against older Americans. Older adults testified about harrowing experiences with AI-enabled scams and difficulties resolving them.
Reported impact
Americans over age 60 lost $7.7 billion to scams in 2025. AI-enabled fraud is projected to reach $40 billion in the United States in 2027. A 64-year-old woman, Deborah Del Mastro, recounted an incident in May in which she answered what she thought was a domestic phone call but was instead a man claiming to work for a Mexican drug cartel.
Index analysis
According to Paul Benda of the American Bankers Association, generative AI is not replacing traditional scams but 'industrializing them.' Criminals are using deepfakes, cloned voices and AI chatbots to target seniors with increasing sophistication. AI enables fraudsters to make fraudulent videos impersonating experts and celebrities, clone voices to impersonate loved ones, and send convincing phishing emails and investment schemes.
Governance controls
Ranking Member Kirsten Gillibrand disclosed that she had written to leading AI companies, including OpenAI and Meta, seeking details on safeguards for older adults and people with disabilities. The bipartisan committee is seeking ways to safeguard older Americans from AI-enabled fraud.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.