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Mitigating the Risk of Digital Financial Exploitation

Patricia R. Recupero (2023) — Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law

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DOI: 10.29158/jaapl.230028-23 (opens in a new tab)

Country:   United States
Tags:   AI-Enabled Fraud, Digital Fraud, Elder Financial Exploitation, Financial Capacity, Financial Recovery, Older Adults, Prevention, Romance Scams
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Synopsis

            
This synopsis summarizes Patricia R. Recupero’s commentary on the risk of digital financial exploitation among older adults, as presented in the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (2023). The piece foregrounds digital fraud and scams that target seniors as technology becomes central to everyday life, with particular concern about the COVID-19 era. It reviews assessment tools for financial capacity, noting that many such tools were not designed for electronically mediated transactions, yet fraud and scams through payment apps, social media, and electronic transfers are rising. The author highlights that fraudsters often prey on isolated or vulnerable elders, causing substantial losses, and cites widespread forms of exploitation including romance scams and government impersonation schemes. The commentary surveys risk factors and protective strategies. It differentiates risks for digital financial exploitation from general elder abuse, pointing to factors like decreased social support, cognitive impairment, limited numeracy, and the dynamics of close relationships that may enable abuse. It discusses specific technologies (e.g., Zelle, Venmo, Cash App) and newer threats such as deepfake audio/video and AI-driven impersonation, while noting that banks and regulators have varying success in recouping losses. Prevention is framed as a combination of awareness, technological safeguards (two-factor authentication, security keys, alerts), and careful governance around asset management. The piece also emphasizes the ethical balance between autonomy and protection, suggesting collaboration with elder-law professionals, fiduciaries, and guardianship options when warranted, but cautions against overreach that could erode autonomy. It concludes by listing educational resources and recovery channels (hotlines, consumer protection agencies, and elder-abuse networks) and stresses ongoing prevention through education and system-level safeguards.

          

        
                  

            
Identified Gaps

            
The commentary identifies scant research on technological risk factors for financial exploitation and surprisingly little research on its potentially devastating social consequences. It also notes that technology-related problems may outpace existing legal remedies.

          

        
                  

            
Methods

            
Narrative expert commentary synthesizing prior research, government reports, legal and regulatory materials, and illustrative cases. It discusses risk factors, digital scam mechanisms, warning signs, prevention, technological safeguards, recovery resources, and ethical considerations for clinicians working with older adults.

          

        
                  

            
Limitations

            
This is a commentary rather than an original empirical study. Its claims and recommendations primarily synthesize cited studies, reports, and examples, without a stated systematic-search method, new participant data, or direct evaluation of proposed safeguards and education strategies.

          

        
                  

            
Future Work

            
Research is needed to confirm whether preventive education is the most effective strategy for reducing losses from elder digital financial exploitation. Training should also be targeted to the communication mode because its effect may decay over time.

          

              

    
    

        
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