NEW YORK–When credit unions think about members at risk from financial phishing scams, the focus is typically on older members and seniors. But one expert says there is another surprising group at risk—consumers between the ages 16-29.
Two recent studies of Instagram users in that age cohort show that the “promise of a social opportunity can be so alluring that it can cause many young people to let down their guard and fall for a phishing scam,” according to the Wall Street Journal.
The lead author of both studies, Jennifer Klütsch, a Ph.D. candidate and research associate in the work and engineering psychology department at RWTH Aachen University in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, told the Journal that young people are vulnerable to phishing scams on social media for a simple reason: they use social-media services more than any other age group and typically make quick, instinctive decisions instead of systematically evaluating risks.
“In my study, 82.9% fell for a suspicious link in a message at least once, and particularly for those that appeared to be from a friend or a follower,” Klütsch said in a Q&A with the Journal. “They interacted without a second thought because they trust the Instagram platform.”
FOMO Leads to RISKO
In addition, Klütsch said young adults in particular have an intense fear of missing out on social experiences.
“One of my studies showed that phishing messages promising social opportunities—like an invite that says, ‘Check out this private event happening tonight!’—were the most successful. FOMO drives impulsive decision-making, making young adults particularly easy targets for social-engineering attacks.”
How it Works
For credit unions seeking to warn their younger members about such scams, Klütsch told the Journal scammers typically set up the social-media phishing scams in three stages.
“First, scammers send a friend request or ‘follow’ a target. Then, they send a direct message, often containing a link that promises something appealing,” Klütsch explained. “Finally, if the user engages, they might be tricked into entering login credentials or downloading malware.
“What’s particularly concerning is that some phishing scams involve hacked accounts of real friends or followers. So even if the victim only trusts messages from people they know, they’re still at risk,” Klütsch added.
The Advice
Klütsch advised young people to not be afraid to verify messages with their friends, and reminded that: Instagram has introduced a feature that alerts users about a suspicious link before they leave the app.
