The FIDO Alliance’s 2024 Online Authentication Barometer found that more than half of consumers (53%) reported an increase in suspicious messages and online scams in 2024. This rise was most commonly observed in SMS messages (53%) and email (49%), with notable increases also seen in phone/voice messages, social media, instant messaging apps, fake adverts, and fake articles.
Key findings include
Younger consumers are especially attuned to these threats: 61% of 25–34-year-olds and 54% of 18–24-year-olds reported noticing an increase in the sophistication of scam messages, compared to just 33% of those aged 55–64 and 25% of those over 65.
Also, AI-driven threats are a growing concern. Over half (51%) detected an increase in the sophistication of scam messages, which is likely linked to the rise of AI-enhanced attacks.
The survey, conducted in August 2024, included 10,000 consumers across ten countries, including the US, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, India, and China. The report highlights that consumers are increasingly worried about their online safety, perceiving threats as more frequent and more sophisticated than in previous years.
