AI is changing how scams are built, shared, and trusted. A new global survey from Bitdefender shows how far the problem has spread.
AI is helping scams evolve faster than people can respond
Over seven in ten consumers encountered some form of scam in the past year. One in seven fell for one. Worry about AI driven fraud is now mainstream, with 37% listing deepfake audio and video as their top concern.
AI tools let scammers create convincing voices, videos, and requests in seconds. They can imitate family members or colleagues and can personalize messages with almost no effort. These tools make it harder to judge a scam based on tone or wording. Even though people understand the risk, many continue habits that help attackers.
Phones have become the weakest link
53% of consumers conduct the majority of their transactions on a mobile device. Mobile banking, shopping, messaging, and identity checks now happen on the same screen. Yet almost half do not use any independent security tool on their phones.
About a third of those who skip protection say security apps are too expensive. Another third say they have no reason to add them. Older adults are especially likely to believe built in features are enough or assume their device is safe by default.
The device people trust the most is often the one they protect the least. From a security perspective, that is the ideal situation for attackers, especially in a year when mobile focused scams and AI voice cloning are rising.
“These findings highlight the growing importance of cybersecurity awareness as attacks on consumers become more frequent and sophisticated in the age of AI,” said Ciprian Istrate, SVP of Operations at Bitdefender Consumer Solutions Group.
Social media drives attackers to their targets
The report identifies social platforms as the top channel for scams this year. Social media now surpasses email, phone calls, and text messages. Attackers follow users to the places where they share the largest amount of personal information.
About one third of respondents said they received a scam through social media. Oversharing continues to be a major factor. 66% of people post personal photos, videos, or life events. Younger users, who share the highest volume of content, are twice as likely to be scammed as older adults.
Attackers gather voice clips, travel photos, relationship details, and other personal material from public posts. They use these snippets to build convincing scripts or create AI generated imitations. The more people share online, the easier it becomes for criminals to tailor a message that seems credible.
Convenience is king
Convenience continues to outweigh basic security habits. Consumers still write down passwords, and reuse the same one across several accounts. Only about a quarter use a password manager. Cookie behavior follows the same pattern. Nearly half accept all cookies without reviewing settings, and many skim or ignore the terms.
These shortcuts weaken privacy controls and give attackers more ways to profile targets. Scam victims are even more likely to accept all cookies than those who have avoided scams.
Trust in big tech is selective
Consumers trust large technology companies such as Google, Microsoft, and Apple with at least some of their information. At the same time, more than half say they do not trust platforms like TikTok or X.
Even when people express trust, they limit the types of data they are willing to share. Nearly 60% want to keep payment information private. Many also want to keep personal details, photos, or location data. People depend on these companies daily, but they draw firm boundaries around sensitive data.
Financial loss remains the top fear
53% of consumers say they fear financial loss the most, but they behave in ways that increase the chances of losing money. Identity theft follows at 17%. Issues such as email compromise, stolen photos, or doxxing fall far behind.
Older adults are the most focused on protecting financial accounts. Younger adults worry more about stolen identity and misuse of personal images. Across regions, the United Kingdom and Australia show the highest levels of concern about financial attacks.
5% of respondents say they are not concerned about losing anything. Given the scale of global fraud losses, that level of complacency shows how much work remains in basic education and prevention.