Chairman Rick Scott, Ranking Member Kirsten Gillibrand Unveil AI Report, Highlight Opportunities and Risks for Older Americans

WASHINGTON, D.C.- Today, U.S. Senator Rick Scott, Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, and Ranking Member Kirsten Gillibrand released a new report, Artificial Intelligence & Older Americans: Confronting New Threats, Unlocking New Opportunities, detailing the potential uses and risks Artificial Intelligence (AI) poses for older Americans.

The Aging Committee will also hold a hearing today, "The AI Deception Machine: Deepfakes, Chatbots, and the New Frontier of Senior Fraud," to hear from experts and victims to examine how AI has fueled an alarming and highly complex rise in fraud.

Chairman Rick Scott said, "Scams have advanced far beyond annoying phone calls and deceiving emails. Highly sophisticated criminal organizations are taking advantage of people's love for their family members and using AI to clone their voices and bilk older Americans out of their savings. This is evil. As Chairman, I am committed to using every resource necessary to safeguard our seniors from these threats and ensure law enforcement has every tool available to go after fraudsters. America's seniors deserve the peace of mind of knowing that when they answer the phone, it's their actually loved one on the line. I'm proud to join Ranking Member Gillibrand to confront this problem and provide resources for older Americans wanting to shield themselves from bad actors."

Ranking Member Kirsten Gillibrand said, "This report serves as a roadmap for how we can protect our seniors and vulnerable populations as AI rapidly develops. By making it easier for bad actors to clone voices, fabricate images, and deceive targets, AI has facilitated an alarming rise in financial scams that rob our seniors of their hard-earned savings and personal information. However, AI can also be used to catch scammers, stop falls, and prevent loneliness. To address both the growing threat of AI-enabled scams and the significant opportunity that AI presents to improve the well-being of aging populations, we must strengthen the government's ability to crack down on scammers and pass legislation to promote the responsible development of AI. I am proud to lead the fight for these reforms and release this comprehensive report on the risks and benefits of AI for our aging population."

Highlights of the report include:

• Americans reported nearly $21 billion in cybercrime losses in 2025, with $893 million tied to AI-enabled scams across more than 22,000 complaints.
• More than 82 percent of phishing emails are now created with the help of AI.
• Older Americans using AI companion devices experienced a 95 percent drop in feelings of loneliness, along with substantial gains in overall well-being.
• AI can potentially reduce preventable adverse drug reactions, lower hospitalization costs, and improve quality of life for the millions of seniors managing multiple chronic conditions.

This report builds on the Aging Committee's work to combat scammers targeting older Americans:

• In July 2025, Chairman Rick Scott and Ranking Member Kirsten Gillibrand released the Aging Committee's Annual Fraud Report that first explored the rise in sophisticated AI schemes.
• In July 2025, Chairman Rick Scott, Ranking Member Kirsten Gillibrand, and Senator Katie Britt introduced the Guarding Unprotected Aging Retirees from Deception (GUARD) Act to help protect seniors from increasingly sophisticated financial scams by giving state and local law enforcement specialized training to combat these schemes.
• In June 2026, Chairman Rick Scott introduced the ReportScams.Gov Act to create the first centralized online hub for Americans to report scams and get assistance after being targeted by fraudsters.
• The Aging Committee also offers scam education tools and operates a fraud hotline to report scams. Click here to complete the webform or call 1-855-303-9470.

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