Cyber security and digital exclusion of seniors: What do they fear?

Seniors represent a group that, compared to other groups, lives in a digital exclusion to an excessive extent, mainly due to the fact that they lack the necessary knowledge to use digital technology and digital services. Based on empirical data collected from seniors partaking in digital training, we have analyzed their perceptions of why they and other seniors are digitally excluded. Our findings point out that a major barrier for seniors to be more digitally included is different variants of fear of using digital technology and digital services. The common denominator can be traced down the possibilities to be exposed to frauds, scams, viruses, and faulty handling, which in turn cause undesired consequences. Consequently, we propose a research agenda where digital training and digital inclusion measurements should be studied side by side with cybersecurity behavior.