5 ms·

One thing I've learned about old people (and in the US, the people in charge are _OLD_) is that they have no concept of being scammed like this. So they may re

One thing I've learned about old people (and in the US, the people in charge are _OLD_) is that they have no concept of being scammed like this. So they may recognize trolling, but if you tell them "Hey, the President of Israel tweeted at you," they just assume it was the President of Israel.

partiallypro 2y ago
Aside from the terminally online politicians (like Mike Lee, AOC, Cruz, MTG) most do not use their own accounts or even look at them. They might have a firm that measure constituent engagement, but still to this day the most effective way to complain to your congress person is a phone call or email. If we're being serious, the latter is what these bot farms, etc are after. They want to influence actual constituents to do their ultimate bidding. Now if we can get evidence of a huge phone campaign using AI voice, that would be much more alarming. Israel is doing it, and Iran/Russia/Hamas adjacent are doing it. There's absolutely no denying it.
cafard 2y ago
I am in my upper 60s--if a bit junior for Congress, let alone the White House--but like to think of myself as a bit more skeptical than that.
- some-guy 2y ago
  Helping my parents in their mid-70s is a constant uphill battle with these things. I simply tell her to ignore *everything* and if she needs confirmation to get in contact with me.
The_Colonel 2y ago
So the logic is something like this: * my grandmother can't recognize fake information * my grandmother is old * politicians are old * therefore politicians can't recognize fake information Politics has always been full of deception, people doing politics professionally for decades should know a bit or two about it.
- digging 2y ago
  > Politics has always been full of deception, people doing politics professionally for decades should know a bit or two about it. I think it's worth pushing back on this. Deception works when it's unexpected, and if the medium is something politicians aren't familiar with, they may not even be looking for the kinds of deception they're being targeted with. They think themselves hardened to deception, but they may not be open-minded enough to even realize there are forms of deception they haven't prepared for.
- laweijfmvo 2y ago
  I shouldn't have implied it's 100%, but on average, how many gen Z'ers are getting scammed online vs. Boomers? Kids these days just know everything is a scam or BS, but I can't seem to convince my parents' generation that someone would lie to them via e-mail.
  - The_Colonel 2y ago
    My point is that top-level politicians are not your average grandma.
    - defrost 2y ago
      And yet their ranks have examples of senior top level politicians being scammed or phished at similar ball park rates to other people. eg: (Various headlines) * Australian Politicians Keep Falling For Telegram Scams * The phishing email that hacked the account of John Podesta * Who is behind the Westminster WhatsApp 'honeytrap' stings?
      - The_Colonel 2y ago
        You can find examples for everything, the question is whether the incidence among politicians is close to the average elderly population (as implied in the original comment).

partiallypro 2y ago

Aside from the terminally online politicians (like Mike Lee, AOC, Cruz, MTG) most do not use their own accounts or even look at them. They might have a firm that measure constituent engagement, but still to this day the most effective way to complain to your congress person is a phone call or email. If we're being serious, the latter is what these bot farms, etc are after. They want to influence actual constituents to do their ultimate bidding. Now if we can get evidence of a huge phone campaign using AI voice, that would be much more alarming. Israel is doing it, and Iran/Russia/Hamas adjacent are doing it. There's absolutely no denying it.

cafard 2y ago

I am in my upper 60s--if a bit junior for Congress, let alone the White House--but like to think of myself as a bit more skeptical than that.

some-guy 2y ago
Helping my parents in their mid-70s is a constant uphill battle with these things. I simply tell her to ignore *everything* and if she needs confirmation to get in contact with me.

The_Colonel 2y ago

So the logic is something like this: * my grandmother can't recognize fake information * my grandmother is old * politicians are old * therefore politicians can't recognize fake information Politics has always been full of deception, people doing politics professionally for decades should know a bit or two about it.

digging 2y ago
> Politics has always been full of deception, people doing politics professionally for decades should know a bit or two about it. I think it's worth pushing back on this. Deception works when it's unexpected, and if the medium is something politicians aren't familiar with, they may not even be looking for the kinds of deception they're being targeted with. They think themselves hardened to deception, but they may not be open-minded enough to even realize there are forms of deception they haven't prepared for.
laweijfmvo 2y ago
I shouldn't have implied it's 100%, but on average, how many gen Z'ers are getting scammed online vs. Boomers? Kids these days just know everything is a scam or BS, but I can't seem to convince my parents' generation that someone would lie to them via e-mail.
- The_Colonel 2y ago
  My point is that top-level politicians are not your average grandma.
  - defrost 2y ago
    And yet their ranks have examples of senior top level politicians being scammed or phished at similar ball park rates to other people. eg: (Various headlines) * Australian Politicians Keep Falling For Telegram Scams * The phishing email that hacked the account of John Podesta * Who is behind the Westminster WhatsApp 'honeytrap' stings?
    - The_Colonel 2y ago
      You can find examples for everything, the question is whether the incidence among politicians is close to the average elderly population (as implied in the original comment).