A new survey from Google LLC released today highlights a growing awareness of online scams and a gradual generational shift in security behaviors, as Google gears up its use of artificial intelligence to keep users safe across its ecosystem.

The survey, conducted in partnership with Morning Consult, finds a growing willingness among younger generations to move beyond passwords, while highlighting ongoing challenges in public cybersecurity habits.

The result found that more than 60% of U.S. consumers believe scam activity has increased in the past year, with a third having personally experienced a data breach. Scam attempts via SMS were the most common form of scam, but 61% of respondents also reported phishing via email.

Where the survey arguably gets more interesting is the generational difference in how Americans are responding to threats. Generation Z and Millennials were found to be increasingly turning to modern sign-in methods, such as passkeys and federated logins — for example, “Sign in with Google” — demonstrating a move away from traditional passwords. By contrast, Generation X and Baby Boomers were found to be more reliant on legacy methods, with more than 60% still using passwords and around half continuing to memorize or write them down.

The gap suggests a generational divide not only in the technology used but also in the underlying approach to personal security.

The findings also underscore how time spent online may be influencing security habits. More than half of Americans and more than 60% of Gen Z report spending five or more hours on their phones each day. Yet the majority say they maintain 10 or fewer online accounts, which Google attributes to the increasing use of social sign-ins.

Google is encouraging broader adoption of passkeys, positioning them as both safer and easier to use than passwords. The company is also pushing its integrated tools, such as Google Password Manager, Security Checkup and 2-Step Verification, as a second line of defense for those still using traditional credentials.

“We want to move beyond passwords altogether, so we strongly encourage passkeys, which allow you to ditch the headache of memorizing and updating passwords and stay much at the same time, Evan Kotsovinos, vice president of privacy, safety and security at Google, wrote in a blog post. Not surprisingly, he added: “We also suggest Sign in with Google, which is easy to sign up for and use across websites, and leverages the protections of your Google Account.”

The survey comes as scams continue to rise in both volume and sophistication. According to data from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, online scams cost victims a record $16.6 billion in 2023, a 33% increase from the previous year. Google notes that these scams often begin with attempts to access user accounts, making strong authentication and proactive protection critical.

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