A survey conducted in the United States in August 2023 found that digital literacy among U.S. adults varied depending on the age group. Younger generations, aged 18 to 29, showed a much higher awareness of digital topics, such as online privacy, and an understanding of generative AI. However, there was a notable gap between them and individuals 65 and older. For example, only 26 percent of respondents older than 65 years could identify an example of two-factor authentication, compared to 68 percent of younger respondents.
Knowledge and awareness of digital topics among adults in the United States as of May 2023, by age group
Characteristic
18-29 years
65 years and older
Can identify an example of two-factor authentication (from a set of images)
68%
26%
A deepfake is a seemingly real, computer-generated image, video or audio of something that did not occur
60%
24%
LLMs, such as ChatGPT, create responses based on previously learned word patterns and relationships from text pulled from the internet
45%
15%
Cookies track users' visits and activity on the site
73%
57%
Facebook changed its name to Meta in 2021
80%
66%
Websites in the U.S. are prohibited from collecting data online from children under age 13 without a parent's consent
27%
14%
Elon Musk ran Tesla and Twitter in April 2023
91%
81%
Can identify most secure password (from list of four)
83%
75%
The U.S. does not have a national privacy law addressing how companies can use the data they collect
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Pew Research Center. (August 17, 2023). Knowledge and awareness of digital topics among adults in the United States as of May 2023, by age group [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved November 24, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1465239/us-adults-digital-literacy-by-age/
Pew Research Center. "Knowledge and awareness of digital topics among adults in the United States as of May 2023, by age group." Chart. August 17, 2023. Statista. Accessed November 24, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1465239/us-adults-digital-literacy-by-age/
Pew Research Center. (2023). Knowledge and awareness of digital topics among adults in the United States as of May 2023, by age group. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: November 24, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1465239/us-adults-digital-literacy-by-age/
Pew Research Center. "Knowledge and Awareness of Digital Topics among Adults in The United States as of May 2023, by Age Group." Statista, Statista Inc., 17 Aug 2023, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1465239/us-adults-digital-literacy-by-age/
Pew Research Center, Knowledge and awareness of digital topics among adults in the United States as of May 2023, by age group Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1465239/us-adults-digital-literacy-by-age/ (last visited November 24, 2024)
Knowledge and awareness of digital topics among adults in the United States as of May 2023, by age group [Graph], Pew Research Center, August 17, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1465239/us-adults-digital-literacy-by-age/
