Silver surfers
Senior citizens increasingly explore use of mobile services
Chen Zhuying runs a vegetable stall at a morning market in Nanping, Fujian province. After Chen tells her customers how much their goods cost, they scan a sheet of paper bearing her QR payment code and transfer the money to her account while she packs their goods.
Once payment has been made, Chen’s phone buzzes with an alert that tells her the money has arrived in her mobile wallet.
Receiving payment used to be a hassle for the 68-year-old, who often had to fumble in her pocket for change while answering queries from customers at the busy stall.
But things became much easier after she set up mobile payment apps such as WeChat Pay and Alipay on her phone in July. The printed black-and-white QR code hanging on her stall has helped streamline the payment process.
Like Chen, many seniors in China have started to embrace internet-based mobile technology and enjoy the convenience of digital payment.
Data released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences at the end of 2017 showed that the proportion of internet users age 60 or older had risen to 5.2 percent, up 1.2 percentage points from the end of the previous year.
Meanwhile, a study published in June by Tencent, the owner of WeChat, said users age 55 and older spend an average 1.37 hours per day on the platform, and 50 percent of them use the online payment function.
Cashless society
By the start of October, Alipay had more than 700 million users in China, while more than 40 million small stores and sellers supported payment through QR code stickers, the company said.
Chen, the vegetable vendor, said: “Almost all my customers pay with their phones. It’s convenient for both of us. They don’t need their wallets, and giving them the wrong change is no longer a problem for me.
“I haven’t encountered many problems since I started using it. It’s not very complicated because I only use it to receive payments.”
Zhu Naiqiang, lives in downtown Suzhou, Jiangsu province. He picked up the habit of making mobile payments in 2017. “Online shopping and mobile payment are musts in my life, bringing me convenience and also fun,” he said.
The 72-year-old uses his phone to make payments when shopping or eating out, and also arranges hospital appointments, books train tickets, pays his electricity and water bills, recharges his phone and orders takeout food.
“I learned to use a local mobile app to buy vegetables and cooked food. I usually buy the food at night, and it is delivered to me the next day,” said the former aerospace engineer who enjoys studying new technologies.
“Although many senior citizens stick to their old habits, it saves time and energy for me, especially in bad weather,” he said, “Also, I don’t have to rely on my children for many things.”
Chen’s daughter-in-law taught her how to use the payment app. Now, the QR code is an integral part of her business and she regularly uses the mobile check-out.
Her son, who lives with her, made the QR code at a local print store.
“More retailers like me are providing mobile payment services, because if you only accept cash, some people might be unwilling to buy from you, especially young people who are used to shopping without using cash,” she said.
“In July, I felt I had to learn about it and asked my children for help. They were very patient when they explained how to use the functions. I am very lucky.”
She added that one of the stallholders at her market is a 60-something who does not use modern payment methods, which sometimes means that he loses customers.
“He doesn’t have a smartphone, and his children don’t know much about new mobile applications either, so no one can help him,” she said.
According to the Tencent report, the three most popular ways for seniors to learn about internetbased payment methods are: family members; articles shared via social media such as WeChat; and television, newspapers or radio.
However, Zhu, who lives apart from his children, said one question that has long bothered him is who will help seniors who are willing to learn but don’t know how.
“Most of my friends of similar age can use WeChat to send messages, but less than 20 percent of them use the online payment function. The main factor that prevents senior citizens from using these techniques is that they have nowhere to learn,” he said.
“Things that are easy and natural for members of the younger generation can seem very complicated to seniors,” he said, adding that older people need to be taught face-toface, and they are prone to giving up at any time.
“However, senior citizens are usually retirees, so they don’t have younger colleagues they can learn from, and our children are busy so we cannot ask them for help at all times.”
Associated risks
The rising use of online payment comes with a growing risk of fraud and robbery. Credulousness and a lack of web knowledge often mean middle-aged and elderly netizens are more vulnerable to internet fraud.
The Tencent report showed that about 37 percent of seniors had experienced some form of internet fraud, including false advertising and fake medicines.
Deng Lingyu, 28, from Shanghai, said even though the online payment function can make life much more convenient, he has never thought of teaching his 50-something father how to use it.
“There are some potential risks, and some traps online are very misleading, even for young people,” he said, noting that there are many false or deceptive ads online that may prompt people to buy items that are not worth the money.
“In addition, the design of the apps is a little complicated for the elderly and the functions change all the time, so they might have difficulty keeping up. My parents think it is OK to keep their old habits and not change. I think it’s safer to keep them away from the risks online.”
Zhu said many of his fellow seniors are in a dilemma because they are reluctant to try mobile payment once they realize that their bank account is involved, even though they want to.
He said it would be helpful if community social workers organized workshops to help seniors learn more about new technologies to prevent them falling victim to internet fraud.
“I have thought about compiling a detailed guide to help seniors learn about these functions, but it seems too hard to do it all on my own,” he said.
Online shopping and mobile payment are musts in my life, bringing me convenience and also fun.” Zhu Naiqiang, a 72-year-old in Suzhou, Jiangsu province