Carefull Taps Duke Neuroscientist Gregory Samanez-Larkin to Advance Elder Fraud Prevention

Carefull has appointed Duke neuroscientist Gregory Samanez-Larkin as a Research Fellow to integrate behavioral economics and neuroscience into financial protection technology. For fintech professionals, this move signals a shift from reactive transaction monitoring toward proactive behavioral analysis, aiming to identify cognitive decline or vulnerability before fraudulent activity occurs in the accounts of older adults.

What was announced

The appointment of Gregory Samanez-Larkin as a Research Fellow at Carefull marks a strategic effort to bridge the gap between academic neuroscience and practical fintech applications. Samanez-Larkin brings over twenty years of experience studying the intersection of aging, cognition, and the brain’s role in financial decision-making. His role involves translating these decades of academic findings into real-world tools designed to mitigate fraud, exploitation, and general financial harm.

The initiative focuses on the "science of financial vulnerability." Unlike traditional fraud detection systems that trigger alerts based on suspicious transactions—such as unusual geographic locations or high-value transfers—this approach seeks to identify changes in judgment and behavior that precede the transaction itself. By understanding how cognitive changes manifest in financial patterns, the technology aims to provide a layer of protection that surfaces risks before a traditional system would recognize a threat. Samanez-Larkin’s work will specifically address why translating these academic insights into practical protection has historically been a challenge and how new behavioral models can be implemented to protect aging populations from increasingly sophisticated financial threats. This research-led approach is intended to create a direct bridge between behavioral economics and the development of financial protection technology.

"The broader goal is to advance the science of financial vulnerability, understanding how changes in judgment, behavior, and decision-making may surface before a traditional fraud system ever sees a suspicious transaction."

Statement from Carefull.

The companies involved

Carefull is a financial technology company dedicated to the "financial caregiving" sector, providing a platform designed to protect the assets of older adults. Operating via its website at getcarefull.com, the company specializes in monitoring accounts for signs of fraud, elder financial abuse, and common errors that may stem from cognitive decline. The firm occupies a specific niche in the market, sitting at the intersection of wealth management, daily banking, and family caregiving. Its leadership team includes Becky Ross, who serves as the Head of Marketing at Carefull.

Durham University is an academic institution that has become a notable voice in the fintech regulatory space. The university has recently contributed to the industry discourse by advocating for specialized oversight of emerging technologies, particularly regarding how they impact vulnerable consumers. While Gregory Samanez-Larkin joins Carefull from his background as a Duke neuroscientist, the inclusion of Durham University in the broader context of financial protection research highlights a growing trend of academic institutions and fintech firms collaborating to address the unique risks posed by the digitization of finance for populations with varying levels of cognitive and technological literacy.

What FF News has reported before

FF News has previously tracked the evolution of both the regulatory environment and Carefull’s product suite. In April 2025, the publication reported on how Carefull Introduces ScamCheck Technology to Help Older Adults Amid Growing Scam Threats, a move that established the company’s focus on proactive scam prevention. Furthermore, the broader need for specialized oversight in this space was highlighted in August 2026, when Durham University Research Calls for Tailored AI Regulatory Framework to Protect Financial Consumers. This earlier reporting underscores the industry's ongoing struggle to balance technological innovation with the specific safety requirements of the "silver economy."

What this means

This appointment moves the needle by shifting fintech beyond the binary of fraud detection. Traditional systems are often too late, intervening only after a victim has been convinced to authorize a transfer. By incorporating neuroscience, the industry is moving toward a model of cognitive health monitoring. This puts significant pressure on legacy banks, whose fraud departments are often siloed from customer health or behavioral insights. However, it also raises critical questions for the sector regarding the ethical boundaries of monitoring a user’s mental state. The challenge for the market will be proving that behavioral intervention can be delivered without infringing on the autonomy of the very people it seeks to protect.