Silver surfer (internet user)

Silversurfers is the term widely used in the UK, Australia and some other English speaking countries to describe people who are aged over 50 and who use the internet on a frequent basis.

[1] Other sources indicate that this growing trend among the older population is due to the increase in use of social networking sites to stay in touch with family members or close friends that live far away.

[2] Studies point to Skype, Facebook, email, and instant messaging are all highlighted as commonly used, mainly because the means for communicating have become more available and free.

[citation needed] In the UK, the government's Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that the percentage of pensioners aged 75 or over who had recently used the internet had increased from 19.9% in 2011 to 40.5% in 2017, and to 47% by 2019.

Over the same time period, the usage figures changed little for the most active sector of internet users (adults aged 16 to 44 years).