This is one of those weird little fears that inhabits the back of my mind. I imagine that airbags are designed to not explode unless there’s an acciddent, but what about in an aging car? Could a rare or random electrical system problem cause the airbag to suddenly blow up in my face while I’m driving down the street?
Theoretically, it could happen, but the chances are extremely low. There have been a few rare instances where cars had faulty crash sensors resulting in a recall because of the slight chance of a false deployment. However, I’d say of the things to worry about happening while driving your car, your airbag just going off would be around #894.
Let’s put it this way: you are FAR more likely to be saved by your airbag than killed by it (assuming you’re not a 10 year old!).