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West Virginia Offers Free Cybersecurity Training To the Elderly (axios.com)

Posted by msmash on from the how-about-that dept.

West Virginia's Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who's currently running for U.S. Senate, announced Tuesday that he's partnering with two local community and technical colleges to connect senior citizens with college students for free cybersecurity training. The announcement comes amid rising cyber scams, many of which are targeted at elderly.

18 of 45 comments (clear)

  1. Bad idea by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

    Now the elderly will NEVER be able to find out how to pay off those student loans!

  2. Good luck... by The+Original+CDR · · Score: 3

    I tried explaining to my father to 1) not to look at naughty bits, 2) don't use his debit/credit card when prompted by a scary security warning to buy THIS SOFTWARE RIGHT NOW, and 3) don't interrupt the weekly scan from the AV software that I installed. Never works.

    1. Re:Good luck... by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      Yea but these are the experts teaching him. Not his kid.
      It doesn't matter if you more qualified by a factor of 10 to explain this to him, you are still the kid who had their face covered with Cheerios vs just eating them.

      I have had my data trying to warn me about the dangers of "Big Data" because there was a guy on Fox News talking about it. And he told this to me a day after I was finding statistical trends across a multi-million row data sets. He think I fix computers for a living.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    2. Re:Good luck... by Opportunist · · Score: 2

      Pretty much this, yes. I had a similar discussion with my father recently that ended in "Dad? I'm responsible for the IT-security of a large international corporation, my job literally is to know IT-security. You decide to get your security information from a journalist whose job it is to keep you sitting through the ad block to hear the rest of his drivel. Ponder for a moment who you think knows more about how to secure your damn computer."

      And him storming out with a "I was just saying, jeesh, can't I say anything anymore!"

      It doesn't matter whether your beard starts turning grey, for your dad, you're still the little boy. Forever.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    3. Re:Good luck... by alvinrod · · Score: 1

      The first point is about as stupid and pointless as abstinence only sex education. People are going to engage in risky forms of behavior no matter what you tell them. Rather than telling them no to do something, it's better to explain that if they choose to engage in those behaviors what they really need to watch out for and when they need to get some outside help. In high school, I had a teacher that told us that while we shouldn't be out drinking, that if anyone of us ever got drunk at a party and needed a ride home, that he would come and get us. No judgement, no lecture, just a ride home and a few students had done so over the years. He knew that he wouldn't be able to stop teenagers from partying, but he might be able to stop a few from driving drunk.

      The second one is really important though and I would add that they should never install any software that those websites tell them that they need. I would imagine that a majority of the people who have their machines infected ran an installer that told them that their flash player was out of date or something along those lines. For the third, I'd probably try to get it to run at times where it's unlikely to be obtrusive so that people don't cancel it. Anytime you've got a plan that counts on generally ignorant people doing the correct thing (which runs counter to their wants) then you're just introducing a major point of failure. In the ideal world, people would just listen and realize that they either need to become more knowledgeable and capable or that they should just do as they're told. But we don't live there and trying to pretend we do is as much folly on our parts as it is on those who ignore our good advice.

    4. Re:Good luck... by Darinbob · · Score: 1

      I believe this bit. My mother refused to believe that the guy who was trying to get her money and the guy who offered her free IT services were the same guy. After long explanation I asked "you don't believe me do you", and she said in a quiet voice, "no".

    5. Re:Good luck... by Darinbob · · Score: 1

      I have been tempted to say that these fake IT scams all come from Hillary, just so my mother would take them more seriously.

    6. Re:Good luck... by Ocker3 · · Score: 1

      Now That's a sneaky way of using their conspiracy beliefs against them! :D

    7. Re:Good luck... by Ocker3 · · Score: 1

      I think they want to show that they have Some level of knowledge about something that they probably guess we're already Really good at, and they get frustrated when it becomes clear how huge the gap in knowledge is. Perhaps we need an IT version of 'yes and', where we say "yes, that's interesting, and here's something else cool to know and tell your friends" so they know we appreciate their gesture, and we also give them something really accurate they can tell their friends: "Remember what that guy on Fox said? Well my kid told me this thing as well (meaning: aren't they smart, haven't I done well as a parent?)"

    8. Re:Good luck... by Ocker3 · · Score: 1

      I forwarded out a warning from the Australian Federal Police's Stay Smart Online service, a teacher printed it out and put it in front of their husband, who was on the phone with a 'Microsoft Gold Partner' who was doing the bloatware/scareware scam thing. They refused to believe it and ended up signing up for some (hopefully just useless) software. Human psychology is a strange thing.

  3. Re:Chock full of Cyber Goodness by llamalad · · Score: 2

    What people call this topic is a great indicator of how well they understand two things: the topic itself, and marketing.

    People who have actual technical chops in the field tend to call it Computer Security, IT Security, or Information Security.

    The clueless, and the people marketing to the clueless, call it Cyber Security.

  4. A general lack of Media Education. by jellomizer · · Score: 1

    I had one 45 minute class in 6th grade, that stuck with me for about 30 years. It covered how advertising works, and their methods for getting your attention.
    Sure I still fall to the advertisements, but at least my logical mind knows it, and allows me to take a step back and avoid the impulse buy. But that was one a one off class, and I actually paid attention to it.
    Most people will trust or not trust an add just based on where it is shown and how expensive it is to show it.
    A TV Add is the most truthful.
    down to add placed on a Telephone Pole, or lamp post as the most sketchy.

    Computers are expensive, seeing an Add on say Fox New or CNN Web site will seem just as legit as an Add on the TV.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  5. hmm by cascadingstylesheet · · Score: 1

    Might have some effectiveness ... depends on the person, I suppose.

    A bit like giving self defense classes to the elderly ...

  6. Re:Chock full of Cyber Goodness by johannesg · · Score: 1

    What people call this topic is a great indicator of how well they understand two things: the topic itself, and marketing.

    People who have actual technical chops in the field tend to call it Computer Security, IT Security, or Information Security.

    The clueless, and the people marketing to the clueless, call it Cyber Security.

    Similarly, arrogant, elitist assholes also refer to cyberpunk as "information punk", cybernetics as "IT netics", and cybersex as... well, I guess they don't need a word for that.

    Also, they are slavering at the mouth for a chance to play the upcoming game, "Computer punk 2077".

  7. Re:Chock full of Cyber Goodness by llamalad · · Score: 1

    Who peed in your Cheerios this morning?

    No need for name calling, nor the straw man argument where you're attacking a nonsensical blanket statement that I didn't actually make.

    But hey, if it makes you feel better... Happy Tuesday!

  8. Re:critical thinking by jellomizer · · Score: 1

    Other then saying "GO LOOK IT UP" could you provide sources which we can fact check and validate?

    If you want higher order thinking skills, we should be given tools to help aid with this. vs. Trusting the first google result from some unknown media outlet.ru

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  9. Woot by Eldaar · · Score: 1

    Glad to hear it - some local libraries in my area do offer some basic classes on topics like using Microsoft Office, Windows 10, and similar topics. However, I don't think many/any focus on how to keep your information secure while using the Internet.

    And frankly, even if they do, it's nice to have other organizations (like colleges and universities) offering training so that it's more available and more people will have access to it. While people like Opportunist have noted that their own parents may not listen to them, those same older people might listen to a stranger with a bit more of an open mind.

  10. Re:Chock full of Cyber Goodness by johannesg · · Score: 1

    "Oh look at me, I'm so great, I know the _proper words_ for things! Unlike those idiot proles! I'm so good!"

    That's you.