TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Leon County and community partners are developing a program for seniors to navigate online scams and to harness artificial intelligence.
- A 1.5-hour seminar series will be rolled out in Leon County libraries and streamed online.
- The goal is to help seniors become more digitally literate.
- Watch the video to find out why the program is needed.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
If you spend any time online or on a mobile device, you've probably been the victim of receiving a scam text. Now, a new program is being rolled out for our seniors. It's about how to detect, navigate and avoid online scams. It will also help neighbors understand and use artificial intelligence.
"It's something that unless you are truly trained on, what are some of the signs that I should be aware of, it makes it very difficult to fight against that," said James Taylor, CEO of Florida Technology Council.
One of the reasons why Taylor said they're targeting seniors with this program. Because technology is changing fast, technology leaders said scams are becoming harder to detect.
"They can take voice from a video online, from your Facebook account, spoof a voice of your loved one and call you with that, right?" said Kristy Tillman, collaborator and former product design director at Netflix.
The information will be presented in a series of hour-and-a-half-long seminars, streamed online, and held at the Leon County public libraries.
"It will provide an entryway for our citizens to be able to get that kind of hands-on, and being in a trusted environment with trusted people that they can ensure that they're being trained correctly," said Tillman.
According to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, an average senior victimized by internet scams loses approximately $34,000.
"The more we can create awareness about the technology that's out there and develop more resilience, the better informed our community will be," said Leon County Commissioner Rick Minor.
Technology leaders said there is a focus on accessibility and breaking down topics, such as AI, that often seem intimidating.
"I would love for the community to have a safe, responsible place to come get a series of trainings, and be able to feel like they have the confidence to go out into the world and start to interact with AI comfortably," said Tillman.
Commissioner Minor said the county is working with a focus group now to develop the program. They hope to roll it out to libraries in the fall.
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