Cyber safety expert John Parsons has tips for Taupō retirees

Internet safety expert John Parsons is in Taupō this week giving free lectures about cyber safety. Photo / Rachel Canning

Cyber scammers are invisible, but their intentions are clear - senior citizens are easy targets and they want to steal their money.

Cyber safety expert John Parsons is in Taupō this week and will be talking to Taupō senior citizens tomorrow (Friday, October 25) at REAP in Titiraupenga St John says as a group, senior citizens are often not internet savvy, and this makes their real-world assets open to threat.

John is an internet safety and risk assessment consultant. He is New Zealand's leading authority on cyber safety for children and has written a book for parents on how to keep kids safe online.

Some 70 per cent of New Zealand adults have been subject to some form of cyber crime, with the most common complaints being computer scams, fraud, viruses and malware.

"New Zealanders are frequently the target of international scams and fraud attempts. I have worked with senior citizens who have lost $300,000 to $400,000." says John.

In his seminars, John will teach older people to understand how criminals think so they can recognise their own vulnerability. He hopes this will show them how to shed their vulnerability, because this can contribute to making them a victim of crime.

Cyber safety expert John Parsons has worked with seniors who have lost $300,000 to $400,000 to scammers. Photo / File

Criminals who target the elderly will appeal to the older person's values. John says online abuse can begin with face-to-face interactions. He gives the example of someone who has lost their spouse and broadcasts their grief to strangers.

"The criminal will offer to cut the grass, start to bring the older person goods. In this way they embed themselves into the senior's life. Then the criminal begins to siphon off their nest egg, often appealing to the retiree's values.

"For instance, the criminal will ask the older person to buy them a washing machine so their children can have clean clothes. Feeling responsible for the children being clean will then be the rationale the senior citizen uses to justify buying the criminal a washing machine."

John has a few common sense strategies for the elderly on how to deal with cold callers, tradespeople and rubbish containing personal data. He covers the issues around buying cheaper medicine online, investing outside of New Zealand, and joining companion websites.

Most of his advice is common sense, and he says when people were younger they would probably have seen straight through the scam.

"The point is, the elderly are vulnerable, and family members may not be aware of this."

One of the aims of the information session is to help people develop skills to use the internet appropriately.

"If an older person can understand how the scams work, this will reduce the chances of harm to them and their family. And they will be able to protect their hard-won financial and real-world assets."

John says seniors who are victims of cyber crime often self isolate and won't tell their family. He says this in turn enables the criminals to continue to talk to the older person.

"Children of senior citizens who have lost money through cyber crime need to view their parent as a victim of crime and not as someone who has been stupid."

Age Concern Taupō manager Lyndsay Benefield says older people would really benefit from attending the workshop. She says fraudsters are becoming increasingly creative and play on older people's desire to comply with directives from authorities.

"When an email arrives, looking like it has come from a legitimate organisation or government agency, it is very easy to click on the link."

Lyndsay says older people usually want to do the right thing and the natural reaction is to respond if the scammer says inaction will result in the older person being reported to the authorities.

She says an older person who feels isolated or lonely is prone to responding to door-to-door scams.

"A friendly face at the door may be welcomed inside. Elders may feel pressured to purchase expensive goods they don't need or want and may not even arrive."

Lyndsay says older people are also vulnerable to romantic scams, and it is often difficult to convince the older person that a scammer is at work.

"Seniors who are single and lonely may welcome the attentions received, sending money with the expectation that they will soon have a partner."

When an older person realises they have been taken advantage of and lost money, Lyndsay says they often they feel embarrassed and ashamed and may not want their family to know. She has seen older people struggling to pay for necessities, rather than let their family know they have lost their nest egg.

Cyber safety expert John Parsons will speak about scams affecting seniors on Friday, October 25, at REAP in the Tauhara Room, 73 Titiraupenga St, 1pm to 3pm.

A cyber safety evening for parents of school age children is also on tonight at Waipahihi School hall at 6pm.