On-site Customized Training for 5,000 Seniors
Gangseo District in Seoul (Mayor Jin Kyohoon) is launching AI-based illegal fraud prevention education targeting over 5,000 senior citizens.
Recently, new types of financial fraud exploiting AI technology have been targeting seniors. These schemes include mimicking family members' voices or gaining trust through video calls impersonating doctors, prosecutors, or financial institutions. Seniors who are not familiar with digital environments often find it difficult to distinguish between real and fake.
Gangseo District has started AI-based illegal fraud prevention education targeting over 5,000 senior citizens. The photo is an AI-generated image. Provided by Gangseo District.
The district will conduct training primarily at workplaces and senior centers where seniors are active in their daily lives. On January 16, the first session will be held for 1,870 participants in senior job programs. The training will use audiovisual materials to explain how AI creates human voices and images, situations that should raise suspicion, and how to respond if victimized.
Starting next month, non-face-to-face training will also be provided at 14 smart senior centers in the district for 599 people. Once a month, a video on preventing "AI phishing" will be shown, utilizing materials produced by the Prosecutors' Office and the Financial Supervisory Service, as well as real-life cases.
There will also be a special lecture tour at 50 senior centers affiliated with the Gangseo District branch of the Korean Senior Citizens Association (for 1,640 people) and education at senior welfare centers (for 846 people). The program is linked with smartphone and digital literacy courses, allowing seniors to learn about AI technology and how to respond to crimes at the same time.
Gangseo District, which has branded itself as an "AI-specialized city," has been introducing AI technology throughout its administration. The district plans to help seniors perceive AI as something to understand and prepare for, rather than fear. Preventive education will continue so that seniors can encounter it repeatedly in their daily lives.
A district official stated, "AI phishing is a crime that can victimize anyone who is not familiar with the technology," adding, "The goal of this education is to help seniors move beyond vague anxiety, understand the situation, and respond calmly."
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