In marking the UN’s International Day of Older Persons, the Member of the Welsh Parliament for Aberconwy – Janet Finch-Saunders MS – has called on the Welsh Government to engage with financial service providers to increase online scam awareness for society’s most vulnerable.
In a Written Question to the Minister for Social Justice, Janet asked:
“Will the Minister confirm what conversations the Welsh Government has undertaken with financial service providers to increase digital literacy and scam awareness amongst older people, following the findings of the Hourglass and Hodge survey?
The intervention comes following the findings of an Hourglass and Hodge commissioned survey of 2,000 adults aged between 45 and 70, as they are often those who care for older people or are at risk of abuse themselves. Over a quarter (27%) were found to know or care for an older person who has been a target of an online scam to access their finances in the last year and around 14% know or care for an older person who has been a victim of economic abuse by a person they should be able to trust.
Marking the international awareness day, Janet said:
“As more and more aspects of our everyday lives go digital only, many of our older and vulnerable people without the right support and access are being left behind and open to exploitation. Older people are also relinquishing their responsibilities in local community and church groups as the complexity of online banking procedures increases by the day.
“Economic abuse is one of the most widespread forms of abuse of older people. Between 2017 and 2019, I am told that 39% of all calls to Hourglass’s helpline were about economic abuse. Alarmingly, the National Crime Agency also found the elderly to have been specifically targeted by cowardly fraudsters during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Research by Which found that over-60s are considerably more vulnerable to computer fixing fraud, as tech literacy tends to be comparatively lower. This is why we need to see greater collaboration between the Welsh Government and financial service providers so that the threats posed by the online arena can be confronted by confidence and education.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
- The 2021 theme for International Day of Older Persons is “Digital Equity for All Ages”, which affirms the need for access and meaningful participation in the digital world by older persons. Please find out more by clicking here.
- To read Janet’s recent intervention about the concerns of local community groups on accessing bank accounts, please click here.
