Cork's Lifelong Learning Festival

Researchers from the Cyber Skills team at Munster Technological University visited the Cork City Library on April 12^th to spread awareness to the elderly community on information concerning Cyber Safety. The workshop was held as part of the Lifelong learning festival.  https://corklearningcity.ie/lifelong-learning-festival/ The Cyber Safety team shared the importance of reporting a cyberattack to the authorities. The topics discussed were:

 

1. Scam Calls.

In today’s world, with everything being more digitalised, it is important to be more cautious of the links you click and phone calls you receive. The team touched on how hackers may call you, pretending to be a company, i.e. Revolut, and how these hackers could use your voice to participate in criminal activity. To Prevent this from happening to you, ensure that you double check that you know the number of the caller before picking up, or if you do answer, do not talk unless the caller speaks first.

 

2. Fake Delivery Links

The most common fake delivery scams today would be the An Post scam delivery text. However, it is very easy to decipher.  If An Post is in direct contact with you, their name will appear at the top of the text message and not a phone number claiming to be An post.

 

3. Password Management

The team briefly touched on how to manage your passwords effectively on all platforms. Each account should have a unique long password for accounts that hold sensitive data about yourself such as your credit/debit card details to prevent your account from being compromised. For extra security, it is advisable that you write down the passwords to your accounts and have them stored in a safe space.

 

4. What to do if you have been hacked?

We ended the talk by outlining the actions you should take if you have been hacked. It is best to check in with the organisation to ensure whether the text or call received was legitimate. It is also important to include the Gardai in situations like this, to ensure the case gets logged, and if necessary, an investigation to take place.

 

 

The cyber skills team also shared a website where anyone can check a link to see if it was fraudulent or safe. Link to website available here : CheckMyLink Ireland (cyberskills.ie)

 

Have I been Pwned is another good website to use, as it checks to see if your email address has been in a data breach. If so, you should change your password immediately to avoid your account from being compromised.