The Safety Bay Library was filled with conversation, curiosity and community spirit this week as local seniors joined us for a free Digital Literacy and Scam Awareness Training session. We were delighted to return with another session in our ongoing digital literacy initiative, designed to support people in building confidence online. The workshop was proudly delivered in partnership with the City of Rockingham.
Led by financial professional and fraud expert Alison Murray, and supported by Cyber Security Intern Alex Smith, the session brought seniors and the illuminance team together with a shared goal: strengthening digital confidence and staying safe online.
A Full Room and an Enthusiastic Community
From the moment the doors opened, every seat in the conference room filled quickly. This showed how important online safety has become for older community members. Attendees shared stories over morning tea before settling in for a morning of learning, discussion and hands on guidance.
Alison began by walking the group through current scam trends in Australia. Recent data shows that although the number of scam reports is decreasing, losses per victim are rising, highlighting how sophisticated scammers have become.
Learning to Spot the Red Flags
Much of the session focused on recognising a scam when you see one. Alison shared practical techniques for identifying suspicious messages and websites. These included:
- Checking website URLs for legitimacy
- Avoiding messages that create false urgency
- Looking for unusual spelling or unfamiliar email domains
- Verifying links before clicking
Using real examples from banking, myGov, postal services, Netflix, PayPal and more, attendees began recognising scams that looked similar to messages they had seen at home. The lively discussion that followed showed how relevant these examples were.
Real World Scenarios That Hit Close to Home
Alison then unpacked several real life scam scenarios, including impersonated bank representatives, false police calls and fake investment schemes. These stories encouraged participants to think critically about messages that appear too good to be true and showed how convincing scam communications can appear at first glance.
Answering Seniors Big Cyber Questions
Alex helped clarify common cybersecurity questions, including topics such as HTTPS, VPNs and choosing strong passwords. These explanations gave attendees confidence in understanding the terms and technologies they encounter online.
What To Do if You Suspect a Scam
The session covered clear steps for responding to potential scams:
- Act fast (Contact your bank or card provider)
- Change passwords (Across key accounts)
- Seek help through IDCARE (Cyber support service of Australia and New Zealand)
- Report the scam (ScamWatch or ReportCyber)
Participants also learned about emerging scam methods including AI generated voice scams, counterfeit websites and malware.
Evolving Threats: Staying Ahead of Scammers
The session concluded with a forward looking discussion about how scam tactics continue to evolve. Alison highlighted several emerging methods scammers now use, including:
- AI generated voice scams
- Counterfeit and look alike websites
- Malware such as trojans
- Social engineering and impersonation
- Online gambling scam platforms
- Data breaches where stolen details are sold on the dark web
Attendees were encouraged to stay informed by following trusted sources such as ScamWatch, ReportCyber, eSafety Commissioner, ACMA, their bank’s security alerts, government cybersecurity advisories and reputable Australian news outlets.
Community Impact and Growing Digital Confidence
The strong turnout and active participation clearly showed the community’s desire to stay informed and stay safe. Sessions like this highlight the positive role that local libraries, councils and organisations like illuminance Solutions play in promoting digital inclusion.
For Alex, supporting Alison during the session offered a meaningful opportunity to answer cybersecurity questions and connect with participants. This reinforced illuminance’s commitment to building safer and more confident digital communities.
Looking Ahead
As scams become more sophisticated, education remains one of the most powerful tools for protection. This week’s session showed how much seniors value learning in a friendly, practical and supportive environment.
We look forward to delivering more sessions in the coming months as we continue our mission to strengthen digital resilience across the community.
See Our Past Digital Literacy Programs
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Seniors have never felt so isolated. Lockdowns in the eastern states, travel restrictions and rules preventing many people from visiting aged-care centres have had a huge impact on older people. It’s therefore fitting that the UN is marking this year’s International Day of Older Persons with the theme “Digital Equity for All Ages.” illuminance is committed to making Digital Equity a right for seniors.
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