McAfee launches online safety for silver surfers
Santa Clara, Calif. — May 16, 2014: McAfee, a part of Intel Security, has announced its Online Safety for Silver Surfers program, a free initiative that utilizes McAfee and Intel employees as volunteers to teach seniors on ways to stay safe and secure while interacting online. McAfee is launching the program in May as part of its third annual Global Community Service Day.
According to a McAfee study called “Fifty Plus Booms Online”, which looks at the behaviors of individuals ages 50-75 in the United States, the 50+ demographic is spending an average of five hours a day online. The survey also found that 80 percent of seniors are using social media. Of those seniors online, more than half have also voluntarily shared personal information with people they have never met in person (outside of online shopping and business transactions).
Chief Privacy Officer at McAfee Michelle Dennedy said, “The Internet creates excellent opportunities for seniors, especially when it comes to staying connected with friends and family, planning vacations, or online banking. Just like every age group, seniors can fall prey to their own set of risks. Through our Senior Citizens program, we teach them the tips they need to stay safe online, including how to create a strong password, look out for Internet scams and interact safely on social media sites.”
McAfee launched its Global Community Service Day in 2011 in honor of the company’s 25th anniversary. Last year, the event attracted more than 60 percent of McAfee’s global workforce and helped thousands of people in need around the world. This year, McAfee plans to continue the effort of helping hundreds of nonprofits—with part of this effort including teaching online safety in schools, senior centers, and organizations around the world.
The McAfee Online Safety for Senior Citizens program complements the McAfee Online Safety for Kids program, which trains school-age children and parents on ways to stay safe and secure, as well as maintain good ethics in their online behavior. The McAfee Online Safety for Kids program provides its students or their parents with content and materials based on the STOP.THINK.CONNECT national cybersecurity awareness campaign.
