The event organized by the Workers’ Society of Castanea, in collaboration with the National Federation of Pensioners of the CISL and the Anteas association, to protect themselves from scams, was well attended. Yesterday afternoon, in the premises of the hilly village, a conference was held chaired by the Postal Police (operational section for cyber security in Messina) and, in particular, by inspector Federico Mento and superintendent Nicolò Broccio.
“In recent times, scams have become increasingly ingenious: online, on the phone or via messages, anyone can become a victim”, comments the president of the Workers’ Society Carlo Rizzo, explaining the reasons that led to organizing this information and prevention event, to learn to recognize the risks and defend oneself.
Through slides, therefore, Inspector Mento and Superintendent Broccio, very carefully, highlighted to the public what can be the now diversified and highly technological systems for defrauding, listing both the most common methods and the defenses available to each individual, including: never give out your details, because the bank does not call or send messages (at most it calls to summon to the bank), as does the Italian Post Office; never trust SMS or Whatsapp messages; do not use prepaid cards; when you receive a call in the name of a Commander of the Carabinieri or the Police or other law enforcement agencies, close the phone call and call the emergency numbers (sharing a series of safe contacts you can contact for assistance in the event of scams).
«Raising the threshold of attention to the scams that are perpetrated every day against the elderly was the warning that the Workers’ Society and its members intended to launch by organizing this meeting with the Cyber Security section of the State Police of Messina – commented Giambattista Milazzo, vice-president of the Anteas association – The inspectors who attended presented how every day there are attempts to catch the victims, elderly and otherwise, with telephone calls to their homes, messages and emails that can surprise and seize the subject, causing a state of apprehension or anxiety that can lead him to compromise his financial security. These attempts, which now affect everyone, must be shared with family or friends and communicated to the police. During the debate, numerous members intervened and the discussion resulted in a fruitful enrichment of knowledge and confidence in the behavior to be adopted to avoid incurring these attempts”.
Also speaking during the conference was Gianni Ammendolia, provincial secretary of the National Pension Federation of the CISL, who highlighted how «these organizations exploit the most fragile moment of the person. What you need to do is try to reflect, without ever getting caught up in anxiety. The solution is to take time: never give answers, say that “we’ll see” and end the phone call to deflect their strategy of applying pressure by rushing. When they try to instill anxiety, that moment is the alarm bell to say “stop” and reflect.”
And it was precisely on this system of putting pressure that some of the members of the Workers’ Society intervened, recounting various experiences and testimonies, both negative and positive, with scams foiled thanks to the clarity of stopping to reflect, despite the pressure and attempts to create anxiety. Among these, Father Vincenzo Majuri, parish priest of Castanea, who they tried to deceive by talking about the parish’s current account.
«I thank the experts who attended our day dedicated to the prevention of scams – declares the president Carlo Rizzo – The interventions of specialized technicians and security professionals provided clear indications on how to recognize and combat the main scams. Some fundamental advice emerged: always verify the identity of those who contact us; do not share personal or banking data without certainty of the source; promptly report any suspicious activity to the authorities.”
«Our Mutual Aid Workers’ Society will continue to promote moments of information and protection, aware that prevention arises from knowledge and collaboration between citizens», concludes Rizzo.