Safety Toolkit for Consumer and Personal Data Protection for the Elderly during Internet Use
Introduction to e-protect project
Studies estimate that by 2060 at least one in three Europeans will be over 65. The European Commission argues that digital technology can help older people to stay healthy, independent, and active at work or in their community for longer and it helps to improve our quality of life. Since the Digital Single Market strategy has been adopted, several studies have identified the lack of digital skills among the elderly.
Therefore, there is a strong need to educate EU citizens and the elderly on how to access and engage in online activities by experiencing high level of consumer and personal data protection. Specifically, the elderly generally lacks awareness of current security threats, and remain under-educated in terms of applying appropriate controls and safeguards to their computers and networking devices.
The e-Protect project aims to address the consumer and data protection needs during internet use of the elderly people through their familiarization with the use of ICT tools, by providing them tailored training opportunities that will meet the modern society challenges.
The primary target group of e-Protect project which is elderly people (people aged 65+) will be empowered and develop their selfconfidence when using the internet and thus support the improved integration in the labour market and society.
Project objectives
Specifically, the project focuses in four main
objectives:
• Enhance capacity building and professionalization of adult educators regarding training elderly people for consumer and data protection during online activities.
• Address the consumer and data protection needs during internet use of the elderly people through their familiarization with ICT tools, by providing them tailored training
opportunities.
• Improve the overall quality of adult education and specifically of the elderly in the participating countries informed by educational, cognitive, and technological research.
• Strengthen the educational practices and reduce inequalities in access to education services for the elderly
Kick-off meeting
The kick-off meeting of the e-Protect project took place online on the 13th of January 2021 and coordinated by CARDET. During the meeting representatives from all European partner organisations had the chance to meet and discuss the project’s plan. Apart from a detailed explanation on the deliverables and the implementation steps of the project, particular emphasis was given to the current situation about the digital consumer and data protection skills of the elderly societies in each country. Partners realised that the early identification of gaps and needs with accurate and reliable data is essential to guide the overall process of the project outputs in the future.
For more information:
https://www.facebook.com/eProtectprojectEU
