This October, for Cybersecurity Awareness Month, The Fortune Society’s Digital Equity (DE) program is empowering participants with key knowledge about how to stay safe online.   

The DE program offers year-round tech support and weekly training workshops, preparing participants to navigate today’s digital world. While regular workshops cover broad digital skills, such as email basics, Microsoft Office, and smartphone use, this month’s activities will deepen participants’ understanding and practice of digital safety.   

This month’s cybersecurity workshops will cover a range of topics, including email safety, mobile safety, and computer safety. By splitting up digital safety topics in this way, DE intends to delve deeply into each safety discussion, ensuring participants understand the critical importance of staying safe online.  

Jacob, our Digital Equity Program Manager, emphasized that these workshops are crucial for creating safety and awareness, especially as participants may be new to some of these tech systems.  

“We don’t want people to live in fear, so we are conscious that we’re talking about systems that people interact with in their daily lives,” Jacob explained. “But these topics come up often. Things like recognizing a safe email address or understanding the spam folder. People install every app they come across or click on all the different ads. These are examples of issues we see people coming across.”  

Digital scams are also an important part of the cybersecurity discussion at Fortune. Participants who are new to using technology may be more susceptible to online scams, including spam emails and scam phone calls. Combing through and identifying what is real or fake online is necessary to safely navigate the digital world.  

Artificial Intelligence (AI) safety will also come up during Cybersecurity Awareness Month at Fortune. As AI is used more frequently among participants, DE workshops this month will educate them about best practices and advice for safely using AI tools.

“AI safety is a real concern, and we want participants to be smart about how they use it,” Jacob shared. “Use them for bouncing ideas around or drawing a picture. Don’t use them for therapy, don’t give them any personal information or use them to analyze your life.”  

This month’s focus on cybersecurity awareness aims to build confidence and awareness around common digital threats, including spam, viruses, scams and the misuse of AI tools. By helping participants identify risks and develop safer habits, the DE program continues its mission to ensure everyone can navigate the digital world with greater knowledge and security.