Senior Cyber Safety Briefing – October 20, 2025

🚨ALERT – Major Amazon Web Services Outage Disrupts Multiple Platforms
👉Why it matters - A global cloud-service outage hit banking apps, trading platforms, smart home devices and popular apps — seniors relying on online banking, telehealth, smart home or VPNs could have been unknowingly impacted. Business Insider+2AP News+2
📣Call to Action - Pause sensitive online transactions, verify account activity, and use alternative access (e.g., phone) if you spot issues.

📈ECONOMY & SECURITY – F5 Networks Supply-Chain Hack Raises Broad Risk
👉Why it matters - A long-running breach at this major networking vendor exposes technology used by banks, health systems and infrastructure — older adults are especially vulnerable as these systems support trusted services. Reuters+1
📣Call to Action - Ask your provider or bank whether they use F5 equipment and ensure you have up-to-date software and multifactor access set.

🔥PRIVACY & BIG TECH – Seniors & Smart Devices: A Cloud Risk Spotlight
👉Why it matters - The AWS outage underlines how smart home devices and IoT tools often depend on large cloud providers; vulnerabilities here might lead to silent access or data-leaks. The Verge+1
📣Call to Action - Reboot smart devices connected to the cloud, review security settings, and disable unused services (e.g., voice commands) until things stabilize.

✅Quick Safety Tip of the Day
Use a separate device for critical accounts (banking, health) and a secondary for casual browsing — this limits exposure during service disruptions or mass-outage events.

(AI was used to aid in the creation of this article.)

🙋Closing Note
"Stay safe, stay secure, stay curious, and remember my friends—you’re never too old to outsmart a scammer👋"