SK Telecom Partners with Four South Gyeongsang Counties to Prevent Digital Crimes Against Older Residents

[Financial News] SK Telecom is visiting Sancheong, Hamyang, Geochang and Hapcheon counties in South Gyeongsang Province, where the proportion of older residents is high, to provide financial crime prevention education, telecommunications consultations and smartphone inspection services.
SK Telecom announced on the 13th that it signed an MOU on the 11th with Sancheong County, Hamyang County, Geochang County and Hapcheon County to ensure that local residents can safely use telecommunications services and to reduce the digital information gap through its "visiting service."
The signing ceremony, held at Sancheong County Office, was attended by National Assembly member Shin Seong-beom, whose constituency includes Sancheong, Hamyang, Geochang and Hapcheon counties; Sancheong County Governor Yoo Myeong-hyeon; Hamyang County Governor Jin Byeong-young; Geochang County Governor Lee Hong-ki; Hapcheon County Governor Kim Yun-cheol; and SKT Customer Value Innovation Office Head Lee Hye-yeon and External Affairs Office Head Kim Woo-ram, among others.
Under the agreement, SKT will expand services it has operated independently by working with local governments that understand local conditions and residents’ needs. This year, SK Telecom operated the visiting service 145 times in 74 cities and counties nationwide, meeting approximately 13,000 subscribers.
According to resident registration population statistics from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS), as of the end of July, people aged 65 or older accounted for 46.3% of Sancheong County’s population, 42.2% of Hamyang County’s, 34.7% of Geochang County’s and 48.9% of Hapcheon County’s. These figures are 1.6 to 2.3 times the national rate of 21.7%. Shin Seong-beom of the People Power Party said, "Areas with larger older populations tend to have more cases of financial damage, such as voice phishing, and a wider digital information gap. A public-private cooperation system is important if experts are to visit local residents in person and provide the education they need."
SK Telecom plans to operate the visiting service twice in each of the four counties, for a total of eight sessions. Along with lecture-based education for older residents, it will offer hands-on programs, including voice-phishing simulations. Local residents can learn practical information about preventing financial crimes and using smartphones, as well as receive consultations on telecommunications services. Device-care services—including smartphone sanitization and cleaning, protective-film replacement and device inspections—will also be available regardless of the telecommunications provider.
Lee Hye-yeon, head of SK Telecom’s Customer Value Innovation Office, emphasized, "We will continue field-based activities with local governments so that residents can use telecommunications services more safely and conveniently."
[email protected] Choi Hye-rim Reporter