Montgomery County, MD

09/09/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/09/2024 19:23

Montgomery County Commission for Women to Host Free Hybrid Event on Navigating Fraud, Scams and AI Risks on Wednesday, Sept. 18

For Immediate Release: Monday, September 9, 2024

The Montgomery County Commission for Women will host a free community event from 6:30-8 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 18, on navigating fraud, scams and AI risks. It will by a hybrid event, with the in-person component at the Executive Office Building in Rockville.

The event is free, but registration is required.

The Executive Office Building is located at 101 Monroe St. in Rockville. Directions and parking information can be found here.

To join online stream the event on the Commission for Women's Facebook page or its YouTube channel.

The idea for the event originated from the Commission's 2024 Women's Legislative Briefing. Sponsors who participated in the Chair's Networking Reception had the opportunity to assist in planning a community event and determined that online fraud and scams were significantly increasing.

According to a report released by the Federal Trade Commission, consumers reported losing $10 billion to scams and fraud in 2023. Scams and fraud have been steadily increasing since the pandemic. In 2020, Americans reported losing $3.5 billion to fraud. These numbers potentially only represent a fraction of the real effect of fraud, which is a notoriously underreported crime, since many victims do not come forward because they are ashamed.

"The Commission for Women and their partners continue to educate the community on topics of great importance," said County Executive Marc Elrich. "In fact, this a wonderful follow up to my press conference in mid-August about gold bar scams that affected residents here and across the nation."

The event will have a panel of professionals from several County departments and local organizations. Scheduled to be on the panel are:

  • Kelly Davis, program manager/ investigator, Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office
  • Eric Friedman, director, Montgomery County Office of Consumer Protection
  • Karen Morgan, assistant project manager, AARP
  • Keith Young, chief information security officer, Montgomery County Office of Enterprise Information Security

For more information about the event, call 240-777-8300 or email [email protected].

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Release ID: 24-391
Media Contact: Carmen Kaarid 240-777-8331