The Austrian National Bank (OeNB), together with Austria’s Federal Ministry of the Interior under the “Sicher Bezahlen” initiative, has launched “Achtung, Betrug!”, an intergenerational pilot project aimed at raising awareness of fraud schemes and strengthening digital security in payments. The programme brought students and older people together in a workshop format to develop and share practical knowledge on safe payments and fraud prevention. The two-day workshop on 23 and 24 June 2025 connected students from AHS Heustadlgasse with residents of the Kolokation Sonnwendviertel living group, combining knowledge transfer with experience sharing on common scams. Coverage included phishing and credit card fraud, as well as the “nephew/grandchild” scam, fake police scams, online fraud and so-called love scams, with participants developing response strategies that were discussed with police security officers. Interactive methods such as group work and case analyses complemented expert inputs from community police officers and representatives of GEMEINSAM.SICHER. The OeNB indicated that, following a positive evaluation of the pilot, the initiative could be continued in other regions of Austria.
Austrian National Bank (OeNB) 2025-06-25
Austrian National Bank launches intergenerational education pilot with police to counter payment fraud
The Austrian National Bank (OeNB) and Austria’s Federal Ministry of the Interior launched "Achtung, Betrug!", a pilot project under the “Sicher Bezahlen” initiative to enhance fraud awareness and digital payment security. The project involved workshops connecting students and older adults to address scams like phishing and credit card fraud, with input from police security officers. OeNB may expand the initiative to other regions after a positive evaluation.