Andy Farnell and Helen Plews Explain What "Modern" Tech Does to Old People
Last month we wrote about an upcoming talk in Portsmouth, England. They call it "Digital Inclusion Coffee Morning" and there's now a summary about what went on there. To quote some bits:
"My husband died this year. He did everything online for me. Now I have to figure it all out myself", said a woman clearly in her late 80s or 90s. No sooner did my heart sink for the unfortunate widow than my blood boiled at the Dickensian injustice of her falling between the cracks of 21st century society.[...]
HSBC, Nat West and Nationwide were also present at the coffee morning - and disproportionately represented in our opinion. We spoke to them, though naturally that was a disappointing interaction. None of the banks sent along credible technical experts capable of discussing complex issues at a serious level.
We spoke about various authentication schemes and why they don't work for everyone, and about the crucial need for customers to authenticate banks too, but the response was mostly blank faces. Mentioning branch closures and the undeniable deep need for in-person engagement met with sighs, shrugs and avoided eye-contact. When I've spoken to bank people before they've at least tried to put a "face" on their abject withdrawal from physical reality, but this time I could sense they weren't trying. Overall we felt the banks at the DICM were there as "political balance" and to do "PR and damage limitation" against a swelling tide of disaffection.
We wrote a great deal about this issue earlier this year. Banks with their "apps" and "webapps" are fast becoming a total disaster, where every error becomes a catastrophic one.
Imposing terrible tech "religion" on people is not helping them, it typically helps someone else make more money at their expense (and at the expense of their time). █