Monthly Waimea meeting to focus on cybercrime prevention

Three experts will share strategies and advice on how to prevent cybercrime during a Waimea Town meeting this week.

Personal cyberfraud prevention, cybersecurity protections by banks and the U.S. Secret Service, and preventive measures against online predators causing financial disasters will top the Waimea Community Association’s meeting, scheduled from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 4, in the W.M. Keck Observatory Conference Room.

Experts set to speak include Joely Chung, First Hawaiian Bank Senior Vice President; Adam Palmer, First Hawaiian Bank Chief Information Security Officer; and Cherise Richards from the Honolulu Field Office Hawaiʻi-Pacific Cyber Fraud Task Force.

Chung, a graduate of Kamehameha Schools, manages First Hawaiian Bank’s Enterprise Operational Risk Division, focusing on mitigating losses from operational and fraud risks. She will provide advice on protecting oneself and loved ones from fraud.

Palmer leads the Cybersecurity Division of First Hawaiian Bank, which safeguards the bank’s digital banking environment for customers. With 20 years of cybersecurity experience, he will share how banks protect customers from cybercrime.

Richards joined the U.S. Secret Service 19 years ago as an analyst on the Presidential Protective Division in Washington, D.C. Now with the Cyber Fraud Task Force in the Honolulu District Digital Forensic Lab, she provides technical guidance, cybersecurity training, and forensic support to special agents and law enforcement partners within the cyber community.

“We appreciate this level of expertise participating in our meeting,” said Waimea Community Association President Mary Beth Laychak.

The meeting will also feature an update by Waimea Community Policing representatives and a preview of the Aloha Festivals Island of Hawaiʻi five-day Paniolo Festival from Monday, Sept. 15, to Friday, Sept. 20, which will include a traditional annual pāʻū parade.

Also on the agenda is a preview of the new Maikaʻi Waimea Summit, set for Saturday, Sept. 27.

This month’s spotlighted nonprofit, huiMAU, will present its mission of re-establishing systems that sustain the community through educational initiatives and ʻāina-centered practices that cultivate abundance and promote collective health and well-being.

There is no charge to attend Waimea Community Association Town Meetings, and everyone is invited to participate in person or join virtually. Meetings can be watched live or afterward on the association’s Facebook and YouTube accounts.

For more information about the meeting or community association, or to submit questions, email WaimeaCommunityAssociation@gmail.com or visit the website.