Safety and Security Source

🔥 Three Kansas City AI Club Board members are taking the stage at CommunityDays on May 28 at Lifted Logic in Overland Park, Kansas.

These are practical, business-focused AI sessions designed to help attendees navigate real-world challenges, opportunities, risk, strategy, and innovation.

🚨 “Tracey, the Safety Lady” Hawkins
International Gen AI Cybersecurity Expert for End Users and Safe Work Practices

🕘 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. | Room 6

Session:
“FIFA, Festivals, and Fraud: The AI Scams All Businesses Can’t Afford to Ignore”

Description:
AI is making scams faster, cheaper, and more convincing. Learn how criminals are using phishing emails, deepfake voice impersonation, fake videos, and AI-powered social engineering attacks to target businesses and employees. Attendees will leave with practical strategies to recognize red flags, reduce fraud risk, and better protect finances, customer trust, sensitive data, and reputations.

🩺 Doug Hohulin
Kansas City AI Club Board Member, Humanities Chair

🕙 10:10 a.m. to 11:10 a.m. | Room 6

Session:
“Patients Are Bringing AI Into the Exam Room: The Importance of AI Education and Health Literacy”

📈 Lyndsay Noble
Director of Analytics and Technology Programs, Rockhurst University

🕙 10:40 a.m. to 11:10 a.m. | Room 5

Session:
“Blueprint to Impact: Aligning AI to Corporate Goals and Proving Real Results”

Kansas City businesses are preparing for FIFA, festivals, and global attention.

Cybercriminals are preparing too.

I’m excited to speak at Community Days with KCDC Global on:

FIFA, Festivals, and Fraud:
The AI Scams All Businesses Can’t Afford to Ignore

🗓 May 28, 2025
⏰ 9:00 a.m.
📍 Room 6 | Lifted Logic, Bel Air Building, 5600 W 95th St, Overland Park, KS

As an international Gen AI cybersecurity expert for end users and safe work practices, I’ll break down how criminals are using AI to target businesses, nonprofits, employees, and consumers through:
• Deepfake voice impersonations
• AI-powered phishing emails
• Social engineering scams
• Fake invoices and payment fraud
• AI-generated impersonation attacks

This is not a technical lecture packed with jargon.

This is practical, real-world education designed to help people recognize red flags before clicking, paying, responding, or getting scammed.

Attendees will leave with actionable strategies to:
✔ Reduce fraud risk
✔ Better protect data, finances, and reputations
✔ Strengthen their human firewall
✔ Recognize AI scams before the damage is done

Tickets are on sale now with early bird pricing available for a limited time.

FIFA Deepfakes Phishing SocialEngineering KCDC CommunityDays SmallBusiness Nonprofits

🇨🇦 Speaking in Toronto today to symphony and orchestra leaders from across the United States and Canada. 🎻

And honestly, this topic hits close to home for me.

I’m talking about generative AI cybersecurity, fraud prevention, and organizational safety for nonprofits and arts organizations.

Not from the outside looking in.

From lived experience.

I’ve served as a board member, committee chairperson, and president of a symphony fundraising auxiliary that helped raise more than $5 million for the Kansas City Symphony through the Symphony Designers’ Showhouse, one of Kansas City’s longest-running and most recognized fundraising events.

So I understand what these organizations carry every day:
The donor trust.
The fundraising pressure.
The volunteer coordination.
The board responsibilities.
The sponsorship relationships.
The constant balancing act of protecting both mission and reputation.

That’s why I care so much about this conversation right now.

Because AI-powered scams are moving faster than many organizations are prepared for.

Today’s threats include:
• AI-generated phishing emails that look legitimate
• Deepfake voice impersonation targeting leadership and finance teams
• Fake invoices and payment fraud aimed at nonprofits and associations

And these attacks work because nonprofits are built on trust, accessibility, and relationships.

Criminals know that.

This is not just an IT issue anymore.

It’s a leadership issue.
A financial protection issue.
A governance issue.
A reputation issue.

One fake invoice.
One cloned voice.
One convincing email.

That’s all it takes.

Boards of directors, executive leadership, finance departments, development teams, volunteers, sponsors, vendors, and event staff all play a role in protecting the organization now.

Because in the Age of AI, every organization needs a stronger human firewall.

Really honored to share this conversation with leaders who care deeply about protecting their missions, donors, communities, and organizations.

Toronto, let’s do this. 🇨🇦

“Tracey, the Safety Lady” Hawkins
The Gen AI Cybersecurity Expert for End Users Who Protects People, Profits, and Reputations
Founder, Safety and Security Source.

What an honor to be recognized for my volunteer work with Kansas City Symphony Alliance on behalf of The Kansas City Symphony@ 🎶

I had to go to Canada to get my award! 🇨🇦 🛩

I served on the board was president, and chaired several committees for decades. Literally. The Symphony Designers' Showhouse project helped raise over $5 million dollars. 💰

Thank you to Don Dagenais for his support through the years and recognizing my work.

Tomorrow, I get to speak and educate North American organizations about gen AI cybersecurity. So many symphony and orchestra representatives from across the country are using AI.

Tomorrow I get to teach them how to use AI safely and how cybercriminals are using the tools to scam and defraud staff, boards of directors, volunteers, and donors.

Your phone ringing may no longer be “just spam.”

The voice may sound like your bank.
Your co-worker.
Your grandchild.
Your broker.
Your title company.

And that is exactly the point.

Criminals are using artificial intelligence, publicly available personal information and social engineering to create scams designed to manipulate trust fast.

According to the FBI IC3, Americans reported nearly $21 billion in cybercrime losses in 2025, including growing losses tied to AI-enabled fraud.

Today’s scams include:

• AI voice clone calls
• Fake fraud alerts
• Fake toll texts
• Fake wire instructions
• Phishing emails
• Impersonation scams
• Fake vendor payment requests

Who is at risk?

Everyone.

But real estate professionals, businesses, procurement teams, older adults and consumers handling financial transactions are major targets.

What is the ROI of learning this?

• Reduce financial risk
• Prevent fraud losses
• Protect personal information
• Reduce liability
• Improve cybersecurity awareness
• Help protect your family, employees and clients

Simple ways to reduce your risk:

• Never trust caller ID alone
• Verify financial requests independently
• Use multi-factor authentication
• Create a family emergency passphrase
• Limit personal information shared publicly online

This is no longer just a cybersecurity issue.

It is a consumer protection issue, business risk issue and personal safety issue.

I teach organizations and audiences how to recognize AI-powered scams, reduce risk and protect people, profits and reputations in the age of artificial intelligence.

Need a speaker, workshop or training program on AI scams, fraud prevention and cybersecurity awareness? Connect with me.

If your child’s school uses Canvas… read this. 🚨

A security incident was confirmed involving student data.

What may be exposed:
names, email addresses, student IDs, and messages.

No passwords.

No bank info.

Sounds like good news.

It’s not. ⚠️

This is exactly the kind of data scammers use to create real-looking, AI-powered messages.

“Your child has a missing assignment. Log in now.”
Looks real.

It’s not. ❌

👉 Don’t click login links
👉 Slow down when it feels urgent
👉 Verify before you trust

Talk to your kids tonight. They are targets too. 🧠

🛑Stop. Spot. Verify.

"Tracey, the Safety Lady" Hawkins, Gen AI Cybersecurity Expert for End Users,
Protecting people, profits, and reputations

The KC AI Club last night… 😲

10 speakers. 5 minutes each. Quick, smart, and straight to the point.

It was great to see a friend take the stage and talk about what's typically missing in AI conversations... The legal part! Ljupka Schwantes, CEDS

I loved the energy in the room!

The KC AI Club is one of the largest AI organizations in the country, right here in KC.

But you know me… I’m always watching what happens after 👀

The conversations.

The curiosity.

People connecting and actually learning from each other.

That’s the part I love.

Proud to serve as a board member and cybersecurity chairman and be in rooms like this with people who are building, testing, and figuring this out in real time.

And while everyone’s talking about what AI can do…
I’m always asking… are we using it safely?

That’s my lane. I can't stop.

If you haven’t been yet, come see us in May. Check out the website and get in the room.

And if you have questions, let me know.

The website link is in the comments.

Chris Kovac Robert Voss William Rock Joe Ricono

Most companies think their AI risk is low adoption.

Wrong.

It’s employee pushback turning into unsafe behavior.

A recent Forbes Coaches Council piece by Hamilton explains why employees are resisting AI.

Here’s the part leaders are missing:

When employees don’t see what’s in it for them, they don’t just disengage.

They create exposure. 😳

• They ignore training
• They use tools incorrectly
• They bypass safeguards
• They upload sensitive data without thinking

That’s not a culture issue.

That’s a compliance and cybersecurity problem.

💰 What Fixing This Actually Gets You

• Fewer costly mistakes
• Reduced liability
• Lower compliance costs
• Stronger data protection
• Better decisions under pressure

⚠️ Control Backfires. Every Time. ⏰️

When employees feel monitored or controlled, they don’t lean in.

They go underground.

Welcome to shadow AI:🤨

• Personal AI accounts
• Unapproved tools
• Invisible workflows IT cannot track

That’s where your biggest security gaps live.

🚨 The Phishing Test Problem No One Wants to Say Out Loud

I hear this constantly from employees:

“I don’t like being tricked.”

Yes, simulated phishing has value.

But if you lead with deception, here’s what happens:

• Employees freeze
• They stop trusting internal emails
• They hesitate on legitimate communication
• They become afraid to act

That is not awareness.

That is fear-based paralysis.

🔁 The Smarter Play

There’s a place for testing.

But it cannot come before trust.

Start with:

• Clear awareness training first
• Explain how scams actually work
• Normalize reporting mistakes
• Create psychological safety to speak up

If employees feel safe, they will tell you when something is wrong.

If they don’t, they stay quiet.

That silence is expensive. 💸

🧠 Efficiency Without Empathy = Risk

AI rollout focused on speed alone creates:

• Resentment
• Misuse
• Compliance failures
• Higher exposure to fraud

😵‍💫 Digital Fatigue Is the Accelerator

Overwhelmed employees:

• Click faster
• Verify less
• Trust polished AI content

And today’s scams are:

• Flawless
• Personalized
• Deepfake-driven

🎯 What I Teach

I teach Generative AI Cybersecurity for End Users.

Everyone’s talking about AI…

Very few people are actually in the rooms where it’s being built, tested, and used in real life.

That’s why the Kansas City AI Club matters.

It’s one of the largest AI communities in the country, and it’s where founders, builders, and business leaders show what they’re really doing with AI… not just what they post about online.

I’m proud to serve on the board and lead cybersecurity conversations as the cybersecurity chairperson, because here’s the truth:

👉 AI opportunity is massive
👉 AI risk is just as real
👉 Most people are only paying attention to one of those

This Tuesday, 4/21, is a perfect example of why this community is different.. I've participated before (see pic).

If you know me, you understand why speaking for 5 minutes was soooo hard! 🤣

🎤 AI Open Mic Night

• 10 presenters
• 5 minutes each
• 3 slides
• Real tools. Real use cases. No fluff.

You don’t just learn…
You leave with ideas you can apply, people you can collaborate with, and a much sharper understanding of where this is all going.

📍 Keystone Innovation District
📅 Tuesday, April 21, 2026

There’s also time to connect before and after… and that’s where a lot of the magic happens.

SOLD OUT!😲

👀 Are you registered?
👀 Will I see you there?

If you’re serious about AI, follow the KC AI Club.

The website is in the comments. Come to our next event!

This is one of those rooms you don’t want to miss.

endusers