CHAPTER I

Insolvency, Bankruptcy, and the Board: Risk, Rules, and Realities

Before a struggling company reaches insolvency, decides to seek bankruptcy

protection, or decides to make a general assignment for the benefit of creditors, its
board of directors must address a number of issues that, if ignored or inappropriate
addressed, may result in litigation or personal liability.

Ethical Issues and Challenges

When a company is struggling, the organizational environment is fraught with ethical

pitfalls and traps. The first step is to recognize the ethical issues. Inevitably, someone or
some group(s) will be damaged by whatever decisions are made. Often decision
makers will have to make a choice between two or more bad alternatives.

Decision makers will be pressured by various parties, all of whom will have real or
perceived conflicts of interest. Stakeholders will be looking for a speedy resolution of the
problem, and short cuts will be hard to resist, even when decision makers have every
intension to act ethically.

One of the challenges will be to identify all of the individuals and groups that have an
important stake in the outcome. Judging that some concerns are of more importance
than others will be an important next step.

Once the options are identified, prioritizing them according to which do the most good or
the least harm will take discipline and energy. Grappling with the fairness and
"proportionality" of the options is also a critical step.

After a tentative decision is reached, it should be tested and communicated to the

stakeholders, an important step to maintain transparency in the process. Testing the
decision with a third party who is both knowledgeable and disinterested could provide
value to the process.

Finally, thought should be given to how the decision is to be implemented; will the
implementation reflect care and attention to the significant consequences for the
primary stakeholders? Although it takes both institutional and personal courage,
performing a post mortem would also be valuable to those involved in the process.
 The ADHD Scam and the Mass Drugging of Schoolchildren (Transcript)

Today I am bringing you news from the world of ADHD, because scientists claim
they have found a difference in the brains of children with ADHD versus "normal"
children. The brains of these children who have been diagnosed with ADHD were
scanned with an MRI machine. They compared 40,000 different points in their brains
looking for signs of thickness in the brain tissue.

They discovered that the brains of children diagnosed with ADHD were a little
behind schedule in growing. Yes, you heard that right. They said they are about three
years behind the brains of other children. Everything else was normal. They said if they
wait three years those children will catch up and turn out just fine.

Now who is "they?" Dr. Phillip Shaw from the National Institute of Health, which is
probably the National Institute of Mental Health -- they are the ones who did this
research and this research has been making the rounds in mainstream media. You hear
stories about it all over the radio. I heard one on national public radio today.

It just blew my mind. I will tell you why in a minute. Headlines in newspapers and
magazines, TV news, cable news network’s all across the country -- they have experts
on there now claiming that ADHD is a physical disease. There is something wrong with
the brains of these children. Apparently they forgot to look at the research that came out
just two days before. Do you know what that research shows?
 Sal DiCiccio's stake in South Mountain Freeway plan

A year ago, the Phoenix real-estate broker filled a vacancy on the City Council,
reclaiming the seat he held a decade earlier. Ever since, he's championed moving the planned
Loop 202 extension south, from Ahwatukee Foothills to the Gila River Reservation.

To supporters, DiCiccio is working to find the best outcome for his Phoenix constituents.
Opponents say his development deals along the freeway blur personal and public matters and
represent a conflict of interest.

The Arizona Republic took a closer look at DiCiccio's possible stake in the planned 22-mile
freeway, examining city financial forms and court records, plus letters, e-mails and other
documents obtained under a public-records request. The picture that emerged shows that
DiCiccio:

• Benefited financially from a business partner's purchase of land that was resold to the state for
the proposed South Mountain Freeway. The purchase, which The Republic uncovered in
records, allowed the business partner to repay a $100,000 loan from DiCiccio that the
councilman says was unrelated to the freeway property.

• Was paid thousands of dollars in 2006 by an Arizona Department of Transportation consultant

to persuade Gila River leaders to permit the Chandler-to-Laveen freeway to cross their
reservation.

• Has investments in leases of two Gila River tribal properties, one located near the proposed
Loop 202 extension route. DiCiccio won't say how much he invested or what his potential profit
could be. The tribe, his development partner, stands to gain millions of dollars and wilderness
land if it sells right of way to the state for the freeway.

DiCiccio was not in public office when he made the investments or worked as a consultant - a
fact that he points to in denying critics' accusations that his efforts to move the freeway path
pose a conflict of interest. He said he has never voted on the freeway and doesn't plan to.

But DiCiccio's dual public and private roles attracted criticism in his successful fall election
campaign. Some transportation officials and ethics experts say they are troubled that DiCiccio
has represented all sides of the freeway debate over the past decade, whether as a politician, a
businessman or an advocate.

Few details are available in public records about DiCiccio's business dealings. Records show he
owns a commercial real-estate firm and is a licensed real-estate broker.

His dual roles threaten to muddle the $1.9 billion Loop 202 project and could delay it, after 27
years of planning. Environmental work on the existing route is six months from completion and
federal approval to build is expected this year.
 Dairy industry entangled with bribery, corruption and politics -- interview with
Robert Cohen

The most brilliant marketing campaign in the history of humankind -- you gotta
give these guys credit. They do their job well, and they spread the money well, in the
right magazines. They've targeted women from women's magazines and they've also
gotten to Congress. They've donated money -- lots of it -- so that chief, key people who
make these laws regarding milk consumption in schools on the USDA, the food pyramid
-- it's loaded, it's so supersaturated with people who have worked for or continue to
work for the dairy industry.

And when I use the word "bribes," I'm saying they bribed people in government. I
actually filed a Freedom of Information Act Request and got a Watergate tape -- March
23, 1971, we find Richard Nixon taking $3 million dollars cash in the White House. John
Connelly walks in there afterwards and is recorded saying, "These men are militants,
they're adamant, they're going to place a lot of money into political activities," and they
had $3 million cash! You know what Nixon did the next day? The next day in a cabinet
session, despite the fact that a week earlier the Secretary of Agriculture, Clifford Horton,
said there'd be no increase in the price of milk that year because there was a surplus,
the next day Nixon surprised everybody by raising the price of milk across the board,
translated to a $300 million increase that Americans had to pay.

A year later, before the Watergate tapes were even known, Nixon was now being
interviewed on television by 100 reporters, and one of the reporters at the end said, "Uh,
Mr. President, how about rumors of the milk fund?" -- that $3 million bribe was paid, we
now know. Nixon responded: "Milk fund? The Democrats are raising the price of milk,
not the Republicans!" And he said, "I want the American people to know that their
president is not a crook -- I am not a crook." That's what he said in response to a
question about the milk bribe he took. The guy was a crook, and that's the way
Congress works.
CHAPTER II

HIMSS: Healthcare Technology Roundup

At the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS)

conference in Atlanta this week, the show floor was over the top with vendors appealing
to healthcare providers and other customers anxious to spend soon-to-come federal
health IT stimulus funds.

The federal government is still hard at work hammering out its meaning of
"meaningful use" requirements for health IT stimulus programs, but those uncertain
requirements are already spiking IT spending among healthcare providers.

The $20 billion-plus healthcare IT stimulus program has more hospitals and doctors
than ever planning to implement e-medical record and other health IT systems. But
CIOs report they're finding it hard to recruit IT talent, especially those with the skills to
work on EMRs and physician order entry systems.

There is a near-frenzy for HIT stimulus funds, and slew of healthcare IT

innovation vying for clinicians' attention, as this week's gathering in Atlanta illustrated.

Information Week had a team of reporters at the show, covering the latest in
electronic medical records, the governments meaningful use requirements, health IT
careers, software solutions for hospitals and physicians' practices, and unified
communications for the healthcare industry.
 The Communication Strategy Basics

As word spread about just how dramatically CIO Dana Deasy planned to transform the
IT organization, you can imagine people realized they had to get on board or get out. Deasy
says the transformation idea "caught on like wildfire." To keep people focused on the right goals
and to force a consistent approach, BP's IT leaders came up with a communication strategy of
the Four R's, which later gave way to the Four E's.

Here are the Four R's Deasy and team laid out at the start of the effort:

REWIRING
"We needed to take the whole global IT organization and gut it, and then rebuild it," Deasy says.

RETOOLING
Deasy describes this as "fixing the capability of the organization--our people and the
assessment of them." That led to skill evaluations of 1,000 top IT people, cutting 1,000 full-time
contractors, and focusing talent more on subject-matter experts.

REENGINEERING Deasy saw too many silos of IT operation, so he centralized IT decision-

making in year one to force people to work together. The plan was then to decentralize those
roles that made sense to sit inside the business units.

RESOURCING
This involved rebidding $1.5 billion worth of IT spending for a single year, cutting BP's 2,200 IT
supplier base, and requiring suppliers to work together.

The IT team made quick progress on those goals, which created a different kind of problem.
"We're coming out of the transformation and the fear is that people would be preoccupied with
wondering, what's next?" Deasy says. "To avoid that, we had to create a sustainable program
that everyone could get their heads around." That led to retirement of the Four R's and creation
of the Four E's to explain where the IT team members had been and where they were headed:

This is what the IT team did at the first stage of the process: "We changed people,
suppliers, and a lot of pretty heavy-handed things," Deasy says.

EFFICIENCYPLAN
Deasy characterizes this as "leveraging our scale." That starts with rebidding contracts
to get new terms for 65% of its IT spending, but also demanding more ongoing transparency
and cooperation from those suppliers.

EFFECTIVENESS
Deasy says his CEO, Tony Hayward, "always says, 'Dana, don't ever lose your
efficiency edge. You've worked so hard to gain that, and you need to be sure you don't lose it.'"
That drives the IT team to explore how to use its new tiered structure to deliver a service--like e-
mail, help desk, or data center capacity--that's more closely tailored to a business unit's price-
performance needs. It's pushing its five key app dev and maintenance vendors for fresh ideas.
 Fujitsu Unveils Patient Kiosk, HIT Services

Fujitsu has introduced a patient-registration kiosk to reduce administrative costs

for healthcare providers. The kiosk was announced at the Healthcare Information
Management Systems Society (HIMSS) conference in Atlanta Monday.

The Med-Serv 50 is an "open hardware platform" that independent software

vendors can use to run applications. Along with patient check-in, Fujitsu says the kiosk
can be used by patients to fill out satisfaction surveys and pay outstanding balances or
co-pay fees.

The kiosk has a 19-inch display and integrated camera. For security, Fujitsu
includes as an option its PalmSecure palm vein biometric reader for authentication.

Allscripts, a Fujitsu partner, uses the Med-Serv 50 as the foundation for its
patient kiosk. Allscripts has integrated the kiosk with its electronic health records
technology to enable patients at doctors' offices to view personal information, including
a health maintenance plan.

Fujitsu is one of many vendors looking to grab a share of the $17.2 billion in
federal loans and grants earmarked for healthcare providers through the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The money is to help doctors, hospitals, and clinics
implement electronic health record systems and other cost-cutting technology.

Along with introducing the Med-Serv 50, Fujitsu on Monday also announced IT
infrastructure services for healthcare providers. Fujitsu datacenter options for healthcare
organizations include cloud computing, managed data center services and hosted
offshore solutions.

The company also unveiled the Healthcare Customer Feedback Management

Solution, built on the Oracle customer relationship management suite. The Fujitsu
system is designed to help hospitals to track, analyze, and report on customer feedback
to improve service.

Fujitsu is also partnering with Cerylion in upgrading the Fujitsu Telecom Expense
Management system. Fujitsu TEM 2.0 provides immediate visibility into all network
financial transactions in order to find ways to reduce voice, data, and wireless network
infrastructure expenses.
 Media Creation & Delivery

The brawn behind the brains.

QuickTime Streaming Server and QuickTime Broadcaster provide a complete,

integrated solution available with Mac OS X Server for encoding, broadcasting, and
streaming multimedia over the Internet. QuickTime Broadcaster captures and encodes
QuickTime content in the latest media formats, including MP3, 3GPP, MPEG-4, and
ACC audio. When combined with QuickTime 7, QuickTime Broadcaster supports
broadcasting in the H.264 video codec, providing stunning quality live streams at
remarkably low data rates. QuickTime Broadcaster also can broadcast in full, 640 X
480, 30 frames-per-second video to offer a TV-like experience to audiences on Macs or
PCs. Once its work is done, QuickTime Broadcaster delivers the resulting feed to
QuickTime Streaming Server for live streaming.

With QuickTime Streaming Server, your organization can stream news,

entertainment, educational content, and more over the Internet using RTP/RTSP—all
with no per stream license fees. The QuickTime platform provides a cost effective, end-
to-end solution for the creation, delivery, and playback of standards-based multimedia,
including the H.264 codec. Together, these two servers provide an inexpensive, end-to-
end solution for delivering live events over the Internet.

End-to-end podcast creation, production, and distribution.

In addition to live streaming events delivered online, the world of rich media is
increasingly moving into podcasting. Podcast Producer is a complete, end-to-end
solution for encoding, publishing, and distributing high-quality podcasts. Ideal for
employee training, delivery of content to large audiences, presentations—or whatever
audio or video podcasts your organization requires. Podcast Producer simplifies the
process of recording content, encoding, and publishing podcasts for playback in iTunes
and on iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV.

With Podcast Producer, your organization can take advantage of a solution that
enables users to create high-quality sound recordings and cleanly produced videos. The
automated workflow engine in Podcast Producer automatically converts audio and video
content into the proper formats for the devices and platforms you specify. Podcast
Producer can even automatically send out emails to announce each new podcast.
CHAPTER III

The Dating Group Internet Scam

Text taken from the James Miller blog on: Making the most of the internet @:
http://www.jamesmiller.com/mtmblog/2008/07/dating-group-team.html

I applied even though, their ad was a bit strange. By the way, an employer asking
your age, race or sex is illegal in the U.S! But in the posting it said; “if you have any
questions feel free to ask” and I did. In less than a few days, I heard from them via email
with an “assignment” but no answers to any of my questions! So, I Googled this
company and boy, was I in for a shock. At the bottom of the results page was a blog at
jamesmiller.com there, I found out this was a money laundering scheme based
somewhere in the Ukraine. I learned that instead of paying you with a check, they ask
for your bank account number so they can “deposit” your wages, or they offer to “wire”
you the money. Sound familiar? That’s because it’s a spinoff of the Nigerian email
scam. From what I’ve learned, they really do wire you small amounts of money for
editing assignments to build a rapport with their victim. But little by little, they ask you do
“favors” for them because, they want to expand their business. This usually requires
that you handle more money for them via wire or bank transaction. You can safely
assume the money is dirty, that’s why you’re handling it for them!

I contacted Cleveland.com and within 24 hours the ad was taken down. I have tip my
hat to them for the quick action but then on Sept 19th, I saw the same ad again! I
decided to do some investigating of my own and found out that the latest trends in
internet scams are people posting jobs that promise work-at-home opportunities. It’s
usually posted by someone in Africa, Eastern Europe or the U.K. They use electronic
means to launder dirty money and get some naive person to help them do it. They’re
using popular jobsites like: Careerbuilder.com to post their ads and lure victims in. So in
response, many of these jobsites have places where you can now report them. These
conartists are getting more sophisticated so, here are a few tips to avoid becoming a
victim:

1. See if they have a real website and if not, proceed with caution! Most businesses
have a company website not just an email address at a free service like Hotmail
or Gmail.
2. Educate yourself on the place you’re applying to BEFORE, you actually apply. As
you’ve learned, Google can be more than useful! Here’s a tip: when researching
on Google or Yahoo, use the company name together with the word scam or
fraud in quotations.
3. Beware of anonymous postings if they’re not using their company name, then
something’s wrong!
4. Last, but not least, take your time! Don’t be in such a rush that you forget that
you should be checking them out not, just the other way around!
 Criminal Defence Articles

There is no formal definition of computer crime or Internet crime.  However, this

type of crime may be described as an activity in which a computer or the Internet is
used to further a criminal purpose.  Simply put, it’s an offence involving the use of a
computer or the Internet.

The possession and distribution of child pornography are examples of crimes that
can be committed with the aid of computers and the Internet. The offence of mischief in
relation to data doesn’t specifically refer to either the term computers or Internet in its
definition.  However, today’s reality is that data is stored on computers.  Other crimes
such as fraud, criminal harassment, and uttering threats may also be committed with the
aid of these devices.  There are many more.  However, there is no mention of
computers or the Internet in the definitions of any of these offences.  Therefore, they
can also be committed outside the world of computers and the Internet.

There are, however, offences that specifically address certain types of computer
and Internet behaviour. As an example, it is an offence under the Criminal Code of
Canada to fraudulently obtain any computer service or possess a device designed
primarily to fraudulently obtain computer service.  In 2002, amendments were made to
the sections of the Criminal Code dealing with child pornography.  These amendments
now specify both transmitting and accessing child pornography as offences.  These
changes were created to deal with Internet activity.  Another amendment to the Criminal
Code enacted in 2002 deals with the luring of children “by means of a computer
system”.

Criminal Code provisions also allow for the issuance of search warrants  in
relation to child     pornography, hate propaganda, or other evidence with respect to the
commission of an offence stored on a computer system.

As society’s reliance on computers and the Internet continues to grow, so does the
need to protect it through the making and enforcement of criminal laws in relation to
computer and Internet activity.  Therefore, it is inevitable that the courts will continue to
see a growing number of prosecutions of computer and Internet crimes working their
way through the criminal justice system.
 Winning the war against cyber crime

What are governments doing to ensure that critical online operations remain
operational when under attack from cyber criminals? FutureGov asked senior civil
servants in Taiwan, Hong Kong, China and the Philippines to reveal how they are
preparing their defences against hackers.

Hsiang-Chen Li, Director of Computer Centre, National Police Agency of Taiwan

Hacking in Taiwan gets more serious by the year. In 2008 the National Police Agency
detected more attacks than in any other year – 4664, which is around three to four
hacks a day. It is interesting to note that the age range of hackers is getting younger
too. Almost one half of the hackers we know about in Taiwan are between the age of 12
and 17 years old, while the rest are between 18 and 23. The problem is allowed to get
worse – and it will, most likely – because more people are using the internet in their
daily and working lives. The average length of time Taiwanese spend on the internet is
at least two hours each day, which leaves a lot of time for hackers to steal confidential
information. They then sell it to criminal gangs, commit fraud or intimidate people with it.
We started tackling the problem back in 1996. We created a Computer Crime Squad
within the police department, and two years later all law enforcement units – including
the district attorney – had a task force to handle internet crime. Also, the government
established N-CERT and N-SOC in 2001 – initiatives to protect information
infrastructure. We are also trying to connect with other countries since most hack
attacks were launched from abroad.

Pang Yandong, Director of Information Industry Office, Government of Maoming

City, China Information dissemination through web sites as a mean of promoting
openness in government affairs is becoming increasingly important in China. And
government portals are becoming a key platform for communication between
government and citizen. But these platforms are magnetic for hackers. Our
administrative web site in Maoming City has received many attacks at escalating cost in
terms of disruption and down time. And they are using a variety of methods. Hackers
hack into operating systems and expose vulnerabilities in control servers. They have
been able to crack the system password, launch denial-of-service attacks, take over the
server upload process and tamper with databases and page codes. We have been
tackling the problem in the following ways. The first is to strengthen the information
security system. Second, to increase user awareness of information security. This
involves training network administrators regularly, so that we know how to cope with an
attack. We also ensure that we have the most up-to-date security settings and that
users change their passwords regularly. And in the event of an attack we record
precisely how the hacker got through our system, and make notes on how we rectified
the system – and how we might do it better next time.
 Cybercrime is in a state of flux

In the recently released internet thriller Untraceable, starring Diane Lane, a

criminal uses advanced technology to ensure that his own macabre website remains
"untraceable" to FBI agents trying to close him down. Cybercriminals in the real world
have their own version, "fast flux", to hide the location of phishing and spamming sites
and illegal malware.

The technique was first recognised in March 2007 by security companies

monitoring criminal botnets like Storm and Nugache. By January, it had become a
standard weapon of choice for phishers and spammers. Robert McCardle, from security
firm Trend Micro, says: "Fast flux is one of the biggest tools being used by criminal
botnets today.

One of the earliest reported sightings was in April 2006, when Brian Eckman,
security analyst at the University of Minnesota, was monitoring a botnet later called
Nugache. The basic weakness of botnets or "robot networks" is that they can be easily
detected. Botnets are built up by creating a herd of infected PCs or "bots" which take
orders from a single Command and Control (C&C) server at the top. When the C&C
server breaks cover to give orders it can be detected and disabled, and all the bots
beneath it no longer function.

But Eckman noticed that the Nugache botnet was spreading peer-to-peer via AOL's
instant messenger, using encrypted code as the Command and Control mechanism.
This meant it was "headless" and far harder to detect. James Blessing, chair of the
broadband group at the UK Internet Service Providers' Association (ISPA), says: "To an
investigator [the bots] look like a P2P file-sharing arrangement. There is no head to cut
off. They just sit there waiting for instructions."

Fast flux techniques were to evolve still further, Blessing says. Early on, the Nugache
bot could be detected because it would connect to exactly 22 other static IP addresses.
"Now they change the IP addresses they use frequently and use encrypted code."

David Dittrich, one of the top US botnet researchers at Washington University, believes
the use of fast flux evasion could make botnets like Nugache unstoppable. "The shape
and size of the botnet was changing almost constantly. The bots were communicating
with each other over an encrypted channel, making it all but impossible to listen in on
conversations."
CHAPTER IV

Fighting back Against Identity Theft

If you are a victim of identity theft, take the following steps as soon as possible,
and keep a record with the details of your conversations and copies of all
correspondence.

Place a fraud alerts on your credit reports, and review your credit reports.

Fraud alerts can help prevent an identity thief from opening any more accounts in
your name. Contact the toll-free fraud number of any of the three consumer reporting
companies below to place a fraud alert on your credit report. You only need to contact
one of the three companies to place an alert. The company you call is required to
contact the other two, which will place an alert on their versions of your report, too. If
you do not receive a confirmation from a company, you should contact that company
directly to place a fraud alert.

Once you place the fraud alert in your file, you're entitled to order one free copy
of your credit report from each of the three consumer reporting companies, and, if you
ask, only the last four digits of your Social Security number will appear on your credit
reports. Once you get your credit reports, review them carefully. Look for inquiries from
companies you haven't contacted, accounts you didn't open, and debts on your
accounts that you can't explain. Check that information, like your Social Security
number, address(es), name or initials, and employers are correct. If you find fraudulent
or inaccurate information, get it removed. See Correcting Fraudulent Information in
Credit Reports to learn how. When you correct your credit report, use an Identity Theft
Report with a cover letter explaining your request, to get the fastest and most complete
results. 

Continue to check your credit reports periodically, especially for the first year
after you discover the identity theft, to make sure no new fraudulent activity has
occurred.
 Internet Banking Made Safe And Easy

Internet banking from your home or office is safe, reliable, and so convenient, that you
will not need to do it any other way once you try it. And there is so much more that can be
accomplished other than just viewing your statements or paying your bills on line.

There may still be the stigma of insecurity in on line banking, but your banking institution
will assure that your funds, as well as your privacy is safe. You will be given, or you will choose
a unique username, password and security key or code. You will be able to change your
password at any time for added security. And you will not be burdened by a liability amount. In
fact, it is for zero dollars at most banks now and they guarantee your safety. You’re on line
banking is easy to use, and improvements in security continue to be made.

With the elimination of the auto complete browser function, you can be assured that your
financial information is safe from unauthorized individuals to view and manipulate. You are not
liable in any way if your funds are tampered with, and the bank will guarantee this.

Internet access is needed, as well as a computer, whether you do it at home or at your office or
at the library. You will need to make sure that your banking institution supports your browser,
and do not worry about software, you will not need anything special as it is all supplied on line.
You will now need to register for services on line.

All that is needed is your social security number and a debit card or credit card number

, along with the pin (personal identification number). If these cards are not available, you will be
able to use an account number such as a savings account, or perhaps your checking account.
You may also use your mortgage or loan account numbers, or home equity account number, as
well.

The ease and convenience of on line banking will make life that much easier. If your
computer and Internet service is at home, you will not need to leave it. Without having to spend
money on gas for traveling, you will save a lot there, not to mention the time it takes out of your
day to travel. Available twenty four hours in a day and seven days of the week, it is fast, secure
and easy to bank this way. You can also be sure to receive a confirmation number for every
transaction you make.

You may want to apply for other accounts and services, or request a higher line of credit
on your credit card. You can pay any bill anywhere in the United States. And you can see check
transactions, atm purchases, that is automatic teller machine transactions, and this also
includes deposits and withdrawals. And you can request stop payments on a check, as well.
You will be able to view your checks images and your statements for checking accounts as well
as your savings accounts. And you can make transfers to other banks, credit unions or
brokerage accounts.

Before you use Internet banking, it would be wise to check with your banking institution
to make sure that they will provide you with all of the services and guarantees that you will need
to rest assured that your financial information is safe.
 Computer Security Institute (CSI)

Computer Security Institute (CSI) is the original and leading educational membership
organization for information security professionals, with over 30 years of experience in the
industry. Our mission is simple: to provide you with the resources with which to succeed both in
your job and in your career. At the forefront of security trends and research, CSI is uniquely
qualified to provide the practical, yet often undiscovered, insight, strategies and trends that will
protect your organization and move you ahead.

 CSI Computer Crime and Security Survey: Only CSI Members have access to the
Comprehensive Edition, full 40-page report. The Comprehensive Edition goes into fuller
detail about respondents' security programs and attacks experienced, including policies
implemented, tools used, degree of outsourcing, use of metrics and effects of compliance
requirements, incident response to the attacks and how the CSI survey findings compare
to the findings of similar studies.

 Ten in-depth ALERT security reports: These comprehensive reports provide a deep

dive on emerging security issues and solutions, going beyond the weekly news stories.
Designed to prepare you for challenges now and around the corner, you'll get the level of
information that will actually make a difference in the way you perceive and practice
security.
 Guides to Social Networking Security: Your employees are on Facebook, LinkedIn,
Twitter and MySpace -  make sure your company is protected. These four guides are
designed to distribute to your end users, and show them how to use these sites
responsibly and securely.

  Webcasts and Discounted Member Courses: Whether you are looking to stay ahead of
the curve, satisfy your thirst for knowledge, or fulfill certification requirements, CSI 
offers monthly webcasts and courses that will cover topics ranging from hardware
virtualization security to cloud security and more.

 Significant savings at CSI conferences: Members enjoy up to $200 off registration to

CSI Security Exchange, May 26-27, 2010 in San Francisco, and CSI Annual, October 25-
29, 2010 in Washington, D.C.
 Security Resource Center: Head to the CSI resource center to find insightful articles on
topics ranging from end-user awareness and risk management to identity management
and virtualization.

 Awareness solutions at significant discounts. Technology is a huge part of security, but

so is careful training of front-line staff. CSI has created three leading components for
successful awareness training and we make them especially affordable for the CSI
community.
 Protect your Computer and Internet Privacy

Is a known fact that every time you open a browser to view a web page, order
something online, or read your email in a web based viewer that information is stored on
your computer for later use. Whether you are viewing the weather online, reading
sports, catching up on the latest world news or viewing something a little more private,
all that information is stored in your computer. Windows operating systems store all this
material in what are called Temporary Internet Files or cache. Web pages may store
bits of information about who you are when you visit web sites in files called cookies on
your computer. Your web browser will store a list of web sites you've visited and places
you've gone in a history file in your computer. Even if you are not online, programs will
store histories of the files you've opened, played, or viewed.

Generally there might not be any reason to worry about all these files in your
computer, but what if you sell your computer and all that information is left for someone
else to see. Maybe friends and relatives visit and use your computer and you dont want
everyone to know what files you are running on your computer. Then you are going to
want to know how to delete these files.

Even if you are not worried about privacy on your computer, you may be
surprised to realize how much hard drive space all this information takes up. If you are
running out of drive space, you may want to delete these files.

This deleting method is only good if you want to free space, because normal file
deletion only removes a file's directory entry, and leaves the data contained in the file on
your hard drive, which can be easily recovered by any average computer user using a
undelete utility. If you delete cookies or if you delete history using conventional methods
anyone can recover them! Even after a hard drive format, files can be recovered using
expensive hardware and software which use forensic latency track analysis algorithms.
 CHAPTER V

INTERNET FILTERS

The Internet is here to stay, and so is the battle over how it should be governed.
This issue is nowhere more pertinent and contested than in libraries. Free public
access to the Internet is now considered a basic right in many communities, but the
issue of what content should be accessible in such a setting is grounds for legislative
war.

Library Internet access opens whole new worlds to users. Patrons can freely
access multimedia information on subjects ranging from space exploration to local
community issues. At the same time, children and adults now have easy access to
controversial sites that contain pornography, hate literature and bomb information.

Internet filtering software offers some control, but its use remains hotly contested
by many. The debate finds the protectors of First Amendment rights pitted against
those who have deep concerns about child safety.

The following sites can help you get up to speed on the issue:

 American Library Association's Resolution on the Use of Internet Filters

Outlines the group's firm belief that the use of library filters violates the "Library
Bill of Rights", which the association adopted in 1948. As the primary
organization to set library standards worldwide, its voice is powerful.
 Defamation Of Character

Jan 26, 2001 -- (Originally published in the Entertainment Law column in the New York
Law Journal, January
The Appellate Division has upheld the dismissal by the New York State Supreme Court
of a claim brought against the creators, producers and broadcaster of the “Seinfeld”
television series (the “Series”). In that action, plaintiff had sought relief for purported
violation of sections 50 and 51 of the New York Civil Rights Law, for being cast in a
false light and for defamation.

Plaintiff Michael Costanza asserts that the character of George Costanza as portrayed
in the Series is based upon him. The fictional George Costanza, a long time friend of
the lead character, Jerry Seinfeld, is constantly having problems with poor employment
situations, disastrous romantic relationships, conflicts with his parents and general self-
absorption. The interplay between George Costanza and the actors in the Series has
been responsible in some measure for the great success of the Series.

In support of his claim that his name and likeness are being appropriated, plaintiff points
to similarities between him and the George Costanza character. Both are short, fat and
bald; both knew Jerry Seinfeld from college and both came from Queens. Plaintiff
asserts that the self-centered nature and unreliability of the George Costanza character
are attributed to him, and this humiliates him.
Plaintiff complains that defendants used his name and likeness without his permission,
that they invaded his privacy and that he was portrayed in a negative, humiliating light.

Plaintiff also claims that he was defamed by defendant Larry David. Plaintiff had written
a book in which he set forth his relationship with Jerry Seinfeld and claimed to be the
“real” George Costanza. David, in response to an inquiry as to his thoughts concerning
that book, reportedly replied that plaintiff was a “flagrant opportunist” seeking to cash in
when the hyperbole of the Seinfeld program’s final episode was at its peak.

Defendants moved to dismiss plaintiff’s claims. In considering the motion, the Supreme
Court read the allegations of the complaint as true and gave them every favorable
inference.

It first traced the history of the development of a right to privacy in New York State.
Responding to the roundly criticized decision involving the unsuccessful claim brought
by Abigail Marie Roberson against a flour company for using her picture without her
consent, the New York legislature, early in the twentieth century, enacted the nation’s
first right to privacy statute, now codified as sections 50 and 51 of the Civil Rights Law.
 Your Morning Commute is Unique: On the Anonymity of Home/Work
Location Pairs

Philippe Golle and Kurt Partridge of PARC have a cute paper (pdf) on the anonymity of geo-
location data. They analyze data from the U.S. Census and show that for the average person,
knowing their approximate home and work locations — to a block level — identifies them
uniquely.

Even if we look at the much coarser granularity of a census tract — tracts correspond roughly to
ZIP codes; there are on average 1,500 people per census tract — for the average person, there are
only around 20 other people who share the same home and work location. There’s more: 5% of
people are uniquely identified by their home and work locations even if it is known only at the
census tract level. One reason for this is that people who live and work in very different areas
(say, different counties) are much more easily identifiable, as one might expect.

The paper is timely, because Location Based Services  are proliferating rapidly. To understand
the privacy threats, we need to ask the two usual questions:

1. who has access to anonymized location data?

2. how can they get access to auxiliary data linking people to location pairs, which they can
then use to carry out re-identification?

The authors don’t say much about these questions, but that’s probably because there are too
many possibilities to list! In this post I will examine a few.

GPS navigation. This is the most obvious application that comes to mind, and probably the most
privacy-sensitive: there have been many controversies around tracking of vehicle movements,
such as NYC cab drivers threatening to strike. The privacy goal is to keep the location trail of the
user/vehicle unknown even to the service provider — unlike in the context of social networks,
people often don’t even trust the service provider. There are several papers on anonymizing
GPS-related queries, but there doesn’t seem to be much you can do to hide the origin and
destination except via charmingly unrealistic cryptographic protocols.

The accuracy of GPS is a few tens or few hundreds of feet, which is the same order of magnitude
as a city block. So your daily commute is pretty much unique. If you took a (GPS-enabled) cab
home from work at a certain time, there’s a good chance the trip can be tied to you. If you made
a detour to stop somewhere, the location of your stop can probably be determined. This is true
even if there is no record tying you to a specific vehicle.
 Should Limits Be Placed on Freedom of Expression?

The sale of pornographic materials has long been one of the most contentious
issues surrounding the right to free speech---and the rapid spread of online
pornography has intensified this debate. Critics argue that online pornography makes
indecent material more pervasive and easily accessible than ever before. They
emphasize how easy it is for children to access such material.

The courts have traditionally upheld adults' rights to view pornography, while also
allowing laws that protect children from it. Free speech advocates, however, maintain
that it is very difficult to use this type of regulatory framework on the Internet.

Due to the nature of the medium, any attempt to limit children's access to
objectionable material will unavoidably limit adults' access to it as well, undermining free
expression on the web.

The federal government's first attempt to deal with Internet pornography was the
1996 Communications Decency Act (CDA), which made it a crime to send sexually
explicit messages to anyone under eighteen. The Supreme Court struck down the law in
1997, however, on the grounds that it was too broad and vague in its definition of what
types of messages were prohibited.

In 1998 Congress tried to avoid the flaws of the CDA with the Child Online
Protection Act (COPA). The law provides a narrower definition of what is banned:
material depicting "sexual acts" and "lewd acts" that the "average person, applying
contemporary community standards, would find ... is designed ... to pander to the
prurient interest and ... lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value to
minors." The wording of the law harkens back to the 1973 Supreme Court decision
Miller v. California, which distinguished between pornography, which the Court held is
protected by the First Amendment, and obscenity, which is not. Pornography consists of
erotic or sexually explicit material, while obscenity, according to the Supreme Court, is
1) sexually explicit, 2) offensive according to "contemporary community standards," and
3) lacking in literary, artistic, or political value.

Free speech advocates have objected to the "community standards" criterion as

it pertains to the Internet. The American Civil Liberties Union, for example, argued that
under COPA the community standards of the most conservative towns in America could
be used to shut down websites that are not offensive to most of the country. Agreeing
with this logic, a federal court in Philadelphia blocked COPA from taking effect. In May
2002, however, the Supreme Court overturned the lower court's decision, ruling that it is
not unconstitutional to use "contemporary community standards" to define obscenity.