manager - Blog - Global Risk Community2024-03-29T04:36:35Zhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/managerAre Password Managers as Safe as You Think They Are?https://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/are-password-managers-as-safe-as-you-think-they-are2019-06-13T16:06:08.000Z2019-06-13T16:06:08.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>You have probably heard of password managers, and you probably think they are pretty safe, right? Well, there is new research out there that may might make you think twice, especially if you use password managers like KeePass, 1Password, Lastpass, or Dashlane. Frankly, I’m not worried about it, but read on.</p><p><img src="https://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/password-manager-protection.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" align="right" /></p><p>Specifically, this study looked at the instances of passwords leaking from a host compute or focused on if these password managers were accidently leaving passwords in the computer’s memory.</p><p>What was found was that all of the password managers that were looked at did a good job at keeping these passwords secure when in a state where it was “not running.” This means that a hacker would not be able to force the program into giving away the user’s passwords. However, it was also noted that though each password manager that was tested attempted to scrub these passwords from the memory of the computer, it wasn’t always successful…meaning, your passwords could still be in the memory.</p><p>Some of these programs, like 1Password, seemed to have left the master password, but also the secret key for the program. This could possibly allow a hacker to access the info in this program. But, it’s important to note that these programs are trying to remove this information, but due to various situational issues, it’s not always possible.</p><p>Another program, LastPass, was also examined, and it, too, caused some concern amongst researchers. Basically, the program scrambles the passwords when the user is typing them in, but they are decrypted into the computer’s memory. Additionally, even when the software is locked, the passwords are still sitting in the memory just waiting for someone to extract it.</p><p>KeePass, which is yet another password manager, was also looked at here. In this case, it removes the master password from the computer’s memory, and it is not able to be recovered. However, other credentials that were stored in KeePass were able to be accessed, which is also problematic.</p><p>Should you be worried about this? Well, it depends on your personal thought process. Some people probably won’t care too much, and others won’t be affected because they don’t use password managers that have these issues. Since the researchers pointed out these issues each password manager has done their own updates and corrected any issues. The real vulnerability isn’t the security of the password managers but the security of the devices, their users and if the users are deploying the same password across multiple accounts. Using the same password over and over is the risk here. So get a password manager so you can have a different password everywhere.</p><p><a style="color:#f30e0e;" href="https://safr.me/meet-robert/" target="_blank">Robert Siciliano</a> personal security and <a style="color:#f30e0e;" href="https://safr.me/blog/2018/03/16/identity-theft-advice/" target="_blank">identity theft expert</a> and speaker is the author of <a style="color:#f30e0e;" href="https://www.amazon.com/Identity-Theft-Privacy-Protection-Prevention-ebook/dp/B07FT67BMC/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1535732363&sr=1-3&keywords=Robert+Siciliano&dpID=51hWnD29JtL&preST=_SY445_QL70_&dpSrc=srch" target="_blank">Identity Theft Privacy: Security Protection and Fraud Prevention: Your Guide to Protecting Yourself from Identity Theft and Computer Fraud</a>. See him knock’em dead in this <a style="color:#f30e0e;" href="https://youtu.be/2m3Ra6ROPeA" target="_blank">Security Awareness Training</a> video.</p></div>The Technician, the Entrepreneur, and the Managerhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/the-technician-the-entrepreneur-and-the-manager2018-06-22T01:57:57.000Z2018-06-22T01:57:57.000ZEnrique Raul Suarezhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/EnriqueRaulSuarez<div><p> </p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}8028274885,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}8028274885,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="8028274885?profile=original" width="334" height="229" /></a></p><h2 style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:18pt;">A Message from Enrique R. Suarez to the Students of Entrepreneurship</span></h2><h2 style="text-align:center;"> </h2><h2 style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:18pt;">How to Start a Business Anywhere in the World</span></h2><h2 style="text-align:center;"> </h2><h2 style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:18pt;">The Technician, the Entrepreneur, and the Manager</span></h2><p> </p><p style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:18pt;">deltamodel55@yahoo.com</span></p><p style="text-align:center;"> </p><p style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-size:18pt;"><a href="https://enriquesuarez.academia.edu/">https://enriquesuarez.academia.edu/</a></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">In order to start and grow a business, a venture’s founder is required to wear three separate hats including that of the technician, entrepreneur, and manager. In any business, the technician does the work and produces the results, the entrepreneur sets the vision and grows the business, and the manager creates the processes and systems that bring the vision to life.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">Most people that start a business are technicians by trade. They know a skill or craft and seek to build a business around it. But here’s the fatal fallacy: a technician assumes because they know the trade or craft that they know how to run a business that does the technical work. In order to grow a business, therefore, the technician must also become an entrepreneur and a manager.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">Entrepreneurship is the mastery of economic creativity. It is a dynamic process of vision, change, and creation. It requires an application of energy and passion towards the creation and implementation of new ideas and creative solutions. Essential ingredients include the willingness to take calculated risks in terms of time, equity, or career; the ability to formulate an effective venture team; the creative skill to marshal needed resources; and the fundamental skill of building a solid business plan; and finally, the vision to recognize opportunity where others see chaos, contradiction, and confusion. Entrepreneurship is not magic, it’s not mysterious, and it has nothing to do with genes. It’s a discipline. And, like any discipline, it can be learned and improved upon.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">In order to be effective in growing a business enterprise, there must be a balance between the technician, the entrepreneur, and the manager with different roles taking the lead at different times. But many technicians have not had any immediate experience with the roles of entrepreneurship or management. As technicians, they have worked in their business, but not on it.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This is the need that the 16 modules created by Enrique R. Suarez satisfy.</span></p><h2>The Business Entrepreneur Seminars</h2><h2>Money Courses</h2><h2><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>1. Course Title: Finding Money To Start A Business</strong></span></h2><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count:195 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3.0 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">A comprehensive ten-part course on the tactics of how money is really raised for small business formation. The course examines the sources of available capital and an overview concerning the difference between debt and equity. The course walks you through the maze of financial terms and tactics necessary to successfully identify and secure money for a new business venture.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>2. Course Title: Creating A Loan Package</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 140 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 2.5 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course details the exact set of steps necessary in preparing a comprehensive loan package request. Each of the forms and requirements are explained and included. From initial readiness tests to help with advanced topics such as U.S. Small Business Administration loans, this course lays it on the line concerning what a lender is really looking for and how they evaluate loan requests.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>3. Course Title: Creating Financial Projections</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 149 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">A comprehensive how-to look at creating projected income statements, cash flow statements, and balance sheets. An essential skill in securing outside financing and in managing a business.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>4. Course Title: Finding and Attracting Investors</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 138 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 2 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">The course presents practical tactics on how to identify and secure different types of capital including seed capital, angel capital, and venture capital. The process used by different kinds of investors is presented and the tools for completing the fund-raising process are presented. Special focus is given to the federal and state laws that govern the capital and securities process.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>5. Course Title: Accounting 101</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 149 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 2.5 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">Take command of a bookstore and coffee bar and see how money moves in and out of a business learning the fundamentals of accounting at the same time. This course provides an in-depth look at each of the primary accounting transactions used in a business demonstrating how "the language of business" works. Without using any accounting jargon to begin with, the course demonstrates how to keep score in a business through a simple scorecard approach. When you are finished, you are shown that each of your scorecards represents one of the three primary financial statements used in managing a business.</span></p><h2>Management Courses</h2><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>6. Course Title: Crafting A Business Plan</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 135 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 2.5 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course is about the craft of creating a plan for your business. The business plan is the essential document used to raise money for a business and communicate your business vision and strategy to your management team, suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>7. Course Title: Strategic Planning and Execution</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 183 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3.5 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course presents the fundamental devices used in crafting a strategy for a business venture. The course puts forth the innovative mechanisms of internal and external strategy which are based on the findings of a new body of research into the strategy-making processes of successful growing ventures.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>8. Course Title: The Entrepreneurial Strategies</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 160 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course describes the available entrepreneurial strategies and how they are applied in the marketplace. For anyone starting or growing a business venture, the knowledge and skills underlying the entrepreneurial strategies are an essential part of any entrepreneur's toolkit.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>9. Course Title: Choosing A Legal Structure</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 129 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 2.0 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">Every new venture has to work the complex decision of what legal structure to choose for the business. This course breaks down this decision into its essential characteristics simplifying the decision-making process.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>10. Course Title: Buying A Business</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 221 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3.5 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">A comprehensive course on how to buy the right business at the right price. Developed by entrepreneurs who buy businesses for a living, this course offers advice and wisdom in such areas as the key questions to ask of any seller, the due diligence process, valuing a business and determining the offer, negotiation steps, and tactics, and sample legal agreements.</span></p><h2><span style="font-size:14pt;">Marketing Courses</span></h2><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>11. Course Title: Creating Buzz: Small Business Marketing</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 192 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3.5 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">Creating Buzz is one of the most comprehensive courses on how marketing is actually executed in a small business. The theory of creating buzz is that your primary investments should be time, energy, and imagination. Creating Buzz is packed-full of hundreds of strategies, checklists, and tips across the realms of network theory, positioning, advertising media, word-of-mouth campaigns, publicity, and public relations. From informal, easy-to-do tactics to full-fledged formal marketing plans, the lessons taught in this course are paramount to anyone growing an organization.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>12. Course Title: Market Insight and Research</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 161 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3 Hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course provides the process steps of conducting market research and how the process differs for a small entrepreneurial venture as compared to a large corporation. Highlighted are the tools used to explore the external market environment, segment customers into target markets, and define the consumption chain for a customer segment. Data resources discussed include secondary market data available for researching your industry, customers, industry size, and sales potential.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>13. Course Title: Positioning Master Class</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 108 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 2 hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course defines what positioning is and how it works as a communications tool to reach customers in a crowded marketplace. Positioning is about perceptions, not products. Market strategy is therefore planned in the mind and not the marketplace. This positioning course puts forth and describes the available positioning strategies including the positioning of a leader, the positioning of a follower, and the tactics for repositioning the competition. It also presents the easiest way of getting into the prospect's mind and helps you to prevent the most common positioning mistakes.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>14. Course Title: Pricing Strategy and Tactics</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 232 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 4.0 hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course explains what value is and why it's better to set prices on value rather than cost. An overview is presented of the 3Cs that influence price: costs, customers, and competition. Each of the available generic pricing strategies and techniques for segmented and lifecycle pricing is demonstrated, as well as, the effects of pricing psychology, and how pricing affects the other elements of your marketing mix.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>15. Course Title: Understanding Intellectual Property</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 129 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 2.5 hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course defines exactly what copyright, trademark, and patent are and what kinds of protection they might afford your business. The process of establishing such protection is presented for each kind of property. Also discussed are international intellectual property protection issues, as well as, important legal documents such as non-disclosure agreements.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>16. Course Title: Marketing 101</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Slide Count: 153 Animated Slides</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Length: Approx. 3.0 hours</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;">This course describes the fundamentals of the most important aspect of any business: marketing. Learn the concepts taught in college-level courses in just a few hours including the "5Ps"-Product, Promotion, Price, Place, and Positioning.</span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Total Number of Hours: 54.5</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>The price of the 16 modules will be given upon request.</strong></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Contact Information:</strong></span></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>deltamodel55@yahoo.com</strong></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"> </span></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p></div>Use a Password Manager Or You WILL Get Hackedhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/use-a-password-manager-or-you-will-get-hacked2018-03-19T13:02:29.000Z2018-03-19T13:02:29.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Do you ever use the same password over and over again for different accounts? If so, you are not alone. However, this is quite dangerous. It’s best to use a different, unique password for each account, and to make it easier, you should use a password manager.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/protection.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="173" align="right" /></p><p>According to surveys, people understand that they should use unique passwords, and more than half of people get stressed out due to passwords. Furthermore, about 2/3rds of people said that they had forgotten a password or that a password issue had cause problems at work.</p><p>However, a password manager can easily solve the issues associated with passwords. A password manager is a type of software that can store login info for any and all websites that you use. Then, when you go to those websites, the password manager logs you in. These are safe, too. The information is stored on a secure database, which is controlled by a master password.</p><p><strong>Using a Password Manager</strong></p><p>Most people have more than one online account, and again, it’s so important to have a different password for each account. However, it’s very difficult to remember every password for every account. So, it’s not surprising that people use the same one for all of their accounts. But, if using a password manager, you can make it a lot easier.</p><ul><li>When using a password manager, you can create a password that is safe and secure, and all of your passwords are protected by your master password.</li><li>This master password allows you to access all websites you have accounts on by using that master password.</li><li>When you use a password manager, and you update a password on a site, that password automatically is updated on all the computers that use your password manager.</li></ul><p><strong>Password Managers Can Ease Your Stress</strong></p><p>When you first start using a password manager, it’s likely that you’ll notice you have fewer worries about your internet accounts. There are other things you will notice, too, including the following:</p><ul><li>When you first visit a website, you won’t put your password in. Instead, you can open the password manager, and then there, you can put your master password.</li><li>The password manager you use fills in your username and password, which then allows you to log into the website with no worries.</li></ul><p><strong>Things to Keep in Mind Before You Use a Password Manager</strong></p><p>Password managers available on the internet from many reputable security companies. However, before you pay for them, there are some things that you should keep in mind:</p><ul><li>All of the major internet browsers have a password manager. However, they just can’t compete with the independent software that is out there. For instance, a browser-based password manager can store your info on your personal computer, but it may not be encrypted. So, a hacker can might that information anyway.</li><li>Internet browser-based password managers do not generate custom passwords. They also might not sync from platform to platform.</li><li>Software based password managers work across most browsers such as Chrome, Internet Explorer, Edge, Firefox and Safari.</li></ul><p><strong>Password Managers are Easy to Use</strong></p><p>If you are thinking about using a password manager, the first step is to create your master password.</p><ul><li>The master password has to be extremely strong, but easy to remember. This is the password you will use to access all of your accounts.</li><li>You should go to all of your accounts and change your passwords using the password manager as an assistant. This ensures that they are as strong as possible, too.</li><li>The strongest passwords contain a combination of numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, and symbols. Password managers often create passwords using this formula.</li></ul><p>Managing your accounts online is really important, especially when you are dealing with passwords. Yes, it’s easy to use the same password for every account, but this also makes it easy for hackers to access those accounts.</p><p><strong>Don’t Reuse Your Passwords</strong></p><p>You might think it would be easy to reuse your passwords, but this could be dangerous:</p><ul><li>If your password is leaked, hackers can get access to all of your sensitive information like passwords, names, and email addresses, which means they have enough information to access other sites.</li><li>When a website is hacked, and all of your passwords and usernames are discovered, the scammer can then plug in those passwords and usernames into all of your accounts to see what works. These could even give them access to your bank account or websites like PayPal.</li></ul><p><strong>Ensuring Your Passwords are Secure and Strong</strong></p><p>There are a number of ways to ensure your passwords are secure and strong. Here are some more ways to create the best passwords:</p><ul><li>Make your passwords a minimum of eight characters long.</li><li>Mix up letters, numbers, and symbols in the password, making sure they don’t spell out any words.</li><li>Have a different password for every account that you have. This is extra important for accounts containing financial information, like bank accounts.</li><li>Consider changing your password often. This ensures your safety and security.</li></ul><p>If you have a weak password, you are much more susceptible to hacks and scams. So, protect your online existence, and start utilizing these tips.</p><p><a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/" target="_blank">Robert Siciliano</a> personal security and identity theft expert and speaker is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Things-Wish-Before-Identity-Stolen/dp/1941308996/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=httprobertc02-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=JAZ7MOSJYUIXZMJ3&creativeASIN=1941308996" target="_blank"><em>99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Identity Was Stolen</em></a>. See him knock’em dead in this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2m3Ra6ROPeA&index=1&list=PL68455D9C6D4E9101&t=237s" target="_blank">identity theft prevention</a> video.</p></div>Celebrate World Password Day in 2016 With These Tipshttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/celebrate-world-password-day-in-2016-with-these-tips2016-05-04T14:48:50.000Z2016-05-04T14:48:50.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Each year, researchers in security take the time to rate some of the worst passwords found on the Internet. While popular pop culture events have caused waves with the list of the worst passwords of 2015 – think “solo,” “starwars,” and “princess” – the worst passwords of last year were still the usual suspects, “password,” “123456,” and “qwerty.”</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/5D.jpg" alt="" width="320" height="213" align="right" /></p><p>It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that researchers estimate as many as 90 percent of all user-generated passwords are subject to hacking. However, it might surprise you to know that even passwords that you believe to be secure will give little protection if it gets leaked.</p><p>On May 5<sup>th</sup>, the 4<sup>th</sup> World Password Day will commence, and Intel Security is, for the first time, departing from its usual stance of asking users to change their passwords to something stronger. Instead, they are asking users to add multi-factor authentication, or MFA.</p><p>MFA is an extremely powerful security feature that is available on most major websites for free, and this helps to stop any unauthorized person from accessing the account, even if this person knows your password. This feature combines the login with other identification factors such as face recognition, fingerprints or a code that you can use, which is delivered by text message.</p><p>Even the President is getting into the password game. That’s how important it is to have a strong password. President Obama recently suggested that Americans should start to protect themselves online by turning on this multi-factor authentication. Additionally, when you supplement passwords with MFA, you will greatly decrease the chance that you become a victim of fraud or identity theft.</p><p>Here are some of the best ways to protect and strengthen your password:</p><ul><li>Create passwords that are strong by using symbols and a mixture of upper and lower case letters</li><li>Use a different password for every account you have</li><li>Utilize a password manager to keep track of all of your passwords</li><li>Turn on the multi-factor authentication feature when possible.</li></ul><p>You can find out how well your passwords stack up by testing them online at Passwordday.org, by taking a pledge to add MFA, or even watch some videos about computer security.</p><p>You can also join in on a Twitter chat on May 5 at 3 pm Eastern/Noon Pacific. Stop.Think.Connect is hosting the chat and will be joined by @Telesign, @IntelSecurity and @StaySafeOnline. When you pledge to turn on MFA, which is free on most web services, you will be entered in a drawing to win a prize. Make the pledge today to turn on the MFA feature on May 5<sup>th</sup>, which is World Password Day.</p><a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/" target="_blank">Robert Siciliano</a> is an Online Safety Expert to <a href="http://blogs.mcafee.com/author/robert-siciliano" target="_blank">Intel Security</a>. He is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Things-Wish-Before-Identity-Stolen/dp/1941308996/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=httprobertc02-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=JAZ7MOSJYUIXZMJ3&creativeASIN=1941308996" target="_blank">99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!</a> See him knock’em dead in this <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU" target="_blank">identity theft prevention</a> video. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/" target="_blank">Disclosures</a>.</div>Popular Passwords make it easy to hack Youhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/popular-passwords-make-it-easy-to-hack-you2016-03-02T14:30:18.000Z2016-03-02T14:30:18.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Your account passwords should be as unique as your fingerprint—to make them less hackable by crooks using password-guessing software that can run through millions of possible combinations in just minutes. And if you have an easy password, there may be a hit <em>within 10 seconds</em>.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/5D.jpg" alt="" width="320" height="213" align="right" /></p><p>Think this software can figure out your password of “password1” or “monkey”? These are among the most used passwords. Needless to say, so is “1password” and just “password.” And “login.” What are people <em>thinking</em>?</p><p>Every year, millions of passwords are stolen. These are made public by researchers, in order of popularity. Hackers see this list. If you don’t want to get hacked, then avoid using the following passwords (this list is very incomplete):</p><ul><li>123456 (avoid ANY numerical sequence)</li><li>qwerty (avoid ANY letter sequence)</li><li>123456789 (long sequences are just as bad as shorter ones)</li><li>Football (hackers know that tons of passwords are a name of a popular sport)</li><li>abc123 (combining different keyboard sequences doesn’t toughen up the password)</li><li>111111 (how lazy can you be?)</li><li>1qaz2wsx (vertical sequences are vulnerable too)</li><li>master, princess, starwars (give me a break)</li><li>passw0rd (wow, so creative!)</li></ul><p>Don’t even bother with names of animals, countries, cities, famous music bands or people names. Even <em>combining</em> these won’t help, such as EmilyParis. If any component of the password can be found in a dictionary, change it.</p><p>Using a unique, different and strong password for all of your accounts goes a very long way in protecting yourself from hackers—and that means a <em>different</em> password for every account/site, not just a strong and original one. A hacker’s software will take millions of years to crack a password like <strong>8guEF$#gG2#&4H</strong>.</p><p>Now suppose you have 15 passwords like this (for 15 accounts). How do you remember them all, being that they’re a crazy jumble of all sorts of characters?</p><p><strong>Use a Password Manager</strong></p><ul><li>Solves the problem of having to remember (and type in) many different whacky combinations of characters.</li><li>Creates complex, hard-to-crack passwords.</li><li>Stores all the passwords and allows you to use one master password.</li><li>Eliminates having to reset passwords.</li></ul><p>But feel free to make some of your passwords up. So if your favorite movie is the original “Star Wars,” your different passwords might be:</p><ul><li>iLVth1st*wrz!FB (FB being for Facebook)</li><li>iLVth1st*wrz!A2Z (A2Z being for Amazon)</li><li>iLVth1st*wrz!$$ ($$ being for your bank)</li><li>Passwords should be at least eight characters.</li></ul><p>Robert Siciliano is an identity theft expert to <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://thebestcompanys.com/antivirus/">TheBestCompanys.com</a> discussing <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>.</p></div>The 6 Biggest Leadership Mistakes And How to Avoid Themhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/the-6-biggest-leadership-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them2016-01-29T11:00:00.000Z2016-01-29T11:00:00.000ZMaya Roelandhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/MayaRoeland<div><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}8028240899,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="750" src="{{#staticFileLink}}8028240899,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-full" alt="8028240899?profile=original" /></a></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">Mistakes are nature's way of showing you that you're learning. As a manager, you will make mistakes, but you can avoid common managerial errors by knowing where the common pitfalls are. In this article, we will name 6 of the most common Leadership mistakes, and see what you can do to avoid them. If you can learn about these here, rather than through experience, you'll save yourself a lot of trouble!</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p><b>1.<span> </span></b><span> </span><b>Not setting clear goals and expectations</b></p><p>When your people don't have clear goals, they muddle through their day. They can't be productive if they have no idea what they're working for, or what their work means. They also can't prioritize their workload effectively, meaning that projects and tasks get completed in the wrong order or even not completed on time. As an effective leader, you cannot rely on your team members to set their own goals. Without clear direction, they will remain rudderless.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><i>The best way to avoid this mistake:</i> Establish goals so that team members will know where they are going. Meet with them regularly to gauge progress and ensure that everyone knows where they are in terms of meeting objectives.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p><b>2.<span> </span></b><b>Not providing feedback</b></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">Failing to provide feedback is the most common mistake that leaders make. When you don't provide prompt feedback to your people, you're depriving them of the opportunity to improve their performance.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">The only way your team members can understand that they need to correct a problem is if you alert them to its existence and provide constructive feedback once they complete the task.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><i>The best way to avoid this mistake: </i>Make a habit of providing feedback on a regular basis. Remember that feedback does not always have to be negative; it can also be positive. Make a point to let team members know when they are doing something right, as well as correct them when there's room for improvement.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p><b>3.<span> </span></b><b>Not Investing in Personal Leadership Development</b></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">Capacity Theory states that people are entrusted with that which they have the capacity to handle. If a leader can only lead ten people, they won’t be entrusted with fifty. Likewise, if they can only lead a $5 million project, they won’t be entrusted with a $100 million project. The only way for leaders to continually grow is for them to invest in their <a href="http://globalriskacademy.com/courses/leadership?product_id=60405&coupon_code=100OFF" target="_blank">Leadership development</a>.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">If you grow your capacity, you’ll automatically be entrusted with more. If you allow the busyness of your schedule to hinder your growth in your leadership capacity, you’ll hinder your future potential. At a minimum, you ought to invest 3% of your salary/income in personal development, plus whatever you can get from your company/employer. In addition, make sure you have a mentor (or mentors)—even if you have to pay for them.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p><b>4.<span> </span></b><b>Failing to delegate</b></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">Some managers don't delegate, because they feel that no-one apart from themselves can do key jobs properly. This can cause huge problems as work bottlenecks around them, and as they become stressed and burned out.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">The key to leadership success is to learn to effectively delegate both the responsibility for completing assignments and the authority required to get things done.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><i>The best way to avoid this mistake:</i> Whenever you prepare to take on a new task or assignment, make a point to ask yourself whether one of your employees can do it instead. Leaders should be spending their time doing what they can best do, or more importantly, what ONLY they can do.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p><b>5.<span> </span></b><b>Not making time for your team</b></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">When you're a manager or leader, it's easy to get so wrapped up in your own workload that you don't make yourself available to your team.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">Your employees look to you as more than a manager. To some, you may be a trusted resource or a much-needed mentor. Others may view you as a coach, parent, or friend. No matter how each employee sees you, they all need your time.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><i>The best way to avoid this mistake:</i> Failing to make time for your employees is a common mistake, but it’s easy to rectify. Simply make yourself available whenever employees need you. Give them your total attention and practice active listening. When you help employees work through challenges, you can prevent frustration and dissatisfaction.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"></p><p><b>6.<span> </span></b><b>Not "Walking the Walk"</b></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">If you make personal telephone calls during work time, or speak negatively about your CEO, can you expect people on your team not to do this too? Probably not!</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">As a leader, you need to be a role model for your team. This means that if they need to stay late, you should also stay late to help them. Or, if your organization has a rule that no one eats at their desk, then set the example and head to the break room every day for lunch. The same goes for your attitude – if you're negative some of the time, you can't expect your people not to be negative.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">Becoming a leader is challenging; becoming a great leader is even more so. The good news is that you can improve by learning from mistakes and seeking the training that will help them avoid mistakes in the future.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">You can sharpen your skills and learn how to manage teams, communicate effectively, set goals, negotiate and delegate through this unique online business training - <span><a href="http://globalriskacademy.com/courses/leadership?product_id=60405&coupon_code=100OFF" target="_blank">Total Leadership Course</a></span>.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">As far as I know they have an Introductory promotion now so you can get a significant discount from the course price. Check it out: <a href="http://globalriskacademy.com/courses/leadership?product_id=60405&coupon_code=100OFF" target="_blank">Total Leadership Course today</a>.</p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"> </p><p class="ecxMsoNormal">What do you consider to be the 6 biggest leadership bosses leaders make? Let’s discuss them in the comments!<a href="{{#staticFileLink}}8028241652,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><br /></a></p></div>The World's First Biometric Password Lockdown App is herehttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/the-world-s-first-biometric-password-lockdown-app-is-here2015-11-17T14:45:39.000Z2015-11-17T14:45:39.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>It’s about time: a biometric for your smartphone that will change the way you think about biometric security.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/bio.PNG" alt="" align="right" height="341" width="289" /></p><p>This revolutionary biometric comes from Biometric Signature ID and it’s called BioTect-ID, and though it’s a biometric, it does not involve any so-called invasiveness of collecting body part information. The world’s first biometric password involves multi-factor authentication and just your finger—but not prints!</p><p>All you need to make this technology work to lock down your mobile device is a four-character password. But you can also draw a symbol like a star, leaf, a shining sun or smiley face as your password.</p><p>So suppose your password is PTy5 or a star. And suppose the wrong person learns this. In order for that person to get into your locked phone, they will have to literally move their finger exactly as you did to draw the “PTy5” or the star. This will be impossible.</p><p>BioTect-ID’s technology captures your finger’s movements, its gestures, and this biometric can’t be stolen or replicated.</p><p>BioTect-ID doesn’t stop there, however. The finger gesture biometric is only one component of the overall security. You’ve probably heard of “two-factor” authentication. This is when, in addition to typing in your password or answering a security question, you receive a text, phone call or e-mail showing a one-time numerical security code. You use that code to gain access. But this system can be circumvented by hackers.</p><p>And the traditional biometrics such as fingerprints and voice recognition can actually be stolen and copied. So if, say, your fingerprint is obtained and replicated by a cyber thief…how do you replace that? A different finger? What if eventually, the prints of all fingers are stolen? Then what? Or how do you replace your voice or face biometrics?</p><p>Biometrics are strong security because they work. But they have that downside. It’s pretty scary.</p><p>BioTect-ID solves this problem because you can replace your password with a new password, providing a new finger gesture to capture, courtesy of the patented software BioSig-ID™. Your finger movement, when drawing the password, involves:</p><ul><li>Speed</li><li>Direction</li><li>Height</li><li>Length</li><li>Width</li><li>And more, including if you write your password backwards or outside the gridlines.</li></ul><p>Encryption software stores these unique-to-you features.</p><p>Now, you might be wondering how the user can replicate their <em>own</em> drawing on subsequent password entries. The user does not need to struggle to replicate the exact appearance of the password, such as the loop on the capital L. <em>Dynamic biometrics</em> captures the user’s movement pattern.</p><p>So even though the loop in the L on the next password entry is a bit smaller or longer than the preceding one, the <em>movement</em> or <em>gesture</em> will match up with the one used during the enrollment. Thus, if a crook seemingly duplicates your L loop and other characters as far as appearance, <strong>his gestures will not match yours</strong>—and he won’t be able to unlock the phone.</p><p>In fact, the Tolly Group ran a test. Subjects were given the passwords. None of the 10,000 login attempts replicated the original user’s finger movements. Just because two passwords look drawn the same doesn’t mean they were created with identical finger gestures. Your unique gesture comes automatically without thinking—kind of like the way you walk or talk. The Tolly test’s accuracy was 99.97 percent.</p><p>Now doesn’t this all sound much more appealing than the possibility that some POS out there will steal your palm print—something you cannot replace?</p><p>Let’s get BioTect-ID’s technology out there so everyone knows about this groundbreaking advance in security. Here is what you’ll achieve:</p><ul><li>You’ll be the first to benefit from this hack-proof technology</li><li>You’ll have peace of mind like you’ve never had before</li><li>Eliminated possible exposure of your body parts data kept in files</li></ul><p>You can actually receive early edition copies of the app for reduced prices and get insider information if you become a backer on <a href="http://tinyurl.com/qfbcnp9">Kickstarter</a> for a couple of bucks. Go to <a href="http://www.biosig-id.com">www.biosig-id.com</a> to do this.</p></div>Don't Be Lazy With Your Passwordshttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/don-t-be-lazy-with-your-passwords2015-10-27T14:47:56.000Z2015-10-27T14:47:56.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>It can be tough being a responsible adult sometimes, and managing these responsibilities isn’t always a chore that I want to deal with. Can you relate? Managing life takes focus and effort, and managing your online life is no different. Most of us are lazy with our online accounts, especially when it comes to our passwords. It is easy to use the same password for every account, but this also makes it very easy for hackers to access your passwords.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/RISK.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="213" width="320" /></p><p><strong>You Need a Password Manager</strong></p><p>Most of us have several online accounts that require different passwords. However, trying to remember all of these passwords is difficult, so it is no wonder that people choose to only use one password for every account. How can you avoid this? You should use a password manager.</p><ul><li>Password managers will help a person not only create a password that is safe and secure, but all of the passwords you choose can be stored and managed by using a master password.</li><li>A master password allows you to get access to all of your accounts by using only one password.</li><li>When you have a password manager, you will no longer have to reset passwords, and your online accounts will be more secure than ever before.</li></ul><p><strong>Making Passwords Strong and Secure</strong></p><p>There are a number of ways to make your passwords secure and strong. But don’t just take my word for it, according to Bill Carey, VP Marketing for the <a href="http://www.roboform.com/">RoboForm Password Manager</a> “The number one thing a user can do to protect themselves online is use a strong unique password for every website”</p><ul><li>Passwords should be a minimum of eight characters long.</li><li>All passwords should also have letters, numbers and characters that do not spell another word.</li><li>Make sure to use different passwords for different accounts. This is especially the case for banking and other websites that contain sensitive information.</li><li>Passwords should be changed frequently to ensure safety and security.</li></ul><p>Those who have weak passwords are more susceptible to hacks and scams. Make sure to take these tips to heart and protect your sensitive online information.</p><p>Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to RoboForm discussing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>How Passwords Get Hackedhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/how-passwords-get-hacked2015-10-26T13:52:16.000Z2015-10-26T13:52:16.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>If I wanted to crack one of your passwords, I could probably make a series of educated guesses and get pretty close. Why? Because people tend to stick with simple, easy to remember passwords, but these are the passwords that are easy to hack. According to Bill Carey, VP Marketing for the <a href="http://www.roboform.com/">RoboForm</a> <a href="http://www.roboform.com/">Password Manager</a> “Users need to take personal responsibility for their passwords and not assume that companies will keep them safe.”</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/4D.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="213" width="320" /></p><p><strong>Hackers Have Many Ways to Get Into Your Accounts</strong></p><p>There are many ways that a hacker can get into an online account.</p><ul><li>A brute force attack is one of the simplest ways to gain access to information, and is generally done when a hacker writes a special code to log into a site using specific usernames and passwords.</li><li>A hacker usually focuses on websites that are not known for security, such as forums…and if you are like most people, the same password and username you use on your favorite gardening site is the same you use at your bank…or at least a version of it.</li><li>The hacker instructs the code to try thousands of different username and password combinations on the target site, such as your bank.</li><li>What makes this easier? Your computer stores cookies, which have information on your login credentials, in a neat, orderly unencrypted folder on the cache of your web browser. As soon as this is accessed, it can be used to get into online accounts.</li></ul><p><strong>How to Improve Your Passwords</strong></p><p>There are a number of expert tips that will help to improve your passwords:</p><ul><li>Substitute numbers for letters that look similar, such as @ for O, i.e. M@delTFord.</li><li>Throw in a random capital letter where it usually shouldn’t be, i.e. PaviLlion723.</li><li>Have a different username and password combination for every account.</li><li>Consider using a password manager to keep track of all of your account credentials. This way, you won’t have to worry about remembering all of the symbols and letters. These password managers also automatically fill passwords in on web pages or on devices.</li><li>Test your password strength with an online tester, but make sure it is from a reputable source, such as Microsoft or even beter use the experts over at password manager RoboForm – <a href="http://www.roboform.com/how-secure-is-my-password">http://www.roboform.com/how-secure-is-my-password</a>.</li></ul><p>Don’t learn a hard lesson when it comes to your passwords. Take the steps today to update your log in credentials, and have a safer tomorrow.</p><p>Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to RoboForm discussing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>How to Set Up a Password Managerhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-set-up-a-password-manager2015-10-24T13:54:29.000Z2015-10-24T13:54:29.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>If you have made the decision to use a password manager for your personal cybersecurity, which I highly recommend, you will quickly find that you online world is safer, easier and more secure than ever before.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/7W.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="210" width="345" /></p><p>According to a recently concluded survey conducted by uSamp and sponsored by Siber Systems, creators of the <a href="http://www.roboform.com/">RoboForm Password Manager</a>, 63% of respondents reported forgetting a password, or had a password become compromised, in their professional life. But it doesn’t need to be this difficult.</p><p><strong>What Does a Password Manager Do?</strong></p><p>Before choosing a password manager and setting up an account, you may be curious to see exactly what they do:</p><ul><li>A password manager stores the passwords for your online accounts in one, easy to access place, as long as you have access to the master password.</li><li>The passwords are stored and encrypted by the password manager software, and the information is controlled by a master password.</li><li>The password manager will allow you to create a strong password for every account without the need to have to remember them.</li><li>Many password managers can sync across devices and platforms, as well as browsers, so you can use it with almost any online account you have.</li></ul><p><strong>Setting Up a Password Manager is Easier Than You Think</strong></p><p>Setting up a password manager is typically easy, and the process begins by downloading the manager onto your device.</p><ul><li>Setting up the account is no different than sitting up any other account. You will need a user ID, password, name and email address in most cases.</li><li>Each device you use should have the password manager installed onto it.</li><li>The data will automatically sync from device to device as it is updated according to information from RoboForm.com.</li><li>As long as the master password is kept safe, the data stored within the password manager is secure.</li><li>To start saving passwords to the password manager, log into websites as you normally do, and then the program will ask if you want to save the log in information. Once the information is saved, each time you go to the site and attempt to log into your account, the password manager will automatically enter your information.</li></ul><p>As you can see, using a setting up a password manager is quite simple, and it is likely easier than you ever thought in the past. It can be done in minutes and will keep you safe for many years to come.</p><p>Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to RoboForm discussing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU" target="_blank">identity theft prevention</a>. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/" target="_blank">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>It's Time for You to Use a Password Managerhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/it-s-time-for-you-to-use-a-password-manager2015-10-19T13:56:59.000Z2015-10-19T13:56:59.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>If you are like me, you have several online accounts, each with a user name and password. Though it is tempting to use one password for every account, this can be troublesome as it is a huge security risk. So, what is your only option? To use a password manager.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/2D.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="214" width="320" /></p><p>According to a recently concluded survey conducted by uSamp and sponsored by Siber Systems, creators of the <a href="http://www.roboform.com/">RoboForm Password Manager</a>:</p><ul><li>42% write them down</li><li>23% reported always using the same password**</li><li>25% reported using personal information</li><li>Only 8% use a password manager tool</li><li>Only 37% report using phrases with a combination…</li></ul><p>The statistics clearly show that a lot of the data breaches we see today are a result of poor password management.</p><p><strong>A Password Manager? What Is It?</strong></p><p>At a basic level, a password manager is a service that allows people to secure all of their account log in information with one master password.</p><ul><li>With a password manager, you won’t have to worry about password compromises, and you can easily have a different password for every account without the need to remember them.</li><li>If one password is compromised, such as a Facebook password, you can be sure that the scammer will not have access to other accounts as they don’t have the same password any longer.</li><li>It is easier than you might think to hack into an account, but with this software, your passwords are protected, unique and strong.</li></ul><p><strong>Choose the Right Password Manager for Your Needs</strong></p><p>There are many services out there offering password management software, some are free, some are paid, but all of them offer better protection than you would get by choosing nothing.</p><ul><li>Some password managers are device specific, so make sure that if you use Apple products, for example, that you ensure the manager will work with your hardware.</li><li>Most password managers work on multiple platforms.</li><li>There are online and local password managers, too. An online manager allows passwords to be stored online, but they may not be as secure or as reputable as a local password manager.</li><li>Fortunately, there are many great online password managers, such as RoboForm. It can be used on all major browsers and across most devices. I’ve been using RoboForm for at least 10 years. It works lovely.</li></ul><p><strong>Password Managers: Final Thoughts</strong></p><ul><li>Take some time to research before choosing your password manager. It must be a trustworthy company.</li><li>You will be more secure than ever before, but nothing is fool-proof, so you still need to keep your devices security software updated and make sure you have copyies of all your passwords in an encrypted Excel file.</li></ul><p>Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to RoboForm discussing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>The Password Reset Isn't How to Remember a Passwordhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/the-password-reset-isn-t-how-to-remember-a-password2015-10-17T14:18:03.000Z2015-10-17T14:18:03.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Consider a keychain for a moment. For most of us, a keychain holds all of our necessities such as home keys, car keys, work keys and even forgotten keys, that we aren’t quite sure what to do with. Now, think about this. What if your keychain had keys that look identical, but each key only opens one door.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/5D.jpg" alt="" width="320" height="213" align="right" /></p><p>If you are like most people, this key scenario is almost identical to the way you treat your account passwords online. What happens when you want to use a key, but you don’t know which one goes with which door? It can be very easy to forget and identify the key to the door or the password to the website.</p><p>What do you do in this situation? You probably wouldn’t have a friend that had a key to your home, and you certainly don’t want to break down the door. Should you call a locksmith every time you forget which key works? This sounds ridiculous, right? Well, it is no different than using the password reset feature when it comes to forgetting the password on a website. Instead, step up your password game.</p><p><strong>Don’t Change Your Password Every Time You Forget It</strong></p><p>You wouldn’t want to call a locksmith every time you lock yourself out of the house, and you should not rely on a password reset feature every time you forget your password.</p><ul><li>If you have a number of accounts and don’t want the hassle of creating strong, long passwords, consider a password manager.</li><li>These services will help you to create a strong, secure password for every website you frequent, plus you will have a single master password, that allows you to manage it all.</li><li>A password manager eliminates having to reset a password.</li></ul><p><strong>Create the Best Password for Your Online Accounts</strong></p><p>When it comes to creating the best password for any online account, According to Bill Carey, VP Marketing for the <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://www.roboform.com/">RoboForm</a> <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://www.roboform.com/">Password Manager</a> “It’s not a matter of if your password will be leaked, it’s a matter of when. So protect yourself by using a strong and unique password for every website.”</p><ul><li>Passwords must be a minimum of eight characters long, and they should include mismatched numbers, characters and letters.</li><li>The best passwords do not spell any words.</li><li>Use a password for each account, especially if using high-value websites such as banking sites.</li><li>Make sure to change your passwords regularly.</li></ul><p>Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to RoboForm discussing <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>. <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>Why You Should Use a Password Managerhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/why-you-should-use-a-password-manager2015-10-10T14:02:47.000Z2015-10-10T14:02:47.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Most experts in cybersecurity suggest that computer users utilize a password manager, and I think they have a great point. These managers ensure that you can use a unique, strong password for all online account. On the flip side, there are naysayers that state a password manager isn’t as safe as you might think, as if the master password is discovered, it could give someone access to all of your information. So, who is right?</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/3D.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="194" width="381" /></p><p>According to a recently concluded survey conducted by uSamp and sponsored by Siber Systems, creators of the <a href="http://www.roboform.com/">RoboForm</a> <a href="http://www.roboform.com/">Password Manager</a>, only 37% of survey participants use passwords that contain both letters and numbers. And only 8% report using a password management system, which can automatically create strong passwords for every site and change them frequently.</p><p>Here are some things to keep in mind:</p><p><strong>Singing Praises for Password Managers</strong></p><p>Why do some experts sing the praises for password managers?</p><ul><li>Password managers allow you to use the most secure passwords, and allow you to use a different password for every account.</li><li>Since most websites have their own requirements for a password, you won’t become frustrated every time you log in, and you won’t have to remember if the ampersand is before or after the capital “S.” Besides, no one can remember every single password and username combination.</li><li>These password managers can work across all devices and on all browsers.</li></ul><p><strong>The Possible Downside of Password Managers?</strong></p><p>Though there are certainly benefits of using a password managers, some people share their concerns with this software and state some of the following reasons:</p><ul><li>There is a chance of a hack, albeit a small one, and if someone discovers a master password, they have access to everything including banking and personal information.</li><li>You also don’t know how secure these password managers really are, especially if it is an online password manager, such as one associated with a web browser, as the data may not be encrypted properly.</li></ul><p><strong>Looking At Both Sides of the Fence</strong></p><p>When looking at expert opinion, you will typically find that most of them fall somewhere in the middle when it comes to using a password manager. These people see password managers as useful, but people should use them with caution.</p><ul><li>Only use applications that have good reputations and those that do not rely on third parties</li><li>Use password managers that alert you immediately of a breach</li><li>Remember, a password manager is only as strong as the master password. This password should be strong, unique and changed often.</li></ul><p>Good or bad, it’s probably better to be safe, rather than sorry. As with anything, be smart with your password manager, and you should have no issue with its effectiveness.</p><p>Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to RoboForm discussing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>What is a Password Manager?https://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/what-is-a-password-manager2015-10-07T14:20:56.000Z2015-10-07T14:20:56.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Many people, including myself, make mistakes with their passwords and use them on site after site. To remain safe, it’s important to use a unique, strong password on every site you visit. How do you do this the easy way? Use a password manager.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/2P.jpg" alt="" width="250" height="375" align="right" /></p><p>According to a recently concluded survey conducted by uSamp and sponsored by Siber Systems, creators of the <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://www.roboform.com/">RoboForm</a> <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://www.roboform.com/">Password Manager</a>, the results indicate that people have some idea of the scale of the password challenge: More than half said they felt stressed out by the number of things they have to remember on a daily basis at work, and 63% reported that they’d either forgotten a password or had a password compromised at some point during their professional career</p><p>A password manager can solve this issue. A password manager is a type of software that stores login information for all the sites you commonly use, and the program helps you to log in automatically each time you browse to a particular website. This information is stored in a database, controlled with a master password, and is available for use at any time.</p><p><strong>Word of Warning: Don’t Reuse Your Passwords!</strong></p><p>What is the big deal about reusing your passwords? It could be really damaging:</p><ul><li>If your password is leaked, scammers will have access to information such as your name, email address and a password that they can try on other websites.</li><li>A leaked password could give scammers access to online banks or PayPal accounts.</li></ul><p><strong>What is It Like Using a Password Manager?</strong></p><p>The first thing you will notice when using a password manager is that it will take a lot of weight off of your shoulders. There are other things you will notice, too:</p><ul><li>You first visit the website as you normally would, but instead of putting your password in, you will open the password manager and enter the master password.</li><li>The password manager will automatically fill in the log in information on the website, allowing you to log in.</li></ul><p><strong>Think About it Before You Use a Web-Based Password Manager</strong></p><p>Yes, there are web-based password managers out there, but there are problems associated with them:</p><ul><li>All major browsers have password managers, but these cannot compete with a full password manager. For instance, they store the information on your computer, and this is not encrypted information meaning scammers can still easily access it.</li><li>These managers cannot generate passwords randomly, and they don’t allow for syncing from platform to platform.</li></ul><p><strong>Get Started With a Password Manager</strong></p><p>If you are ready to get started with a password manager, the first thing to do is choose your master password:</p><ul><li>The master password must be very strong, as it controls access to everything else</li><li>You should also change your passwords on every other site to a stronger password</li><li>Make sure your passwords have capital letters, symbols and numbers for the strongest password combination</li></ul><p>Robert Siciliano is a personal privacy, security and identity theft expert to RoboForm discussing <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU" target="_blank">identity theft prevention</a>. <a style="color:#bb0000;" href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/" target="_blank">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>Back to school Tech Security for College Studentshttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/back-to-school-tech-security-for-college-students2015-09-09T14:23:02.000Z2015-09-09T14:23:02.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Some of us remember college dorm days, when students were envied if they had their own <em>typewriter</em>. These days, college students must have a personal laptop computer, and a smartphone, and their lives revolve around these connected devices. Such dependency should be proactively protected from loss or theft. Campus security now means more than just being beware of who might be hiding in the bushes at night.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/1S.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="191" width="320" /></p><p>When you send your college kid off into the world, you want them to be prepared for life’s curveballs, and unfortunately, the occasional criminal too. How prepared are they? How prepared are you? Do you or they know that if they leave their GPS service on, some creep could be “following” them? Are they aware of how to lock down their devices to prevent identity theft?</p><p>For cybersecurity and personal security, college students should:</p><ul><li><a href="https://blogs.mcafee.com/consumer/location-apps-keeping-track-of-whos-keeping-track-of-your-kids/">Disable the GPS option on mobile apps</a> unless the app is specifically meant to track for personal security reasons.</li><li>Be very cautious about the personal information they share such as home address, dorm address, phone number and e-mail.</li><li><a href="https://blogs.mcafee.com/consumer/10-tips-protect-social-networks/">Enable privacy settings on social media accounts</a>.</li><li><a href="https://blogs.mcafee.com/consumer/cyberbullying-prevention/">Learn how to manage cyberbullying.</a></li><li>Realize that they are favored targets of identity thieves and often don’t realize they’ve been had.</li></ul><p><strong>How might students get hacked and how can they prevent it?</strong></p><ul><li>They can fall for a scam via a campus job board, the institution’s e-mail system, off-campus public Wi-Fi or on social media. Be aware of what you click on.</li><li>It’s easy for devices to be stolen; never leave devices alone whether it’s in the library or a café.</li><li>Shoulder surfing: Someone peers over their shoulder in the study lounge or outside on a bench to see what’s on their computer screen. A privacy filter will make shoulder surfing difficult.</li><li>Be careful when buying a used device (which can be infected) and simply taking it as is. Wipe it clean and start fresh with the installation of a new operating systems.</li><li>If you’re not using your devices, consider keeping them in a lockbox or a hidden place instead of exposed in a shared living space like a dorm.</li><li>All devices should have a password protected screen lock.</li><li>Data should be backed up every day. Imagine how you’d feel if you lost that term paper you’ve been slaving over!</li><li><a href="https://www.truekey.com/">Get a password manager</a>, which will create strong, complex passwords unique to every account. And you won’t have to remember them.</li><li>Avoid jailbreaking your smartphone, as this increases its hackability.</li><li>Avoid <a href="https://blogs.mcafee.com/consumer/be-cautious-when-using-wi-fi">using public Wi-Fi</a> for transactions involving money or sensitive information, since hackers could easily snoop on the data transmissions. A virtual private network (VPN) will prevent snooping by encrypting transactions.</li></ul><p>All devices should have security software that should be updated automatically. Virus scans should be done every day, or at least no less frequently than once a week.</p><p><a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/">Robert Siciliano</a> is an Online Safety Expert to <a href="http://blogs.mcafee.com/author/robert-siciliano">Intel Security</a>. He is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Things-Wish-Before-Identity-Stolen/dp/1941308996/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=httprobertc02-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=JAZ7MOSJYUIXZMJ3&creativeASIN=1941308996">99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!</a> <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>Passwords in Real Life: Don't be Lazyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/passwords-in-real-life-don-t-be-lazy2015-08-07T14:32:44.000Z2015-08-07T14:32:44.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>It’s tough being responsible sometimes. And managing responsibilities for what is precious in your life usually takes a little extra thought. Let’s say you’ve just welcomed a beautiful set of triplets into the world. Lucky you . . . and lots to managed! But, you wouldn’t give all these babies the same name simply to make it easier to remember, right?</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/5D.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="213" width="320" /></p><p>Consider this same concept as you manage other precious aspects of life, like your on line accounts. It may seem convenient – and easier to remember — to use the same password for all accounts.</p><p>But a single password across all accounts can also make it convenient for hackers to access your valuable information on these accounts.</p><p>Most of us have a number of accounts that require us to use and remember different passwords, which brings us to the question, “If we can’t use the same password for all of our accounts, how do you expect us to remember all of them?” The solution is easy.</p><p>You need a password manager.</p><p>A password manager will help you create an un-crackable password, and it will even give you a “master” password that will be able to get you into all of your accounts. That way you really will have only have one password to remember.</p><p>Password managers eliminate the need to reset passwords, and improve the security of your online accounts that contain your pertinent information. A password manager allows you to log into sites and apps using multiple factors that are unique to you, like your face and fingerprints and the devices you own.</p><p>Here are some useful tips for making strong and protected passwords:</p><ul><li>Make sure your passwords are at least eight characters long and include numbers, letters and characters that don’t spell anything.</li><li>Use different passwords for separate accounts, especially for banking and other high-value websites.</li><li>Change your passwords frequently.</li></ul><p><a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/">Robert Siciliano</a> is an Online Safety Expert to <a href="http://blogs.mcafee.com/author/robert-siciliano">Intel Security</a>. He is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Things-Wish-Before-Identity-Stolen/dp/1941308996/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=httprobertc02-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=JAZ7MOSJYUIXZMJ3&creativeASIN=1941308996">99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!</a></p></div>Don't Name Your Dog After Your Passwordhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/don-t-name-your-dog-after-your-password2015-07-15T14:10:58.000Z2015-07-15T14:10:58.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>Recently I got a puppy for my child. We decided to name the puppy <em>4wgu23x5#9.</em> My wife,<em>8yysH3m</em>, thought we should name the dog <em>0x2%#b5</em>. But I’m sure she’ll get over it. Meanwhile, I’m helping my older child with setting up a few social media accounts, and I suggested the two passwords: Rover and Spot.</p><p><img src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/5D.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="219" width="329" /></p><p>Is there something wrong with this picture?</p><p>Of course! But this picture replays itself millions of times over all the time, as people name their passwords after their pets, family members or favorite sports teams. Don’t do online what you wouldn’t do in real life.</p><p>When creating passwords remember that you should avoid using things that are personal to you and that could be easy for a hacker to find out about you. Things like your pet’s name, maiden name, birthday, name of your high school and child’s name can be easily found on social networks, making it even easier for hackers to crack your passwords.</p><p>Here are some other great tips to make sure that your passwords are strong and protected:</p><ul><li>Make sure your passwords are at least eight characters long and include numbers, letters and characters that don’t spell anything.</li><li>Use different passwords for separate accounts, especially for banking and other high-value websites.</li><li>Change your passwords frequently.</li></ul><p><a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/" target="_blank">Robert Siciliano</a> is an Online Safety Expert to <a href="http://blogs.mcafee.com/author/robert-siciliano" target="_blank">Intel Security</a>. He is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Things-Wish-Before-Identity-Stolen/dp/1941308996/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=httprobertc02-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=JAZ7MOSJYUIXZMJ3&creativeASIN=1941308996" target="_blank">99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Mobile was Hacked!</a></p></div>Lost your Master Password, do Thishttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/lost-your-master-password-do-this2015-04-21T13:39:09.000Z2015-04-21T13:39:09.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>You have a master password, from your password manager, for 28 accounts. Life has been so easy since!</p><p><img src="http://activerain.trulia.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/5D.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="240" width="360" /></p><p>But then you lose this master password. First off, you can’t fix this like you would if you forgot your password for PayPal or your credit card’s site. Plus, each password manager service has a different solution.</p><p>Yet how do you lose a master password in the first place? If it’s impossible to remember,then it may not be a good master password, regardless it should be written down somewhere in a secret location.</p><p>Lifehacker.com explains the requirements for various password manager services if you actually lose your master password.</p><p><strong>Dashlane</strong></p><ul><li>A lost master password with Dashlane is like, well…imagine your backpack falling into a dark crevasse—gone forever—even if you have applications for your smartphone for Dashlane.</li><li>You’ll need to create a new account or reset the existing account, but either way, you must start from scratch.</li></ul><p><strong>1Password</strong></p><ul><li>You’re out of luck if you lose your master password—gone with the wind; you must begin all over again, just like with Dashlane.</li></ul><p><strong>LastPass</strong></p><ul><li>Offers a one-time password, after which you must reset your password</li><li>Requires the computer you’ve already been using LastPass for</li><li>You’ll need the associated e-mail account. Otherwise, you must begin everything from ground zero.</li></ul><p><strong>KeePass</strong></p><ul><li>Lose your master password with this and you’re done. You must start from scratch.</li><li>Don’t even bother trying to crack it because KeePass does have built-in protection.</li></ul><p><strong>Roboform</strong></p><ul><li>It’s too bad here, too. Resetting your password means losing all of your data.</li></ul><p><strong>Of course, you don’t ever have to be in this hairy situation in the first place.</strong></p><ul><li>Write down your master password and store it in a secret location; do this several times, even, and make sure the locations are ones you won’t forget.</li><li>Write down the one-time password or backup code for your service (if it has these features). Write it down in more than one location, e.g., tape a stickie with it on the underside of your desk may not be the most secure, but an option.</li><li>See if the service allows you to export your password, then do so. Then save it on your computer and also print it out for a hardcopy duplicate. For better security don’t store it in your computer but instead in a USB drive (in addition to hardcopy).</li><li>See if the service provides a feature for emergency contacts, then set this feature up.</li><li>Back up all of your data as a general rule.</li></ul><p>Robert Siciliano is an identity theft expert to <a href="http://bestidtheftcompanys.com/companies">BestIDTheftCompanys.com</a> discussing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>Password Security vulnerable to Trickeryhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/password-security-vulnerable-to-trickery2015-03-24T14:48:59.000Z2015-03-24T14:48:59.000ZRobert Sicilianohttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/RobertSiciliano<div><p>There’s only one entrance to the house: a steel door two feet thick. If someone from the outside touched the door—even with a battering ram—they’ll get an electric shock. No bad guys could get through, right?</p><p><img src="http://activerain.trulia.com/image_store/uploads/agents/robertsiciliano/files/2D.jpg" alt="" align="right" height="234" width="350" /></p><p>Well, suppose the bad guy tricks the homeowner into opening the door…and once open, the bad guy strangles the homeowner. Do you see what happened? All that security is worthless if the homeowner can be tricked. And the same goes for passwords. You can have the longest, strongest, most gibberish password around…but if you allow yourself to be skunked by a hacker…it’s over.</p><p>Think you can’t get skunked? A hacker could post a link to a “video” claiming it’s Taylor Swift with a 50 pound weight gain—anything to get you to click—and you end up downloading a virus to your computer.</p><p>Or maybe you get suckered into giving your credit card number and the three-digit code on its back to some site to “re-verify your credentials” because your account has been “compromised” – says an e-mail supposedly from the company you have the account with. Instead it’s a phony e-mail sent by a hacker.</p><p>Security begins by not falling for these ruses but also by not having crummy passwords.</p><p>First ask yourself if it’s super easy to remember any of your passwords. If it is, chances are, they contain actual names of people…or pets…in your life. If you have your pet and its name plastered all over your Facebook page, for instance…a hacker will figure that your password contains the name.</p><p>Another way to easily remember—and type—passwords is to use keyboard sequences. Maybe you use the same password for 14 accounts: 123kupkake. Is this easy for a hacker to crack? Depending on the level of sophistication of the hacker and the tools he possess, maybe. Imagine a hacker cracking this with his software. He’ll get into all your accounts if you have the same password.</p><p>There are many password manager services out there to help you create a strong, long password, though randomly hitting keys on your keyboard will produce the same result. But the password manager will grant you a single password to get into all your accounts, sparing you the drudgery of having to remember 14 long passwords of jumbled characters.</p><p>Another layer of security is to try to only register with online accounts that have two-factor authentication. For instance, see if your bank offers this (many actually don’t). Two-factor makes it next to impossible for someone to hack into your account.</p><p>Strong and long passwords—all different for all of your accounts; a password manager; two-factor authentication; and what else? Don’t be suckered into giving up your private information!</p><p>Robert Siciliano is an identity theft expert to <a href="http://bestidtheftcompanys.com/companies">BestIDTheftCompanys.com</a> discussing <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ikx0_erfU">identity theft prevention</a>. <a href="http://robertsiciliano.com/blog/2010/01/01/disclosures-term-conditions/">Disclosures</a>.</p></div>Risk Management and the Tour de Francehttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/risk-management-and-the-tour-de-france2013-07-18T16:02:43.000Z2013-07-18T16:02:43.000ZMarcus Cree FRMhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/MarcusCreeFRM<div><div><p><b><i>A professional cycling team's captain is not unlike a big bank's</i></b> <a href="http://www.sungard.com/financialsystems/brands/adaptiv.aspx?TLCcamp=Cree_TourDeFrance_July2013"><b><i>risk manager</i></b></a></p><p> </p><p>It’s July, and to many that means just one thing: the100<sup>th</sup> edition of the Tour De France!</p><p> </p><p>Established in 1903, ostensibly to sell a cycling based sports-paper, <i>L’Auto</i>, the ‘Tour De France’ has become the annual pinnacle in sports endurance, teamwork and strategic planning. At its inception, teams were actively discouraged as originally tour organizers fought to maintainits status as the ultimate test of each individual’s will and determination. This was a short lived battle though, and being a member of a well-organized team became the only way to take on France’s grand tour by the early twenties.</p><p>It is in the structure and running of this team that we can compare professional cycling with the internal set up of a Wall Street bank. To understand the similarities, it’s first worth breaking the cycling team down by the award aspirationsf each type of rider:</p><ul><li>The Maillot Jaune– The rider who has individually finished in the quickest time overall. This is the equivalent of the head trader, looking to maximize opportunity across the spectrum, and with success determined purely by the highest purchase and ledger (P&L)</li><li>The Maillot Blanc – The rider, under the age of 25, who achieves the fastest overall time – the young rider’s equivalent of the Maillot Jaune. Here the junior traders with sights on future success and progression are the obvious comparison.</li><li>The Maillot Vert – The rider withthe most points, which are awarded by stage and incline level, and therefore differfrom the overall winner on timings. This would very definitely resemble the flow trader, concentrating on the more unsophisticated areas of trading, and looking to amass P&L by performing at a very high frequency.</li><li>The Maillot à Pois Rouges– The king of the mountains who cumulatively reaches the accredited peaks in the fastest time. The direct parallel here is the structured or ‘quantitative’ trader, who confidently analyses and navigates highly complex trades, understanding the nuances and specificities of each.</li></ul><p>Based on their own individual agendas, if every team in the tour consisted of just these types, there would essentially be no teams. However, underpinning these agendas is a support infrastructure that includes:</p><ul><li>Team manager –responsible for selecting the team, rule infractions, team aims and strategic planning. This is the CFO/CRO within a Wall Street Bank.</li><li>Support riders – ‘Domestiques’ as they are known in the race support theirjersey hunting teammatesby motivating and helping set the pace,providing food and instructions and even giving up their bikes in cases of breakages. These are the equivalents of the desk analysts, trader support staff and number crunching members of the risk team, who provide risk taking staffers with as much up to date, verified information as possible regarding market situation, risk appetite and risk adjusted impact analysis of trading strategies.</li><li>Team Captain –provides real time, strategic analysis and planning to ensure team goals are met, whilst adjusting to situational changes. This is the job most akin to that of the modern risk manager, who increasingly sits in the trading environment, providing subtext and strategic overlay to the risk numbers themselves. They do not curtail risk taking, but ensure that risks incurred are done knowingly and in the pursuit of agreed team goals.</li></ul><p>Similarities to Wall Street</p><p>Now that we have outlined the responsibilities of a typical Tour de France team, the similarities between this unique sporting event and Wall Street should be even more apparent. The team captain manages the team on the ground, ensuring every breakaway, every attack or even the choice to stay with the pack is in line with the ambition of the team, as well as the risk it is willing to take to achieve that aim.</p><p>Being the front rider, well ahead of the main ‘peloton’ has rarely been a route to success. This usually indicates a significant miscalculation of energy usage or stage difficulty, and most often leads to burn out before the end.</p><p>Each team is exposed to the same weather, road condition and geographical layout throughout the tour. Each team has its climbers, sprinters and generalists, and training, bike sophistication and technology are equally democratic.</p><p>All these things being ‘equal’, the main group of teams represent the consensus of a ‘right’ way to approach each stage. They may be wrong, but they are the consensus. To elect to be an outlier means placing trust inyour interpretation of the same data, or in the abilities of your collective riders to make a ‘tail’ strategy work.</p><p>This is exactly the situation faced within the trading markets, with choices and decisions being made that cause an underlying market momentum. Bucking trends, front running or holding back from market opportunities may represent the right thing to do, but questions are raised by senior management as soon as there is distance between the bank and the market consensus.</p><p>The role of the risk manager, on the ground, is the same as the role of the team captain, which is to view, in context, decisions being made by their team and others and to make calls as to whether those choices are outside the tolerance of risk. Ultimately the goal is to win, but short term and long term success are two different things. Understanding this leads to better risk management and better long term results.</p><p>Of course, the modern dayTour De France uses a vast array of technology to collect data on weather conditions and the state of team riders. Bikes routinely carry equipment that monitors heart rates, cadence and power outputas well as speed. This information can beanalyzed in such a way that contextual strategy can be communicated to the team in real time. In many ways this too mirrors the increasingly diverse and advanced use of technology in the financial markets where firms can now capture, analyze and map vast amounts of information against business plans, and communicate this back to the risk takers and senior management. This process is the beating heart of modern risk management which enables firms to:</p><ul><li>Understand the risk appetite/tolerance of the bank</li><li>Clearly communicate risk boundaries to the risk takers View situational risk as it happens and map it against the risk tolerance</li><li>Monitor the risk being taken in pursuit of the goal</li><li>Shape the ongoing risk appetite/tolerance of the bank in light of situational changes</li></ul><p>The right personnel, a well-thought-out strategy and ambition are the key elements for a successful Tour de France. Teams that boast all of those elements are equipped with the best chance of joining the ranks of the Tour’s racing greats. The same can be said for trading banks where active, on-the-ground risk management, backed by intelligently deployed and utilized technology, is the key to success.</p><p> </p><p>Original source: Global Association of Risk Professionals</p></div></div>The Evolution of the Risk Manager - Insights from the GARP Convention and the Risk Landscape in the Nordicshttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/the-evolution-of-the-risk-manager-insights-from-the-garp2013-03-21T19:42:20.000Z2013-03-21T19:42:20.000ZCristin Rifflehttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/CristinRiffle<div><div class="entry-body"><p><a href="http://linkd.in/YpecSU" target="_blank" title="Johan Stromberg">Johan Stromberg</a> Regional Sales Manager Nordics at <a href="http://www.numerix.com/home" target="_blank" title="Numerix">Numerix</a> joins host and CMO <a href="http://bit.ly/NMEuea" target="_blank" title="Jim Jockle">Jim Jockle</a> to recap the 14th Annual <a href="http://www.cvent.com/events/14th-annual-risk-management-convention/event-summary-8817f2a868b646ac82e9388dd080f271.aspx" target="_blank" title="GARP Conference">GARP Annual Risk Management Convention</a> held in New York City on March 12-13. Johan discusses key regulatory themes impacting today’s global capital markets and the changing role of today’s Risk manager; in addition to the increased focus on <a href="http://nx.numerix.com/counterpartyrisk.html" target="_blank" title="Numerix Counterparty Credit Risk Thought Leadership page">Counterparty Credit Risk</a> and the complexity of <a href="http://www.derivsource.com/articles/educational-insights-understanding-complex-challenges-cva-implementation-%E2%80%93-how-will-your-cv#comment-form" target="_blank" title="Derivsource: Understanding the Complex Challenges of CVA Implementation">CVA implementation</a>. In conclusion, Johan expands upon the emergent derivatives landscape in the Nordics region – exploring how banks are managing CVA and leveraging model validation functionality to support regulatory requirements.</p><h3>Watch the video: The Evolution of the Risk Manager - Insights from the GARP Convention and the Risk Landscape in the Nordics</h3><p style="text-align:center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Q1QCS3iWoSI?wmode=opaque" frameborder="0"></iframe> </p><p>Weigh in and continue the conversation on Twitter <a href="http://bit.ly/XGC6pw" target="_blank" title="Numerix Twitter Handle">@nxanalytics</a>, <a href="http://linkd.in/Numerix" target="_blank" title="Numerix LinkedIn">LinkedIn</a>, or in the comments section below.</p><h3>Video Transcript: The Evolution of the Risk Manager - Insights from the GARP Convention and the Risk Landscape in the Nordics</h3><p><strong>Johan Stromberg</strong> (Guest): Thank you. </p><p><strong>Jockle</strong>: Johan heads up the Numerix Swedish Operations, servicing the Nordics and is also Head of the Swedish chapter of <a href="http://www.garp.org/" target="_blank" title="GARP website">GARP</a>, and you’re here with us this week here in New York City for the annual Global GARP Conference. Tell us thematically what have you been hearing over the last few days. </p><p><strong>Stromberg</strong>: Well this is a big conference in New York so Risk Managers from all over the world are coming and joining, talking about next challenges or the current challenges for risk management, what we’ve been talking a lot about is <a href="http://www.waterstechnology.com/waters/feature/2234854/credit-valuation-challenge" target="_blank" title="WatersTechnology: Credit Valuation Challenge">regulatory challenges</a> and it’s not going to disappear, it’s not going to be less, it’s going to be more. That’s the big theme I would say. That refers to what we do in the complex derivatives space and how we can help the customers.</p><p><strong>Jockle</strong>: This morning <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/denny-yu/0/744/773" target="_blank" title="Denny Yu">Denny Yu</a> did a breakfast briefing around the concepts of profitability and OTC derivatives and managing, and one of the elements that he suggested was the risk manager of tomorrow is perhaps a different skillset than a risk manager today. Tell us a little bit about how the role within an institution is changing and how GARP is supporting the evolution of the skillsets of the individuals in risk.</p></div><p><strong>Stromberg</strong>: There are many different <a href="http://www.waterstechnology.com/waters/feature/2238198/art-and-science-credit-valuation-challenge-ii" target="_blank" title="WatersTechnology article: Art and Science: Credit Valuation Challenge II">challenges</a> right now. What Denny was talking about was calculating counterparty risk that it has become much more complex, even <a href="http://www.derivativesintelligence.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=3156383&LS=EMS792378" target="_blank" title="Managing Increased Valuation Complexity of CSAs">pricing simple derivative trades</a>, when you take into account the counterparty risk it becomes very complex. A risk manager of today, and of tomorrow will have to have a more quantitative skillset, it might be that you have to <a href="http://www.advancedtrading.com/managingthedesk/why-wall-street-is-hungry-for-quants-eve/240000420" target="_blank" title="Advanced Trading: Why Wall Street Is Hungry For Quants">hire more quantitative risk managers</a> to do the job. That’s one part of it, but you also see IT changes, so that’s one of the risk challenges of tomorrow is handling cyber-attacks, handling the risk, if the mailbox of your CEO gets into the wrong hands, what happens then, so it’s very complex, I think also a company like Numerix, we do very well in our space and we can contribute in our space, and we also have to be humble and understand that the risk manager, the CRO of today has a lot of different things to think about and it’s operational risk, and it’s credit risk, and it’s IT security and it is a big plate.</p><p><strong>Jockle</strong>: So more importantly everything coming together and having that <a href="http://www.bobsguide.com/guide/news/2013/Mar/5/numerix-introduces-crossasset-server-analytics-engine-for-real-time-derivatives-valuation-market-risk-counterparty-risk-calculations.html" target="_blank" title="BobsGuide - Numerix CrossAsset Server: Analytics Engine for Real-Time Derivatives Valuation, Market Risk & Counterparty Risk Calculations">single view of risk</a> in terms of rather or not running around and trying to go to forty different people putting it all together is really kind of critical to empower the risk manager of the future.</p><p><strong>Stromberg</strong>: Definitely.</p><p><strong>Jockle</strong>: So one of the other ones, while I have you here in New York City, want to talk about, is really the Nordics have been an explosive growth over the past few years as it relates to OTC derivatives, and clearly impacted by regulation but in many ways, the banks themselves have become safe havens for a lot of other EMEA countries, tell us a little bit about that growth that you’re experiencing and some of the trends in terms of what we can expect over the next 6 to 18 months in OTC.</p><p><strong>Stromberg</strong>: So what we’re having in the Nordics, it’s like you say it’s fairly stable, we’re doing relatively well in Europe and in the world, which means that the banks have a unique position to take market share, to expand their business, it’s becoming a lot more complex, more costly to manage the derivative books, so you will <a href="http://risk-technology.typepad.com/my-blog/2012/05/swedbank-switches-from-external-pricing-service-to-numerix-crossasset.html" target="_blank" title="Swedbank Switches from External Pricing Service to Numerix CrossAsset">need tools</a> to be able to calculate the profitability of the trades of your business, so you we’ll see some business’ shut down, that has happened in the Nordics, some proprietor trading, has been shut down, CVA desks are popping up, so what we see and <a href="http://www.numerix.com/resources/files/LibraryDocuments/CaseStudies/Numerix_Swedbank_CaseStudy.pdf" target="_blank" title="Swedbank CaseStudy">what the challenge and opportunity for the Nordic banks</a>, is to take the opportunity that you have that’s relatively stable market, you make your profits, and if you make the right investments, you can actually gain market share in Europe and the rest of the world, and if you come back to CVA calculations, if you can have a CVA desk that can trade and know that you’re profitable, and can calculate that fast, so you win more requests for quotes, that’s a good opportunity for Nordic banks.</p><p><strong>Jockle</strong>: Another thing which I know you and I have talked about over the past year has also been around <a href="http://blog.numerix.com/public/2012/11/model-validation-risk-managements-first-line-of-defense.html" target="_blank" title="Model Validation: Risk Management’s First Line of Defense">model validation</a> and the infrastructures that are being put in place. Perhaps you could tell us a bit more about why is model validation so important right now with the Nordic banks?</p><p><strong>Stromberg</strong>: Well first of all, to me its <a href="http://www.centralbanking.com/central-banking/news/2156753/swedish-authorities-lambast-maximum-harmonisation-basel-iii" target="_blank" title="Swedish authorities lambast maximum harmonisation for Basel III">regulatory requirements</a>. Once again, you have to prove that your models are valid, that you don’t have model risk in the bank so you seek to reduce that. You have several front office systems, you try to price, you try to manage risks, but you have different models and different systems doing the same calculations and you can’t really be sure if you are actually hedging your risks, so yes that’s why it’s becoming more important.</p><p><strong>Jockle</strong>: So Johan thank you so much for the quick update on GARP and on the Nordics and I hope you’ll join us again, and please feel free to reach out, especially if you are in the Nordics region about GARP and the events that are being brought to market in the local chapters and connect with <a href="http://blog.numerix.com/public/2013/03/se.linkedin.com/pub/johan-str%C3%B6mberg/2/44b/98" target="_blank" title="J. Stromberg LinkedIn">Johan on LinkedIn</a>, I know you are pretty active out there in terms of keeping individuals up to date on different issues. And again please always join the conversation, follow us on Twitter <a href="http://bit.ly/XGC6pw" target="_blank" title="Numerix Twitter">@nxanalytics</a> or <a href="http://blog.numerix.com/" target="_blank" title="Numerix Blog">on our blog</a>, we want to hear from you, we want to hear the topics, and talk about the things that you want to hear about. Thank you very much and have a good day.</p><p><strong>Stromberg</strong>: Thanks.</p></div>