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There are many prominent cybersecurity companies, including FireEye and Symantec. These companies “focus on blocking or detecting intrusions as they occur or responding to attacks after the fact,” according to The New York Times. Sometimes, this approach yields fruit, but inherently, it cannot “gain the upper hand” over threats; no matter how quickly security responds to an intrusion, that intrusion is already underway.

This is why cyber intelligence agency ISight zeroes in on hackers’ objectives

You’ve seen TV commercials and print ads about identity theft, and the “victim” is always an adult. That’s not realistic. The actor-portrayal should be that of a child. Yes, a kid.

Children are 51 times more likely than adults to have their identity stolen, says research from Carnegie Mellon University’s CyLab.

Crooks want kids’ Social Security numbers. And crooks like the fact that kids are debt-free. Wow, with no debt to the child’s name, the thief could easily open up a line of credit in that v

Quantitative Easing Was a Bust; Let’s Try Higher Wages Instead

Source:

 Mike Whitney

CounterPunch

16 October 2015

Why is the economy still in the doldrums after 6 years of zero rates and three rounds of Quantitative Easing?

It’s because consumers aren’t consuming and there’s too much debt. You see, despite the Fed’s wacko theories about pumping liquidity into the financial system to make investors feel wealthier, people actually have to buy things to generate growth. And the truth is, consumers h

Public Services Under Attack through TTIP and CETA Atlantic Trade Deals

Source:

 Corporate Europe Observatory and Europe Observatory

12 October 2015

EU trade deals with Canada and the US could endanger citizens’ rights to basic services like water and health, as negotiators are doing the work of some of the EU’s most powerful corporate lobby groups in pushing an aggressive market opening agenda in the public sector.

Access PDF of full report in English.

Read the executive summary in English, French,

Google Degenerates into Ministry of Truth; All Knowledge Must Now Be Pre-approved by Search Algorithm

Gone are the days when you could search Google and pull up neutral, relevant content appropriate to your search query. The search engine giant is reportedly pioneering a new search algorithm that will tailor search results not based on popularity or accuracy, but rather on what Google itself deems to be truthful or untruthful.

The

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.

According to a recently concluded survey conducted by uSamp and sponsored by Siber Systems, creators of the RoboForm Password Manager:

• 42% write them down
• 23% reported always using the same password**
• 25% reported using personal information
• O

Who has time to think about identity protection when planning a wedding? And why, for that matter? Well, there’s good reason: Marriage begets a change in identities. The months preceding the big day should be when the couple starts taking action to avoid identity theft.

• If you’re using any website or smartphone application to organize your wedding, make sure it’s protected with a password—a long password that contains zero clues about your wedding, identity or anything else personal. An ideal pas

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.

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 w

Nobody likes surprises in business. Using a risk-based approach to identify your organization’s likely vulnerabilities is highly recommended and vital to short-term and long-term success. Expanding regulations make compliance increasingly complex and expensive, and increases in deficient internal audit controls have heightened scrutiny of companies by the SEC, PCAOB, and investors.

Business surprises are preventable, but there are several common issues with risk identification that can be impossi

Just because a job recruiter says he’s from (fill in blank—any huge corporation) doesn’t mean the job can’t be a scam. Anyone could say they’re from Microsoft or Google. Impersonating a representative from a big-name company is one way to fool gullible job seekers.

Another way is to advertise the scam jobs on radio because the scammer knows that listeners will think, “It has to be legit if it’s on the radio.” Scammers will post their job ads anywhere.

An article on consumer.ftc.gov lists the follo

The 2015 Social Media Glossary: 207 Essential Definitions

Source:

Dara Fontein

Hootsuite

Dara is a Blog Writer at Hootsuite. She writes about social media, technology, and Hootsuite happenings.

A lot can change in a year, especially in the world of social media. It can be difficult to keep up with all of the terms and slang used with the introduction of new technologies and platforms, so we decided it was time to update our Social Media Glossary. Like previous editions of the glossary, this is a livi

Studies across the board indicate that weak usernames and passwords are one of the top causes of data breaches, and I find that information to be unfortunate, because it is preventable. According to a recently concluded survey conducted by uSamp and sponsored by Siber Systems, creators of the RoboForm Password Manager: 70% reported forgetting a password, or had a password become compromised, in their professional life in the US.

• More organizations are enacting policies where employees can use the

While data breaches have dominated the news cycle, The Wall Street Journal’s “Risk and Compliance Journal,” reports that fraud is actually much more common, even if it generates fewer headlines.

In the fiscal year ending March 31st, 2015, instances of retail fraud averaged a 94% increase from the prior year when calculated by average loss of revenues. Industry reaction to this news has been relatively predictable: as many companies have decided to devote a higher percentage of their budget to pre

Sweden Aims To Become The World’s First Fossil Fuel-Free Nation

Source:

 Amanda Froelich

True Activist

11 October 2015

Powered by Sweden plans to become one of the first nations in the world to thrive on 100% renewable energy.

There are quite a few things to love about Sweden. Not only is the eco-conscious nation considering implementing a ‘meat tax’ to reduce its carbon footprint, the country has literally run out of trash to incinerate for energy and, therefore, must import garbage from its neighbor

You need not be a celebrity or some big wig to suffer the devastating fallout of your online images (and videos) being stolen or used without your permission.

So how does someone steal your image or use it without your permission?

Hacking

• Hacking is one way, especially if passwords are weak and the answers to security questions can easily be figured out (e.g., “Name of your first pet,” and on your Facebook page there’s a picture of you: “My very first dog, Snickers”).
• Malware can be installed on you

You’ve heard the term “consumer report.” Many times, I’m sure. But do you really know what one is? If you’re nodding your head, would you be able to explain it to a Martian? If not, then you probably do not have a solid understanding of what one is.

But lenders, landlords, creditors, employers and insurers certainly know what a consumer report is, because every time they’re about to deal with a new client, they put themselves at risk.

• Is he in good health?
• Will she stop paying her mortgage?
• Will he

Last Blog I wrote about how you need to understand your motivation to make sure you are answering the right question when you set your objectives. This Blog asks you to think about setting objectives over three time horizons.

My colleague Dr Andrew Pratley introduced me to the Three Horizons of Growth concept introduced by Mehrdad Baghai, Lar Bradshaw, Stephen Coley and David White in their 1999 paper in the Journal of Business Strategy. Their thesis was that in order to sustain growth you need t

Have a small business? Great. Have two-factor authentication for your accounts? If you’re not sure of the answer to that question, you could be in trouble. October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month, the perfect time to learn more about cyber security. As a small business owner, you certainly have thought about data breaches. They don’t just happen to giants like Target and Sony. The common thread in many data breaches is that the hackers got the password.

Once a hacker has a password, th

Chapter 9-Project Integration of my recently published book Risk-management in the World of Threats and Opportunities: A Project Controls Perspective discusses the challenges that many Project Managers are facing. One item that throws many to fits is project integration. It is a project requirement with varying level of complexities. Some have successfully toe the line but many just fail.

Integration happens throughout the project lifecycle using continuous collaboration. It becomes a big challen

Canada: The Trans-Pacific Agreement Will Sap Whatever Is Left of Our Sovereignty

Source:

 Nadia Alexan

The Canadian Charger

7 October 2015

If you really think we live in a free and independent society, think again. What sovereignty are we left with, when we have already forfeited our birthright to multinationals?

What freedom are we talking about when a private company can challenge our laws in court, according to the various so-called free-trade agreements, negotiated by our governments in secret: NA