Data Security & Privacy

Round 2: NLRB Goes After Private Company for Reprimanding Reporter’s Twitter Comments

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The increase in frequency over firings related to public comments posted on social media sites is an emerging area in employment/labor law.  Recently, I followed the case of a Connecticut ambulance company who fired its employee over rants she made on Facebook about her supervisor.  The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) asserted that such communications […]

Business Law

Lesson from Epsilon E-Mail Breach: Better Data Governance Need by Service Providers

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  Due to a “massive” breach by the marketing firm Epsilon, an unknown amount of names and e-mail addresses were exposed that could potentially lead to phishing attacks by organized criminal elements.  Epsilon is a service provider which handles e-mail marketing lists for hundreds of clients, including giants like JPMorgan Chase, Citibank, Target, and Walgreens.    The […]

Business Law

Rethinking “Personal Identifiable Information (PII)” and Encryption

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Most regulations define the term “personal identifiable information” to mean information about an individual that is recorded, which includes things like: name, address, e-mail, age, sex, marital status, social security number, health care history, religious or political beliefs, race, nationality, ethnicity, origin…you get my point.  However, with the evolving landscape of technological innovations related to online behavioral […]

Data Security & Privacy

Government Agency Highlights Need for “Cloud” Users to Adopt Proper Internal Controls

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The National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”) released a report today which highlighted the fact that organizations who deploy cloud applications need to pay cloase attention to security and management risks associated with the emerging technology.  Computerworld reported that “[w]ith the wide availability of cloud computing services, lack of organizational controls over employees engaging such […]

Data Security & Privacy

Secrets of Swiss Banking Revealed by Former Banker

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The New York Times and Reuters reported on Monday, January 17, 2011, that an Ex-Swiss Banker, Rudolf Elmer, has turned over to the whistleblowing juggernaut, Wikileaks, detailed accounts of individuals and companies with whom Mr. Elmer believes are engaged in questionable business practices ranging from tax evasion to “other criminal activity.”   This is just another example of […]

Data Security & Privacy

Pentagon’s Use of Cyber Ops Not Disclosed to Senators Highlights Lack of Government Transparency in Cyber World

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A classified report to Congress by the Pentagon, obtained by The Associated Press, fails to disclose the cyber activities employed by the Pentagon.  The Senate Armed Services Committee voiced concerns that cyber activities were not included in the quarterly report on clandestine activities. But Assistant Secretary for Special Operations, Mr. Michael Vickers suggests that such emerging high-tech […]

Data Security & Privacy

The Week of Wikileaks and the New Era of “Sources”

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The tipping point may have finally been accomplished this past week over the unauthorized release of U.S. diplomatic cables by the anit-secrecy Website, Wikileaks.  While State Department officials were continuing to rebuild its diplomatic credibility throughout the world, Congressional leaders sought various ways of deterring the Website from releasing other unflattering documents (i.e. propose they be designated […]

Data Security & Privacy

WikiLeaks Release Highlights the Damage that can be done to an Organization’s Reputation

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With the unauthorized release today of some 250,000 top-secret documents related to the U.S. Government’s foreign policy, a 21st Century game of old school international intrigue has emerged.  While Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, has assured the world that the disclosures will not affect U.S. relations and interests abroad, the resulting damage control has undoubtedly left our […]