If the NSA can't store
the data themselves, I expect the number of requests to soar.
Government
requests for Google data soar
Google said this week
that government requests for data on users had more than doubled over
the last four years.
The company released
its ninth transparency report, which noted 27,477 worldwide
government requests for information from 42,648 users in the second
half of 2013.
… Google sometimes
fights back on legal grounds or because requests are too broad or
unclear; it complied with 64 percent of requests during that period.
However, in the United
States that percentage was much higher - answering 83 percent of
10,574 requests.
If you are going to
hand this report to auditors, you should know that the auditors will
know exactly how far they can trust (rely) on the report. However,
they will take it as an
assertion by management that this is what they believe
their security status is.
A new security risk
assessment (SRA) tool to help guide health care providers in small to
medium sized offices conduct risk assessments of their organizations
is now available from HHS.
The SRA tool is the
result of a collaborative effort by the HHS Office of the National
Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and Office for
Civil Rights (OCR). The tool is designed to help practices conduct
and document a risk assessment in a thorough, organized fashion at
their own pace by allowing them to assess the information security
risks in their organizations under the Health Insurance Portability
and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Security Rule. The application,
available for downloading at
www.HealthIT.gov/security-risk-assessment
also produces a report that can be provided to auditors.
… The SRA
tool’s website contains a User Guide and Tutorial video to help
providers begin using the tool. Videos on risk analysis and
contingency planning are available at the website to provide
further context.
The tool is available
for both Windows operating systems and iOS iPads. Download the
Windows version at http://www.HealthIT.gov/security-risk-assessment.
The iOS iPad version is available from the Apple
App Store (search under “HHS SRA tool”).
May be a bit of
over-reaction, but not to biometrics. The schools under-thought
their processes, something the vendors should have warned them about.
Janice
Kephart, founder and CEO of the Secure
Identity and Biometrics Association (SIBA) has issued a press
release stating in no uncertain terms that the Florida Senate’s
near unanimous vote of March 27 to ban biometrics in all schools
lacks common sense and denies schools the opportunity to improve
safety, standards, and fiscal accountability.
“The
Senate vote is based on misunderstood science,” said Kephart, “and
penalizes the entire state because two districts out of 67 counties
failed to follow simple and obvious program protocols. As a result,
sensible biometric program implementation that includes these
protocols in places like Miami-Dade are threatened because
legislators believe that using biometrics to keep kids safe on buses
and well fed in the lunchroom could lead to identity theft.”
Read more on Government
Security News.
This could provide some
interesting examples for my Business Math class.
Wal-Mart
sues Visa for $5 billion over card swipe fees
Wal-Mart
Stores Inc this week sued Visa
Inc for $5 billion, accusing the credit and debit card network of
excessively high card swipe fees, several months after the retailer
opted out of a class action settlement between merchants and Visa and
MasterCard
Inc.
… In December, a federal judge in Brooklyn, N.Y., approved a $5.7
billion class action settlement between merchants and Visa and
MasterCard despite the objections of thousands of retailers that
complained it was inadequate.
Wal-Mart, Amazon.com
Inc, and Target Corp were among those opting out of the monetary
components of the settlement to have the freedom to seek damages on
their own.
Those businesses complained about a broad litigation release in the
settlement. The release forces all merchants who accepted Visa or
MasterCard, and those who will in the future, to give up their right
to sue the credit card companies over rules at issue in the case or
similar ones they may make in the future.
… The case is in re: Wal-Mart
Stores, U.S. District Court, Western District of Arkansas, No.
05101.
Perspective.
Instagram
Trumps Twitter In Mobile Users
… Research company
eMarketer released new
predictions this week on Instagram's growth: In 2013, 34.6
million Instagram users logged on monthly, and that number will reach
40.5 million this year. Meanwhile, Twitter's monthly active users
are set to grow by 7 million this year to 37.8 million -- 2.7 million
less than Instagram.
Perspective. The era
of the Ameche is over.
Right now, the FCC is
working on the biggest transformation in over a century of profound
technological progress in communications: shutting down the analog
telephone network. It’s an end-game everyone needs to keep a close
eye on. Whenever a major technology, especially one with a long
history of regulation, approaches the end of its life, industry
laggards are sure to resurface, eager to gum up the works with
lawmakers.
… Perhaps as few as
20% of U.S. homes still have a landline telephone connection. Half
that many rely on over-the-air antenna television for video content.
Until the Internet, both technologies boasted nearly 100%
penetration.
Free humor, every week.
… The Chicago
Board of Education has privatized its custodial services.
Now it’s looking to hire outside companies to run
school recess.
… The
Chronicle of Higher Education examines the Open Syllabus
Project, an initiative “to build a large-scale online
database of syllabi ‘as a platform for the development of new
research, teaching, and administrative tools.’”
… University
of California
President Janet
Napolitano is skeptical of online courses,
particularly for remediation. Speaking at a luncheon in Sacramento,
she said
that online education is “harder than it looks and if you do it
right, it doesn’t save all that much money.”
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