Author: Randy

Changing Face Of Cyber Liability Risks

Due to the changing nature of cyber risk, IT risk managers must upgrade risk management strategies to focus on new areas of concern. In the past, primary attention was given to protecting computer infrastructure from losses caused by lapses of physical security, internet servers, networks, and rogue insiders. Now, attention must be expanded to applications and software used by the organization.

Due to stepped up risk management controls in the areas of improved network security, cyber criminals have turned their attention to less protected vulnerabilities in applications and software. In addition, the purpose of the attacks have morphed from causing embarrassment and denial of service to profiting from the theft of confidential financial and client information.

Cyber Attacks focus on the following areas:

* disrupting infrastructure operations

* posting confidential enterprise information online

* theft of intellectual property

* identity theft

* theft of confidential information

* confiscating or compromising online bank accounts

* spreading viruses on other computers

* malicious insiders seeking revenge

* use of internet launched viruses, malware, trojans, phishing, botnets, other malicious code

A company’s risk analysis should include identification from among the following risks where primary attention should be given to those risks which present the largest loss potential by either their frequency or severity:

* identification of viruses on servers, workstations, and laptops.

* open ports on firewall

* which assets are currently being attacked

* which assets are most likely future targets

* Payment Card Industry (PCI) audit if credit cards are used

* HIPAA and HITECH audit for medical information if applicable

* various state confidentiality and data protection laws

Source: Resources, Winter 2010, Paul W. Burkett, The National Alliance For Insurance Education And Research

 

Safety at Work is No Accident

Continuous Improvement through Measurement & Benchmarking

The Safety Excellence Model shown below is a framework for applying a safety management system on a continuous basis. It is a process-oriented approach that emphasizes people’s contributions to long-range, permanent solutions for problems. The core requirements for safety excellence are leadership and engagement, safety systems, risk reduction and performance measurement. The benefits of applying this model include alignment of actions with business objectives, more focused effort, and reduced injuries and illness.  Together these steps provide the tools for the Journey to Safety Excellence.

 

via National Safety Council

Never Ride Unbuckled – Even in the Back Seat

Five High School students were seriously injured when the car they were in went across the median and rolled over. They were headed to girls basketball semifinal but never made it.

Five ambulances were sent to the scene, and all five students were rushed to area hospitals.

The three teens in the back seat were unbuckled and were ejected. The two teens in the front were buckled.

Remember to wear a seatbelt even if you in the back seat. It may not be the law but it can be a life saver.

via 5 Gr. Haven students hurt in I-96 crash | WOOD TV8.

It’s Tornado Season – Be Ready

Tornado’s came early to Michigan yesterday and hit the town of Dexter just west of Ann Arbor. Fortunately there were no serious injuries or death but there were a lot of homes damaged.

Here is a link to a one page checklist from the Red Cross on how to prepare for a tornado. You never know when you or your family could encounter a tornado so be ready.

http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/pdf/Preparedness/checklists/Tornado.pdf

The Problem With Wellness

The term “wellness” can have a different meaning to different people. I like the following definitions:

1) The quality or state of being healthy in body and mind, as the result of deliberate effort.

2) An approach to healthcare that emphasizes preventing illness and prolonging life, as opposed to emphasizing treating diseases.

Business leaders are interested in how “wellness” will impact their bottom line. Unfortunately many have tried ineffective or poorly executed strategies and are now turned off by the term. I have found that an integrated well executed strategy following the 5 steps of risk management is most effective in delivering results.

 

Highway Work Zones – Stay Alert

 

We know highway work zones can be frustrating. We realize life is busy and time is precious. But please understand when you drive dangerously through a highway work zone you’re not just putting the lives of highway workers at risk – you’re risking your own life, and the lives of your passengers. That’s because four out of five people who die in highway work zones are either vehicle drivers or passengers. In 2010 alone, 12 occurred in work zones – including some attributed to dangerous driving, such as following too closely, driver fatigue and improper lane changes.

While driving through a work zone make sure to stay alert and pay attention; speed limits are reduced, lanes may narrow, and workers may be present. Slow down and safely merge as soon as you see the signs; this will allow traffic to flow smoothly. Keep a safe distance on all sides of your vehicles. Minimize all distractions (including the three C’s: Cell phones, CD’s, and Coffee); expect construction delays, allow extra travel time, and if necessary select an alternate route.

Work Zone Safety is everyone’s responsibility.  Please use caution and common sense when driving through highway work zones.

Ways To Cut Workers’ Comp Costs

A study of 5,568 employers in 29 different industries conducted by Michigan State University and the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research gives some insight regarding injury prevention and loss control.  The study findings, issued in 1993, show that employers with the “best” records (fewest workers’ compensation claims) had these common qualities.

  • Placed great emphasis on safety and prevention practices;
  • Were more inclined to have “open” managerial styles that encourage shared decision making; and
  • Had consciously developed disability prevention and management strategies.

Employers are encouraged to look at their individual operations with a critical eye toward identifying ways to further reduce injuries and illness, thus improving working environments while cutting workers’ compensation claims cost.  Michigan companies that have successfully reduced workers’ compensation costs have offered the following cost-saving suggestions.

  • Set safety goals.
  • Create an employee incentive program.
  • Improve accident reporting and investigating.
  • Make review of injury reports part of the job of top managers (even the very top).
  • Review injury reports promptly.
  • Have front-line supervisors and employees design injury prevention programs.
  • Establish training programs in safe lifting techniques, hand safety and hazard recognition.
  • Purchase appropriate equipment along with making other ergonomic changes.
  • Develop return-to-work programs in which injured employees are allowed to return gradually, from simulated work settings to meaningful transitional or part-time assignments to full-time duty.
  • Write job descriptions that include “physical capability” requirements.

By making an effort to improve the safety of the workplace, companies can reduce their workers’ compensation insurance costs in two ways:

  • They can reduce the dollar value of business losses by limiting the severity of accidents or by eliminating them altogether.
  • They may make the business eligible for schedule rating credits, premium credits and other incentive programs offered by carriers.

Insurance is Not Risk Management

Risk mitigation measures are usually formulated according to one or more of the following major risk options, which are:

1) Design a new business process with adequate built-in risk control and containment measures from the start.

2) Periodically re-assess risks that are accepted in ongoing processes as a normal feature of business operations and modify mitigation measures.

3) Transfer risks to an external agency (e.g. an insurance company)

4) Avoid risks altogether (e.g. by closing down a particular high-risk business area)

Remember: Insurance is risk transfer and  is usually the most expensive way to deal with risk.

Safety in your home

What you can do to keep you and your family safe at home

Keeping your family out of harm’s way is your Number 1 priority. Unfortunately, many of our homes can be dangerous – preventable injuries and deaths continue to rise in homes and communities.

The National Safety Council estimates everyday approximately 245 people die of unintentional injuries in homes and communities. In 2007, the six leading causes of unintentional injury death in the U.S. were:

Motor vehicle crashes

Poisonings, including unintentional overdoses

Falls

Choking

Drowning

Fires, flames and smoke

When someone is injured, the effects go beyond that person and extend to family members, friends, neighbors, employers and communities. The key to preventing injuries is making simple changes to your lifestyle – recognizing where most hazards are and how injuries can occur when participating in different activities.

Below are a few of the many strategies to prevent injuries:

Stay off your cell phone when you are driving. Your safety practices directly influence the safety practices of your children.

Get trained in first aid, CPR and AED online or in a classroom.

Check and if necessary, change the batteries on your smoke and carbon monoxide detector.

Properly dispose of unused and expired medications.

Share these strategies with family, friends and neighbors. Explore more safety practices in the new safety at home sections including, home and recreational safety, motor vehicle safety, emergency preparedness, and family safety training. You can play a large part in keeping those around safe and alive.

via National Safety Council

Retaliation Claims Are Greatest Legal Risk

Retaliation claims have increased dramatically in the last two years, creating the most significant legal risk to employers today, employment law expert Joseph Beachboard told those attending the Society for Human Resource Management’s Employment Law & Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., on March 5, 2012.

In 2010, retaliation claims for the first time surpassed race discrimination as the most common type of charge filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Last year, the trend continued with 37,334 retaliation complaints filed, constituting 37 percent of the 99,947 federal workplace discrimination charges filed.

“Why are we seeing this sudden explosion in retaliation-related discrimination? First of all, retaliation is relatively easy to establish,” especially when compared to the burden of proof in race and sex discrimination cases, said Beachboard, who is a shareholder with Ogletree Deakins in Torrance, Calif.

In addition, jurors tend to look more closely at the evidence in sex and race discrimination cases, but can relate easier to the allegation of retaliation, Beachboard said. They reflect a societal rage often summarized on bumper stickers: “Don’t get mad. Get even!”

Finally, retaliation claims have skyrocketed since the 2006 Supreme Court ruling in Burlington Northern v. White, which lowered the standard of proof and made it easier for employees to prove their claims.

In 2009, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that employees don’t have to file a formal complaint to win a retaliation claim, expanding the number of plaintiffs who can file. In Crawford v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tenn., the justices found in favor of a woman who corroborated charges filed by someone else in a sexual harassment case and was subsequently fired.

In Thompson v. North American Stainless, the nation’s high court in January 2011 ruled unanimously that a worker who claimed he was fired because his fiancée had filed a sex discrimination claim against their mutual employer had a cause for filing a retaliation claim. The worker was fired three weeks after the EEOC notified the employer the fianceé had filed a charge of discrimination.

“Things have changed with respect to how we look at these types of claims,” Beachboard said. “Previously, our focus was on the individual and their own protected activity. … Now, it’s different. The focus is not only on the individual’s own protected activity, but also any protected activity of anybody he or she is associated with—whatever that means.”

In March 2011, the court ruled that employees who make verbal complaints also may sue for retaliation. In Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., the justices decided in favor of an employee who contended he was fired after complaining to his supervisor about the distance between time clocks and the spot where he had to don protective gear, claiming he wasn’t being paid for time worked in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

As a result, HR professionals should make sure they treat verbal complaints as seriously as written complaints and should keep a close eye on employees who have complaints to ensure they aren’t retaliated against, Beachboard said.

Dori Meinert is a senior writer for HR Magazine.

via Retaliation Claims Are Greatest Legal Risk.