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If your system has personal information, it needs to be secure

If your system has personal information, it needs to be secure

The recent struggles of photo-sharing service Snapchat offer up a valuable lesson for businesses everywhere.  The application was vulnerable to intrusion, a fact that was pointed out to its owners several months ago. This warning was summarily ignored and, true to prediction, the app was hacked and the private information of about 4.6 million users was released.  While the organization has promised that it's working to institute safeguards to better protect the data of its ...
Data breaches an ongoing threat

Data breaches an ongoing threat

Recently, Target, Neiman Marcus and Michaels all had sensitive customer information stolen. Over 100 million customers had their data fall into nefarious hands, and the worst may be yet to come: according to some experts, the issue of retailers being hacked could be a persistent one moving forward.  "Attackers no longer spam at will," says Steve Durbin, global vice president of Information Security Forum. "They are increasingly targeting—learning the habits and preferences of their ...
Congress faces upcoming flood insurance vote

Congress faces upcoming flood insurance vote

If you're in the construction industry, you know that you have to guard your sites against all manner of misfortune. One of those is flooding: even a small amount of water can set a project back or submarine it entirely, so any comprehensive commercial property insurance policy will take into account that possibility. Based on what happens in an upcoming Senate debate, that sort of assurance could soon be pricier.By a significant margin, the ...
Worker's comp claims a primary concern for fraud investigators

Worker's comp claims a primary concern for fraud investigators

One of the primary concerns of any insurance company is fraud. The issue of unscrupulous people trying to get money to which they aren't entitled is a problem for any industry, but particularly those that deal so much with self-reported claims. This year, medical, auto and workers' compensation predict to be sectors particularly worthy of keeping an eye on, according to statistics collected by the National Insurance Crime Bureau. The high amount of fraud ...
Five critical fire safety tips

Five critical fire safety tips

A comprehensive commercial property insurance will come complete with some protection against fires. This security is important — a blaze can decimate an entire project. In the best case scenario, however, you won't ever have to file a claim. Here are give tips that can keep your site safe from the ravaging influence of flames. Make sure you have smoke detectors, and that they work: Smoke detectors can warn you that something is amiss, even ...
Interruption and catastrophe head list of business worries

Interruption and catastrophe head list of business worries

Supply chain interruption and natural catastrophe are the biggest worries on the minds of businesses, according to a recently released study from Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty. The firm interviewed more than 400 experts in corporate insurance in nearly three dozen countries when compiling the list, which seeks to provide a greater insight into the most timely hazards facing companies and insurers.Rounding out the top 10 were fire and explosion, changes in legislation or ...
Analytics could help claims process

Analytics could help claims process

Underwriting is a complicated endeavor, one that requires a keen sensitivity to a variety of factors. Those myriad inputs are a big part of why using Big Data could very well help to transform the industry, which is good news for both insurance companies and businesses that hire them. One of the advantages of using a more analytical framework is in deciding how to adjudicate claims. Instead of each one going to a random ...
Neiman Marcus and Target deal with security breach fallout

Neiman Marcus and Target deal with security breach fallout

On Friday, high end retailer Neiman Marcus confirmed the worst suspicions of its customers: its data had been breached, and an unknown amount of credit and debit card information had been leaked. This comes fast on the heels of a similar incident at Target, which saw the personal info of some 70 million customers fall into the wrong hands. Investigators are now concerned that there may be a connection between the digital heists, and ...
Construction-related jobs among the most dangerous

Construction-related jobs among the most dangerous

Few people are satisfied with every aspect of their profession. Sometimes clients or managers are difficult or communicate poorly. Other jobs can be repetitive or tedious. Some vocations have hours that force their employees to toil long into the night.Those occupational hazards pale in comparison to those faced in the most dangerous jobs, where serious injury or death is an ever-present possibility. While the riskiest professions are somewhat spread across industries, three of the ...
The role of construction in renewable energy

The role of construction in renewable energy

Concern about the future of energy is becoming louder. Perhaps in no state is this more true than California, where progressive ideals and unusually sunny weather have many seriously considering switching to a more renewable source of energy, such as solar. In fact, the state installed as many megawatts in 2013 as it did in the previous 30 years combined, doubling its total capacity to nearly 4,000 megawatts.This only further cemented its spot atop ...