Tag Trade secrets

Business risks Computer and security Corporate espionage Cyber Espionage Espionage Risk management Security - computer and devices Spies

When the Boss Hacks

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Hot Mails

There is an unspoken underlying tension in the workplace on privacy matters relating to office telephones, computers, emails, documents, CCTV cameras, etc. Employers like to think they reserve the right to probe what they consider their property while employees believe their turf is clear from invasion.

This tension is nowhere better exemplified than by reports last Thursday that operatives with US tech giant Microsoft Inc. hacked into a blogger’s Hotmail account in the course of an investigation to try to identify an employee accused of stealing Microsoft trade secrets.

And it is not uncommon in my business to encounter client complaints about potential espionage and other alleged misconduct by their employees, leading to their consideration to search the (company-owned) computers, emails, phone records, etc.

Find out more from my latest column here and there.

Business risks Computer and security Corporate espionage Cyber Espionage Espionage Risk management Security - computer and devices

Out of Office Blues

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You could be out of pocket as well as out of office if you reveal too much

It may be so much the norm and standard practice one often never think twice but go along with it, totally oblivious to the risks and implications…

I am referring to those seemingly harmless out-of-office notifications: Consider how sensitive personal and company information as well as chain of command details were often automatically and unnecessarily revealed to the world.

Please read the full column here and there.

Business risks Computer and security Corporate espionage Espionage Security - computer and devices Spies

DIY Counter Espionage

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Spying on Spies

The FBI probe into the scandal involving former CIA director David Petraeus and his mistress may have stolen global headlines the past week.

But there is something else the FBI knows that should warrant more attention. Something closer to those of us less exalted than the boss of the world’s most famous spy agency.

The FBI is known to have video footage, covertly taken in a hotel room somewhere in China, showing how Chinese agents broke in and swept through the belongings and laptop of an American businessman.

There were recent media reports of similar incidents. The FBI is now showing the clip as a warning to corporate security experts of major US companies.

The FBI also warned some months ago about the risks of using hotel wi-fi networks and recommended all government officials, businessmen and academic personnel take extra caution when traveling abroad.

Whilst the corporate world is often most at risks, the average citizens are also highly vulnerable, especially to electronic surveillance on home and foreign soil.

So what can one do to protect the personal data and business secrets on the computers, especially when traveling abroad?

Please read full article here and there.

Business risks Computer and security Corporate espionage Corporate governance Espionage Risk management Security - computer and devices

Shhh… How to Beat the CIA and Protect Your Data

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Business travel is a nightmare these days, especially when one visits a country known for high espionage/ corporate espionage activities or active government eavesdropping and wiretapping.

So what if you need to transmit confidential data, sensitive business information and trade secrets via emails or the cloud? Or simply access your online banking account?

Public wifi pose significant risks. The Internet connection in your hotel room is not any better. And you can forget the Internet cafe.

No worries, there’s a solution and I will soon be posting a column on this matter. Watch this space.

Corporate espionage Espionage

The Complicated World of Corporate Espionage

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It isn’t as straightforward as it looks
Corporate espionage used to be rather straightforward – as the typical Coke-Pepsi textbook example illustrates, in which each tries to steal the other’s recipe for sugared water. It is a crime when someone steals company data/trade secrets and passes it to a business rival.
Well, yes — but not quite, in the case a series of court decisions in the United States that complicate the issue considerably (Read the entire column here and there).