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Experts Available to Discuss Security Breaches and Implications for Personal Data--(Business Wire)-- ExpertSource: TOPIC: A government audit found personal data from more than 2,000 taxpayers may have been compromised as a result of at least 490 IRS computers that were lost or stolen between January 2003 and June 2006, according to an article by USA TODAY. The report by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration claims 76% of the incidents in which a laptop or computer was lost or stolen were not reported to the IRS computer security office as required. The audit also claimed IRS laptops did not contain satisfactory encryption software and password controls, which would protect taxpayers' personal data. EXPERTS: ExpertSource can offer several highly qualified experts to comment on this story: Prior to working with Silex Technology, Gary Bradt was an industry consultant to One Network Enterprises, where he led the development of alliances and partnerships. As senior vice president of business development for i2 Technologies Inc. Bradt led the public sector division focusing on the federal government, Department of Defense and the intelligence community. PR Contact: Sydnee Fox 801-208-1100 [email protected] Julie Fergerson is considered one of the industry's foremost experts on Internet fraud and Identity Theft with over 25 years of Internet experience. As Vice President of Emerging Technologies for Debix, Fergerson is responsible for identifying emerging technologies and innovative applications of Debix' patent-pending technologies. She is Co-Founder and serves as a board member for the Merchant Risk Council (MRC). Fergerson worked to create the MRC, served on the board since its inception, and served as Co-Chairman for four years. The MRC consists of 7,500 members who share the goal of protecting and encouraging online commerce by establishing best practices for cyber-fraud prevention. The MRC works with federal and local law enforcement agencies such as the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), Federal Bureau of Investigation, Secret Service, the U.S. Department of Justice, and the U.S. Postal Inspectors to help catch and prosecute cyber criminals. In 1995, Fergerson co-founded ClearCommerce Corporation, an Internet payment and fraud prevention company. ClearCommerce was acquired by eFunds in January 2005. While at eFunds, Julie was responsible for identifying new markets, developing patent pending solutions and trends for growth opportunities of eFunds solutions in the retail industry. Prior to ClearCommerce, she spent six years at IBM holding various management and technical positions. 512-699-6821 [email protected] Jim "Gator" Hudson has 23 years of experience in law enforcement. Jim supervised investigations including narcotics, street crimes, SERT, fraud, and computer crimes. He co-founded Amcrin Corp. in 2000 to create the CrimeDex Network. He is a member of the International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators (IAFCI), the California Financial Crimes Investigators Association (CFCIA), the Northwest Fraud Investigators Association (NWFIA) and the International Association of Crime Analysts (IACA). He created and taught Critical Incident Management at the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training from 1988 to 1998, including winning instructor of the year in 1994. He has been a speaker across the country at events for the IAFCI, CFCIA, NWFIA, Safeway Corporation, Merrill Lynch, A.G. Edwards, Marathon Wealth Management, i2 Inc, American Express, America's Community Bankers Association, and the Communications Fraud Control Association (CFCA), He was awarded the Portland Police Bureau Medal of Valor, the Oregon Peace Officers Association Medal of Honor, the International Narcotics Officers Association Medal for Valor, and the Purple Heart. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminology from Florida State University. Jim has speaking presentations on fraud; identity theft, communications fraud, critical incident management, and surviving deadly force encounters. PR Contact: Nathaniel Clevenger 503-449-1029 [email protected] Adrian Lane is the Chief Technology Officer for IPLocks, a leading provider of database security and compliance software based in San Jose, CA. Mr. Lane is considered an expert on compliance software and best practices for corporate implementation of Sarbanes-Oxley regulations. He has led panels on corporate compliance, risk management and security for academia and industry. He has also presented findings to local, state and federal officials including the White House, House of Representatives, Department of Homeland Security and others. Some of the largest security breaches recently reported have been from retailers, banks, academic and government organizations. Despite these publicly embarrassing and costly business interruptions, many organizations continue to fail to protect their most important asset--customer information stored on their databases. Lane is available as an expert spokesperson and offers these simple steps for guarding your database: -- Directly monitor your financial databases. -- Assess your databases for, and then harden them against, security weaknesses. -- Audit your database-user access. -- Know how users use your database. -- Ensure data integrity by verifying transaction authenticity. PR Contact: William Madaras 408-383-7509 [email protected] ExpertSource cannot guarantee the immediate availability of these experts or their familiarity with this specific issue. ExpertSource provides academic and industry experts to the media at no charge. Journalists are encouraged to submit queries to ExpertSource when seeking experts on specific subjects. An online registration form is available at http://www.businesswire.com/. |
