July 2017

The Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) ruled that “…that issuers of distributed ledger or blockchain technology-based securities must register offers and sales of such securities unless a valid exemption applies. Those participating in unregistered offerings also may be liable for violations of the securities laws. Additionally, securities exchanges providing for

Continue Reading Blockchain vs. the SEC – ICO (Initial Coin Offering) are securities!

Malwarebytes examined almost “one billion malware detections/incidences…in nearly 100 million Windows and Android devices…in over 200 countries” to make its 2017 State of Malware Report which included these three takeaways:

  1. Ransomware grabbed headlines and became the favorite attack methodology used against businesses.
  2. Ad fraud malware, led by Kovter malware, exceeded


Continue Reading Guess what? There will be increased cyber problems in 2017 including Ransomware, Malware, and IoT!

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will have a series of public roundtables since companies “with only a few employees face unique challenges when it comes to cybersecurity. The July 20, 2017 announcement entitled “FTC to Host Cybersecurity Roundtables with Small Businesses” publicizes a new website launched in May

Continue Reading FTC to the rescue with Cybersecurity roundtables for small businesses!

The Washington Post reported that “IBM argues that universal encryption could be the answer to what has become an epidemic of hacking.”  The July 17, 2017 article entitled “To battle hackers, IBM wants to encrypt the world” included these comment about IBM’s recommendations to encrypt the universe:

…it

Continue Reading Will IBM’s recommendation to encrypt the universe provide better cyber protection, or just profits for IBM?

On May 25, 2018 the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will take effect and according my friend Benjamin Wright who wrote a paper for the SANS Institute GDPR “is motivating organizations worldwide to improve existing technical controls for securing personal information. Organizations should be especially aware that the GDPR

Continue Reading Cyber intrusions reporting will ramp up around the world in 2018 under GDPR (think EU Privacy Laws)!

Reuters reported that Danish insurance company Tryg issued a second quarter report that it “sold 2,800 cyber insurance policies in the quarter, up from 700 between January and March.”   The July 11, 2017 report entitled “Tryg sees rapid rise in cyber insurance sales after Wannacry” included this comment

Continue Reading Sales of Cyber insurance policies grow by 400% after ransomware attacks- soon to be as common as fire insurance!

Many cloud agreements I negotiate fail to include any details about SLAs, so you may want to look at the CIO.com article about the details about SLAs which are general performance levels for IT services, but not an Agreement rather a SLA “is simply a document describing the level of

Continue Reading 10 Questions you should ask about SLAs (Service Level Agreements) -which aren’t really Agreements!

A.M. Best reported that the top “cyber insurance writers have shifted away from writing packaged policies to standalone coverage by nearly a 70-30 split on the $1.3 billion of direct premiums written in 2016,…and this shift mainly results from many insurance companies realizing that tailored coverage forms addressing cyber liability

Continue Reading Cyber insurance premiums grew 35% in 2016 -over $1.3 Billion!