Daily News Archive

Please note that The Daily News is publishing (hopefully) twice a week for the foreseeable future due to time constraints.

Tuesday, July 11th

"We are prone to judge success by the index of our salaries or the size of our automobile rather than by the quality of our service and relationship to mankind.” -- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

 

The Picks of the Day

Tech Firms Go Mining for Megawatts

“This small farm town, population 5,300, has become the Klondike of the wildly competitive Internet era. The gold in Quincy is electricity, which technology heavyweights need to operate ever-larger data centers as they fight for world domination.  Their data centers -- air-conditioned warehouses filled with thousands upon thousands of computer servers that talk to Internet users around the globe -- are extraordinary power hogs.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/08/AR2006070800973.html?referrer=email

[Watch what this does to the local economies!]

 

Report: cargo plane safety lacking

“Crashes of cargo planes are more likely to kill people than crashes involving passenger planes, yet federal regulators have largely ignored pleas to improve their safety, a newspaper's investigation has found.”

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060709/ap_on_re_us/cargo_plane_safety_2

 

IT Process Improvement

George to Lead a Visible Ops Workshop at the IT Infrastructure Management (ITIM) Conference and Expo

It will be held on Sunday November 5, 2006 at the Venetian Resort in Las Vegas.

http://www.itimassociation.com/ITIM2006/session.aspx?SessionID=804

The URL for the conference is http://www.itimassociation.com/ITIM2006/

 

Avoid Making a Nervous Change Detection System

“In the Visible Ops methodology, we stress the use of automatic change detection systems.  To accrue the benefits, it is important that the tools be implemented correctly.  The reason for this caveat is that the improper use of a change detection tool can result in a nervous system that generates a constant stream of alerts.  As a result, the flood of alerts reduces reliance on the system and rather than detecting and reporting on the proverbial needle in the haystack, the system generates a new haystack!”

http://www.itpi.org/cs/blogs/itpi/archive/2006/06/14/62.aspx

 

Legal and Regulatory Compliance

Tech Probes Cost Twice

“Now, investors' faith in corporate accounting again is under siege. Over the last few months, more than 50 companies — most of them technology firms — have disclosed that they were under investigation by federal authorities for possibly manipulating executives' stock option grants to boost the potential payoffs.”

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-petruno9jul09,0,339263.story?track=tothtml

 

Security and Risk Management

OMB Sets Guidelines for Federal Employee Laptop Security

“The Bush administration is giving federal civilian agencies 45 days to implement new measures to protect the security of personal information that agencies hold on millions of employees and citizens.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/27/AR2006062700540.html

[Thank you Deborah!]

 

Personal Data Were Posted on Navy Web Site

“Personal records for every Navy and Marine Corps aviator or aircrew member who has logged flight hours in the past 20 years have been posted on a public Navy Web site for the past six months, compromising more than 100,000 Social Security numbers, the Navy Safety Center announced yesterday. [July 7^th]”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/07/AR2006070700945.html?nav=rss_nation

 

Espionage is the real thing

“Background checks, fingerprint scans and government-trained security agents manning the doors - welcome to Corporate America 2006.  Roughly $60 billion a year is lost to industrial espionage because all it takes is one successful spy to alter the fate of a company or even an industry, security experts told the Daily News”

http://www.nydailynews.com/business/story/433677p-365292c.html

 

Human Error / Safety

Spain Confirms Its First Case of Bird Flu

“Spain has recorded its first case of H5N1 bird flu, the Agriculture Ministry said Friday. The deadly strain was found in a water fowl in a marsh area outside the northern city of Vitoria.”

http://www.newsday.com/news/health/ats-ap_health17jul09,0,7299894.story?track=rss

 

Bird flu 101: Schools study for possibility of a pandemic

“Surreal scenarios have already emerged: Instantly quarantined students. Schools closed and students getting home lessons by Internet for up to two months. Grief counseling.”

http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkzJmZnYmVsN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2OTU5NDEyJnlyaXJ5N2Y3MTdmN3ZxZWVFRXl5Mg

 

Big business gears up for bird flu blitz

“Australian businesses are stockpiling anti-viral drugs and face masks as fears grow of an avian flu outbreak.  Public companies such as Telstra and Bluescope Steel have pandemic risk committees meeting regularly and the Commonwealth Bank has appointed a pandemic planning project manager.”

http://www.thesundaymail.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,19739261%255E421,00.html

 

Outsourcing / Globalization / International

A silent but steady collapse and exit in Indian outsourcing sector

“India is too costly, difficult to deal with, politically incorrect and just unproductive for the money.  According to media reports, Western companies are leaving India every day quietly as Indian outsourcing sectors prove unproductive. The other reason is the stagflation Western economies facing.”

http://www.indiadaily.com/editorial/10835.asp

 

Myth of the New India

“In recent weeks, India seemed an unlikely capitalist success story as communist parties decisively won elections to state legislatures, and the stock market, which had enjoyed record growth in the last two years, fell nearly 20%in two weeks, wiping out $2.4 billion in investor wealth in four days. This week India’s Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, made it clear that only a small minority of Indians will enjoy ‘Western standards of living and high consumption.’”

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1739224,00300006.htm

 

Economics / Business / Misc.

When a Stranger Calls

“As consumer debt in America balloons to previously unimaginable levels, currently $2.2 trillion and growing, the dark underside of abusive debt collection is growing along with it. Legislators and regulators should take further steps to curb the lies, harassment and intimidation coming from out-of-control collectors. At the same time, they should also look at irresponsible lending: giving additional credit cards and high-interest loans to those already deep in the red.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/09/opinion/09sun2.html?th&emc=th

 

Cashing In Its Chips

“It is not easy to beat Intel if you are running a company that many analysts and investors have written off as moribund and out of touch.  It is not easy to beat Intel if you are running a moribund company that loses its chief executive to a heart attack just as he embarks on a risky strategy.  But Texas Instruments beat Intel. Twice.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/09/business/yourmoney/09chip.html?_r=1&th=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&emc=th&adxnnlx=1152493304-2fmgeXTx8C0U7zgmsZbS2g

 

Business bets on high-tech buildings

“A fiber-optic system sends a property manager an e-mail alert the second a bathroom stall runs out of toilet paper.  A swipe of a security card not only lets you into your building, but also turns on the lights and air conditioning in your office.”

http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/myrtlebeachonline/business/14999275.htm?source=rss&channel=myrtlebeachonline_business

 

Thursday, July 13th

"We are committed to doing as much as we can to reduce any concerns about the nature and extent of assessment procedures that management must establish and maintain, to assist in making the requirements scalable for companies of all sizes and complexity, and to help companies evaluate internal control over financial reporting in a practical and cost-efficient manner" – The SEC, July 11, 2006

 

The Picks of the Day

SEC seeks ideas on Sarbanes-Oxley controls

“U.S. securities regulators on Tuesday moved forward with a promised review of controversial corporate reform accounting rules by asking investors, companies and others for ideas to guide public companies in complying with the law.”

http://today.reuters.com/stocks/QuoteCompanyNewsArticle.aspx?view=CN&storyID=2006-07-11T192746Z_01_N11198996_RTRIDST_0_ACCOUNTING-SEC-SARBANESOXLEY-UPDATE-1.XML&rpc=66

The actual SEC press release is at:  http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2006/2006-112.htm

Concept release concerning management’s reports on internal control over financial reporting:  http://www.sec.gov/rules/concept/2006/34-54122.pdf

[The concept release document is actually very interesting in that they reinforce that management sets the internal controls, not audit, and then they ask good questions about what the public is looking for in terms of additional guidance.]

 

SEC: More Questions than Answers on 404

“In its first response to public companies since a heated meeting last May, the SEC issues an extensive list of questions about Sarbox 404.”

http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/7158400?f=alerts

 

IT Process Improvement

The OGC’s ITIL FAQ Page

http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1000368

 

Online Quality Resource Guide

http://deming.eng.clemson.edu/onlineq.html

 

Legal and Regulatory Compliance

CIOs Wary Over Data Security Bill

“Congress has proposed about a dozen bills to address the issue, including last week's announcement of the Data Security Act of 2006, sponsored by Sens. Robert Bennett (R-Utah) and Thomas Carper (D-Del.). All this rhetoric and gavel-pounding in the Capitol building should justifiably make midmarket CIOs and security executives nervous. Could a political response to this slew of data breaches lead to another compliance spending spree along the lines of Sarbanes-Oxley?”

http://searchcio.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid19_gci1197755,00.html?track=NL-48&ad=557613&ASRC=EM_NNL_347325

 

Tighter US Governance Rule Alerts Korean Firms

“South Korean companies listed on the U.S. stock market are concerned about rising costs required to comply with a tightened U.S. corporate governance rule from this year.”

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200607/kt2006071117432310230.htm

 

Security and Risk Management

Chemical Sector Cyber Security Program

“A strategic initiative of the Chemical Information Technology Council (ChemITC), the Chemical Sector Cyber Security Program focuses on risk management and reduction to minimize the potential impact of cyber attacks on business and manufacturing systems.”

http://www.chemicalcybersecurity.com/

 

Hacker compromises database of UT employees

“The University of Tennessee recently informed 36,000 employees that a UT database of personal information had been compromised by a computer hacker.  The names of employees, student employees and others associated with UT were in a database that listed names, addresses and Social Security numbers.”

http://dailybeacon.utk.edu/showarticle.php?articleid=50287

 

Security chiefs see changes in identity theft

“IDG News Services recently invited the heads of three security businesses -- Barracuda Networks Inc. CEO Dean Drako, Sana Security Inc. CEO John Zicker, and Jay Kidd, who runs Network Appliance Inc.'s Emerging Products Group -- to a roundtable discussion of the trends they see on the horizon and the threats they think IT executives may be missing.”

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9001672&source=NLT_SEC&nlid=38

 

Human Error / Safety

BP acknowledges lapses in safety in blast report

“BP today acknowledged that serious lapses in management's attitude toward safety at its Texas City refinery contributed to an explosion there in March that killed 15 people, the company's final report on its accident investigation says.”

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/special/05/blast/3513136.html

 

Complacency over bird flu leaves UN short of funds

“Complacency about the risk of a global bird flu pandemic has impeded the flow of funds promised earlier this year, the UN official coordinating the fight against the deadly virus has said.  Of some 1.9 billion dollars (1.5 billion euros) pledged at a January conference in Beijing, only 1.15 billion dollars has been formally committed and 331 million dollars spent, David Nabarro said Monday.”

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060710/hl_afp/halthfluun_060710171027

 

UN Warns Bird Flu Spreading More Rapidly

“Avian influenza experts say bird flu is traveling across the globe at much greater speed. They warn against complacency, and urge countries to implement pandemic preparedness plans without delay.”

http://www.voanews.com/english/2006-07-10-voa38.cfm

 

Outsourcing / Globalization / International

DiamondCluster's Annual IT Outsourcing Study: Outsourcing's Boom Years Appear Over as Pace of Growth Slackens

“While a majority of buyers -- 64 percent (offshore) and 50 percent (onshore) -- remain committed to increasing their purchasing, these numbers represent a significant decline from prior years.”

http://www.sys-con.com/read/245778.htm

 

Outsourcing Your Heart

“Elective surgery in India? Medical tourism is booming, and U.S. companies trying to contain health-care costs are starting to take notice”

http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,1196429,00.html

 

Banks failing to perform due diligence on IT outsourcing deals

“Only 43% of financial institutions have undertaken any form of due diligence before outsourcing IT operations, according to research conducted by PA Consulting Group.”

http://www.finextra.com/fullstory.asp?id=15564

 

Economics / Business / Misc.

Top-level talent: Hiring gets harder, turnover rising

“In Computerworld's first quarterly online Vital Signs poll of 300 IT leaders, many respondents reported that it's tougher to bring in the right IT talent today than it was just a year ago. Moreover, some said they're seeing a bigger turnover in existing staffs this year, too.”

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=112298&source=NLT_XSP&nlid=52

 

A penny saved is ... a marketing idea?

“In May, the U.S. Mint informed Congress that the cost of making a penny and a nickel will soon exceed the actual value of each coin. Thanks to the high cost of materials that go into the making of the coins—zinc, copper, and nickel—the U.S mint estimates that by the end of the fiscal year, the cost of producing one penny will come to around 1.23 cents, and the cost of making a nickel will be 5.73 cents.”

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/13815385/