Forum proposes framework for businesses to assess cyber risk
At the World Economic Forum in Switzerland there has been much talk of the growing risk to businesses from cyber attacks and it was revealed that 90 per cent of companies do not feel that they are significantly prepared to protect themselves from an attack. Among the policies that the forum proposed is a framework that can be used by businesses to assess the risk. With experts from 50 countries contributing the aim of the framework is to offer a straightforward unified approach to what the risks are and how to implement the best protection.
Americans choosing easily-guessed passwords
How many password protected websites and email accounts do you have? Probably like most people you have dozens but how secure are your passwords? Experts say that too many of us use the same password for multiple applications and that those passwords are frequently chosen for being easily remembered rather than for security. Even with the almost-daily reports of cyber attacks the most common passwords are number sequences such as 123456, the word ‘password’ and the keyboard top-pine sequence QWERTY. Security specialists say that the strongest passwords are at least 8 characters in length, use a mix of upper and lower case letters, include numbers and ‘special characters’ such as %, &, ! where they are allowed. It’s also advised that if you are using other services to log-in to multiple sites, for example logging-in using Facebook, you should ensure that the password for that ‘master site’ is particularly robust.
New earthquake risk-assessment resource
The GEM Foundation has this week launched a new open-source resource providing web-based access to risk assessment and information sharing about earthquakes. It’s the result of collaboration between 300 experts around the world. The head of UNISDR, Margareta Wahlström, hailed the OpenQuake launch as a “major milestone for GEM and the community of earthquake hazard and risk experts” while noting that the risk information needs to be applied “and we need the engagement of the scientific and engineering community to ensure that happens and that the information is communicated in an accessible way to policymakers.”
New international role at NAIC
Christina Urias has joined the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in the newly-created position of managing director of International Insurance Regulatory Affairs reporting directly to the CEO. She will oversee the International Insurance Regulatory Affairs Division, providing policy guidance and technical expertise to NAIC members and staff on global regulatory developments. She will play a lead role in advising on priority activities, developing and maintaining relationships with international regulators, government officials and standard-setting bodies around the world. She will also coordinate international efforts with federal and state officials, the insurance industry and other key stakeholders.
