Businesses Beware of the Parallax RAT Trap
7/7/20
By: Peter Dooley One of the newest and most potentially harmful malware campaigns, the appropriately named Parallax RAT, has been wreaking havoc on businesses of all sizes during this already trying time of increased remote work. RAT stands for “remote access trojan” and Parallax RAT is on the cutting edge of malware that is most…
New Jersey’s Continued Push to Expand its Data Breach and Privacy Laws
7/1/20
By: Zachary Danner Following in the steps of California and other states considering consumer privacy legislation, New Jersey’s legislators have recently introduced a number of bills that would establish specific notification requirements for the collection and use of personally identifiable information (“PII”). While current law requires businesses to notify consumers if there is an unauthorized access…
Currently pending in the Massachusetts legislature is Bill S.120 entitled “An Act Relative to Consumer Data Privacy”
4/25/19
By: Eric Martignetti The proposed bill defines “personal information” as “information that identifies, relates to, describes, is capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer or the consumer’s device.” “Personal information” includes “biometric information.” “Biometric information” is “an individual’s physiological, biological or behavioral characteristics, including an…
New Cybersecurity Trend: Data Security and Disposal Laws
2/7/19
By: David Cole & Amy Bender Tales of data breaches flood our news reports these days. By now, you hopefully are aware that all 50 states have laws requiring persons and organizations that own or maintain computerized data that includes personal information to notify affected individuals, and sometimes the government, in the event of a…
VISA Issues Security Alert Due to Increased Data Breaches Caused by Insecure Remote Access
7/30/14
By: David Cole When a merchant experiences a data breach involving credit card information, it is often required by the card brands to hire a Payment Card Industry Forensic Investigator (PFI). The PFI investigates the incident and then provides a report to the card brands on what happened, how it happened, and whether the merchant’s…
FTC Guidance for Online Protection for Children
5/14/13
By: Matt Foree A byproduct of widespread use of the internet is its inevitable use by young children. Today, children have access to the internet through computers, smartphones and countless other electronic devices. To protect the privacy of children online, Congress enacted the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”), which provides rules for operators of commercial websites…
Supreme Court to Decide Whether Police Dog Sniffs Pass the Fourth Amendment “Smell Test”
11/2/12
By: Brian Dempsey This past week, the United States Supreme Court heard two cases which are expected to clarify the Fourth Amendment limitations on police officers’ use of drug-sniffing dogs. In the first case, Florida v. Jardines, the Supreme Court granted certiorari to decide whether a dog sniff at the front door of a suspected…
October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month
10/15/12
By: Dave Cole

You may already know that October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but did you know that it also is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month? In his proclamation of this as Cybersecurity Awareness Month, President Obama explained that, although our country benefits immensely from the Internet, increased connectivity brings increased risk of
California Becomes Third State to Limit Access to Employees' Social Media Accounts
10/1/12
By: David Cole

On Thursday, Governor Jerry Brown signed a new law that significantly limits when California employers may ask employees and job applicants for social media information. Under the new law, an employer cannot require or request an employee or job applicant to disclose his username or password, access a social