Disasters

Verizon extends DOS service to Asia
Denial of Serivce (DOS) is a popular form of cyberattacks directed at companies; Ceirzon already offered U.S. and European companies an enhanced DoS protection service, and it now extends the service to Asia
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Attacks on Mexico's oil, natural gas infrastructure increase
Mexico has a 30,000-mile network of energy pipelines; the network is exceedingly vulnerable to attacks; a shadowy terrorist group takes advantage, injuring the country’s economy
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VMware shows new disaster recovery solution
Traditional disaster recovery programs tend to be complex and their implementation demanding; new solution aims to simplify and automate many disaster recovery-related functions
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PC users face increasingly complex and dangerous cyber threats
Authrotative cyber threat report says that targeted identity theft, emerging risks associated with online gaming, a doubling of malware exploits, and new software vulnerabilities are but some of the many problems PC users will face in the coming months
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CrimeCog Technologies aquires E*Justice
E*Justice helps different law enforcement departments share information; in addition, one department’s information storage may keep information intact for all other subscribers in the event of a disaster
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IBM acquires DataMirror
DataMirror has a technology to identify and capture data that has been added, updated, or deleted — and make that data available to decisionmakers in real time
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Tokyo unprepared for disaster
Sounds familiar: Government study finds that magnitude 7.3 earthquake hitting the northern part of Tokyo Bay would leave about 600,000 people wondering the streets becasue of lack of evacuation centers
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California company offers preparedness tools for families, individuals
Not only organizations, but individuals and families, too, should prepare for catastrophes; AxcessPoints offers Top 10 disaster tips for the digital world
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Researchers print blood vessels with modified ink jet printer
Japanese researchers use a mixture of living cells, a special type of medical gel, and a solution of calcium chloride — and a device akin to a modified inkjet printer — to print blood vessels
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High rise evacuation system receives SAFETY certification
Safely evacuating thousands of people out of a high rise during a disaster is tricky; a Florida company’s evacuation product recieves DHS nod
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Two companies partner on public-safety computer-aided dispatch
The technology of dispatching law enforcement quickly to disaster zones is a growing business, and two specialists will market their solutions jointly to U.S. localities
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Business continuity plan saves bookshop's business
A business continuity plan was set up just five months before a power cut destroyed Art of Performance’s data as its server was shutting down; the plan has saved an online bookshop’s business
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MIR3 completes acquisition of TelAlert
Intelligent notification leader acquires a specialist in wireless notification for IT; deal worth $10 million
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CapitalOne offers new preparation checklist for small businesses
You cannot say you did not know: Now CapitalOne offers a long, detailed, and accessible disaster preparation and business continuity checklist for small business owners
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Federal CISO: No contradiction between mobility and security
The need to prepare for disaster and the growing availability of technology have combined to promote telework — but is there a contradiction between mobility and security? New study says “no”
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The long view

To bolster the world’s inadequate cyber governance framework, a “Cyber WHO” is needed
A new report on cyber governance commissioned by Zurich Insurance Group highlights challenges to digital security and identifies new opportunities for business. It calls for the establishment of guiding principles to build resilience and the establishment of supranational governance bodies such as a Cyber Stability Board and a “Cyber WHO.”
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Protecting the U.S. power grid
The U.S. power grid is made up of complex and expensive system components, which are owned by utilities ranging from small municipalities to large national corporations spanning multiple states. A National Academy of Sciences report estimates that a worst-case geomagnetic storm could have an economic impact of $1 trillion to $2 trillion in the first year, which is twenty times the damage caused by a Katrina-class hurricane.
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More than 143 million Americans at risk from earthquakes
More than 143 million Americans living in the forty-eight contiguous states are exposed to potentially damaging ground shaking from earthquakes, with as many as twenty-eight million people in the highest hazard zones likely to experience strong shaking during their lifetime, according to new research. The research puts the average long-term value of building losses from earthquakes at $4.5 billion per year, with roughly 80 percent of losses attributed to California, Oregon, and Washington. By comparison, FEMA estimated in 1994 that seventy-five million Americans in thirty-nine states were at risk from earthquakes. In the highest hazard zones, the researchers identified more than 6,000 fire stations, more than 800 hospitals, and nearly 20,000 public and private schools that may be exposed to strong ground motion from earthquakes.
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A large Ventura Fault quake could trigger a tsunami
Earthquake experts had not foreseen the 2011 magnitude-9 Japan earthquake occurring where it did, so soon after the disaster, scientists in Southern California began asking themselves, “What are the big things we’re missing?” For decades, seismic experts believed the Ventura fault posed only a minor to moderate threat, but new research suggests that a magnitude-8 earthquake could occur on the fault roughly every 400 to 2,400 years. The newly discovered risk may even be more damaging than a large earthquake occurring on the San Andreas Fault, which has long been considered the state’s most dangerous. Unlike the Ventura fault, the San Andreas Fault is so far inland in Southern California, that it does not pose a tsunami risk. A large earthquake on the Ventura fault, however, could create a tsunami that would begin “in the Santa Barbara Channel area, and would affect the coastline … of Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, down through the Santa Monica area and further south.”
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Coastal communities can lower flood insurance rates by addressing sea-level rise
City leaders and property developers in Tampa Bay are urging coastal communities to prepare today for sea-level rise and future floods in order to keep flood insurance rates low in the future. FEMA, which administers the National Flood Insurance Program(NFIP), is increasing flood insurance premiums across the country, partly to offset losses from recent disasters such as hurricanes Katrina and Sandy. Cities can reduce insurance premiums for nearly all residents who carry flood coverage by improving storm-water drainage, updating building codes to reflect projected rise in sea-levels, moving homes out of potentially hazardous areas, and effectively informing residents about storm danger and evacuation routes.
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California drought highlights the state’s economic divide
As much of Southern California enters into the spring and warmer temperatures, the effects of California’s historic drought begin to manifest themselves in the daily lives of residents, highlighting the economic inequality in the ways people cope. Following Governor Jerry Brown’s (D) unprecedented water rationing regulations,wealthier Californians weigh on which day of the week no longer to water their grass, while those less fortunate are now choosing which days they skip a bath.
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Verizon extends DOS service to Asia

Attacks on Mexico's oil, natural gas infrastructure increase

VMware shows new disaster recovery solution

PC users face increasingly complex and dangerous cyber threats

CrimeCog Technologies aquires E*Justice

IBM acquires DataMirror

Tokyo unprepared for disaster

California company offers preparedness tools for families, individuals

Researchers print blood vessels with modified ink jet printer

High rise evacuation system receives SAFETY certification

Two companies partner on public-safety computer-aided dispatch

Business continuity plan saves bookshop's business

MIR3 completes acquisition of TelAlert

CapitalOne offers new preparation checklist for small businesses

Federal CISO: No contradiction between mobility and security

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Who's online

The long view

To bolster the world’s inadequate cyber governance framework, a “Cyber WHO” is needed

Protecting the U.S. power grid

More than 143 million Americans at risk from earthquakes

A large Ventura Fault quake could trigger a tsunami

Coastal communities can lower flood insurance rates by addressing sea-level rise

California drought highlights the state’s economic divide