Author: howard.haile

Every now and then a study comes along in IT that makes you wonder if the public will ever listen to security alert messages as some of these studies yield results that quite literally make you want to throw your hands up in frustration. A case in point is the recently released study by Message Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG) entitled “A Look at Consumers’ Awareness of Email Security and Practices.” However it is the report’s subtitle “Of Course, I Never Reply to Spam – Except Sometimes” is what gets to the heart of the matter and what frustrates me as it shows that email users do understand the risks of spam yet still click on the message.

First Louisiana State Court Judge Rosemary Ledet found Dell in contempt of court; then she accused Dell of making a “mockery” of the system; and then, to give her statement some teeth, she hit Dell with a $25,000 fine. Granted, a $25,000 fine is not a huge sum of money for a company like Dell and it certainly was a lot smaller than the $182,000 requested by Plaintiff’s attorneys. But the tongue lashing and ensuing fine should serve as a wake-up call to all size organizations that judicial patience in regards to eDiscovery is running thin and callous or indifferent attitudes towards eDiscovery are no longer being tolerated.

“If it really costs millions to do that [e-discovery], then you’re going to drive out of the litigation system a lot of people who ought to be there.” This quote by Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer cuts to the heart of current issues surrounding eDiscovery. A recent DCIG blog highlighted how out of control litigation costs have become and have left companies with hard decisions on whether it is best to settle cases based solely on the cost of eDiscovery or attempt to litigate. But as companies face unprecedented economic pressure, a key question comes to mind, “Are these costs driving risky data retention strategies such as destroying all of your data?”

DCIG has posted several blogs discussing the economic downturn, the banking crisis and the role that hedge funds played in the seemingly endless stream of bad news and frauds that have graced the headlines. So, when it was announced that the prominent hedge fund Pequot Capital was shutting down due to the SEC reopening an insider trading probe, it was another sign that the largely unregulated hedge fund industry is back once again in the SEC’s crosshairs.

It isn’t often that bipartisanship wins the day among politicians, but when an issue arises that stirs the ire of the public such as the credit card industry has done there is a sudden ability to get things done. This was evident in the recently passed Senate Bill 414, more commonly referred to as the “Credit Card Act of 2009.” In an amazingly bipartisan vote of 90-5 the bill passed.

On March 15th, 2009, a new law went into effect in the European Union (EU) that set in motion a controversial new course for government access into digital information. The EU Data Retention Directive was derived from the perceived need of the EU’s member states to protect national security or public safety. Its goal is to provide law enforcement the access to information it needs to protect public and national interests but it may go too far by capturing too much public information that the public may not view as so public

A current patent infringement lawsuit has provided a great reminder of why email retention policies and procedures as well as archiving technology are invaluable in today’s eDiscovery environment. While discussing policies and procedures can be a mind numbingly boring exercise, this case provided some great reminders as to why they are important in setting the groundwork for a robust and defensible eDiscovery process.

If you are like me, trying to comprehend the logic behind the current bank bailouts and the billions of taxpayer dollars being infused into the financial sector is becoming harder, not easier, to understand. For instance, Bank of America (BofA) just reported receiving $20 billion dollars in bailout money as well as loan loss commitments of another $97 billion from the federal government. Yet with BofA taking billions of unearned dollars, what can their customers expect in return? Not a thank you, as one might expect, but instead a slap in the face.