by Felicien | Nov 10, 2018 | Education
Every year, the United States Marine Corps Birthday is celebrated with a cake-cutting ceremony and a traditional ball on November 10th. This event celebrates the establishment of the Continental Marines on November 10th, 1775.
Many Marines have become to view November 10th, the birthday of the United States Marine Corps, as their second birthday. This tradition runs very deep. Marines often wish each other “Happy Birthday” on November 10th and attend Marine Corps Birthday Balls, which are held in many cities across the globe. On this day, the Commandant of the Corps reads a “Birthday Message” to the Marines. The purpose of the birthday message is to contemplate the legacy of the Corps and the responsibilities that all Marines must honor.
History
For about three thousand years, fighting men have served as infantry to secure harbors and land bases and as boarding parties to launch attacks on other ships. The Royal Marines was formed in 1664 as the Maritime Regiment of Foot.
About 100 years later, a Continental Congress committee in the American Colonies met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to create a resolution calling for two Marine battalions to fight on shore and at sea for independence. The U.S. Congress passed “An Act for Establishing and Organizing a Marine Corps” on July 11, 1778. The Congress approved the resolution on November 10, 1775.
Is Marine Corps Birthday a Public Holiday?
The Marine Corps Birthday is not considered a public holiday. This year, it falls on a Saturday and the vast majority of businesses in the United States will follow regular opening hours.
Internal Celebration
Personnel, veterans, and other people associated with the Marine Corps celebrate this day. Usually, this day is celebrated with a birthday cake, a formal dinner, and entertainment at a Marine Corps Birthday Ball. The very first Marine Corps Birthday Ball was held in 1925.
Revolutionary Result
On this day in 1775, the US Marine Corps began under the name of the Continental Marines when the Second Continental Congress ordered two Marine battalions to serve with the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War. Both the Continental Navy and the Marines were dismantled after the war. However, eventually, the Marine Corps was re-established formally due to increasing conflict with France.
US Marine Corps Today
The United States Marine Corps is the combined-arms task force on the air, on land, and at sea for the US Armed Forces. The US Marines Corps has more than 180,000 active duty personnel and 40,000 personnel in the Reserve for the Marine Corps. The Marine Corps Reserve is the biggest command in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Undoubtedly, the Marine Corps Birthday is a special day for hundreds of thousands of Marines across the globe. For more information about the United States Marine Corps Birthday and how this day is celebrated, don’t hesitate to contact us.
by Felicien | Nov 9, 2018 | Education
There are many pieces to the massive Federal exchange that enrolls people for insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA, “Obamacare.”) One of them allows insurance brokers and agents to enroll potential beneficiaries directly. (This is different from the consumer-facing part of the exchange, where consumers can enroll themselves.) On October 13, 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) detected “anomalous activity” and by October 16, confirmed that a breach had cooccurred. About 75,000 individuals’ records were stolen. CMS shut down the system on October 20 to install new security measures and planned to have it back online by October 27.
CMS was unusually close-mouthed about the breach, noting only that it was contacting those affected and would offer them identity theft protection. This being the case, we can only speculate about what exactly happened. It could have been as something as simple as an agent leaving their password on a Post-It Note under their keyboard, or as sophisticated as exploiting an unknown fundamental vulnerability in the myriad of software packages that make up the entire exchange system. It must also be remembered that the Exchange software talks to several other systems, including the IRS, and the breach may have come from anywhere in the chain. A 2015 report by the HHS Inspector General found the that the whole healthcare.gov system suffered from some vulnerabilities which had not been rectified as of the date of the report. It is now, of course, three years later.
What Lessons Can We Learn From This?
Because CMS has explained virtually nothing about how the breach happened, it is hard to tell what lessons we can draw from it – other than to note that so far, any system that humans can attempt to secure, humans can find a way to penetrate. No system is entirely safe.
Because CMS did not respond to questions, we do not know, for example, whether end-to-end encryption was used for data transmission, and we do not know if the particular data files accessed were encrypted. Encrypting data in both storage and transmission provides an additional layer of protection – in the ideal case, even if the hackers get the data, they can’t use it.
Was It An Inside Job?
Security officials in both the public and the private sectors are well aware that even with all recommended safeguards in place, they are still vulnerable to hacks by employees or other trusted agents. After all, someone has to be able to access that data to use it. Even if the USB ports on the laptops and desktops are filled with glue, even if biometric identifiers are used, an insider can dump data, zip it into a file, and send it to cloud storage, where it can be accessed by anyone with access to that portion of the cloud. And that will include a population beyond one’s own employees. A really sophisticated hacker can keep events from being logged or modify the logs so that there is no trace that the transmission ever happened. Based on the information CMS was willing to release, we cannot conclude that this was not an inside job. The only fact that militates against it is that the amount of data stolen was so small. If someone were really trying to make a killing on the dark web, they would steal far more. Perhaps this breach was just a “proof of concept.” Or it may merely be a case of unauthorized access. We just don’t know.
Trust? Verify? But?
The experiences of the military and the National Security Agency (NSA) with insider theft of data in recent years suggests that even the steps the military and the intelligence services have taken cannot completely protect them from inside jobs. Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, and Reality Winner all were thoroughly vetted and had authentic credentials. Still, the data got out. (Perhaps it is true, as was said in the early data of the web, that “…data wants to be free.”)
No One Is Safe
Security experts repeatedly tell us that our existing systems cannot be made impenetrably secure. It is the very nature of the technology we use now – for health insurance, for banking, for voting – to send large amounts of critical data across unsecured networks for at least part of their journey. All we can do is encrypt, vet out employees, and – hope.
by Felicien | Nov 9, 2018 | Education
Cybersecurity is one of the main concerns for most businesses, and for a good reason. Companies of all sizes, from small mom-and-pop businesses to large corporations like eBay, are facing cyber attacks. Each year, cybercriminals become more and more innovative when it comes to the types of cyber attacks they launch against organizations. Here are three types of cyber security solutions your business must have to protect against cyber attacks.
Perimeter Security
The first type of cyber security solution your business should have is perimeter security. This type of solution serves as a barrier between the Internet and your network. Mobile devices, cloud technologies, and web services provide a significant number of new opportunities for organizations. However, these technologies also add to the number of solutions and services that need to be kept secure. If there is a vast web of connections, it can be easy for just one malware to invade and spread throughout the entire network. To deal with such threats, you need to establish a perimeter security framework that will guard access to vital data, applications, and services.
Some examples of perimeter security solutions include the following:
Firewalls
Intrusion preventions system
Spam protection
Firewalls refer to a set of protocols that dictate what can and cannot enter your network. A firewall works by monitoring outgoing and incoming traffic. Firewalls scan where payloads are coming from and determine whether these sources are trusted. Firewalls are typically used to prevent Trojans and other malware from entering a network. However, firewalls can also be used to prevent employees from sending sensitive data outside your network.
The main disadvantage of firewalls is that they can be circumvented if hackers send payloads that are trusted to avoid detection. Therefore, you should use an Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) along with your firewall. An IPS is a solution that is intended to identify malicious network activity. IPSs use “anomaly-based detection” to look for patterns in data, applications, IP addresses, and network packets that may suggest an intrusion. An IPS are able to identify intrusions even if they come from a trusted source. The IPS is a useful solution for identifying hackers who make changes to already existing malware to avoid detection. IPS kill, or quarantine identified malicious payloads to prevent the spread of malware through your system.
Some research studies indicate that as much as 91 percent of cyberattacks begin with a phishing attack, which is often sent through email. The hacker sends an offer or requests to encourage users to click on the links, which are full of malware. Spam solutions work by flagging emails and blocking ads to make sure employees don’t have to see threatening or annoying emails. Some spam solutions come with a “safe browsing” feature that checks the destination of an URL to ensure that it is safe.
Intranet Security
Another type of cyber security solution is an Intranet security solution. An important of cybersecurity is protecting individuals devices and computers from malware that has managed to infiltrate your local network. The most common strategies for Intranet security include the following:
Updating and patching software
Anti-malware software
Human Security
Many computer users mistakenly believe that the only treats they need to consider are innovative hackers and malware attacks. A side effect of this is that many companies pour all their resources into intranet security and perimeter security, only to ignore human security. IBM conducted a study in 2016 and found that 23 percent of all security breaches are caused by human mistakes, such as having weak passwords, connecting to networks that are unsecured, and answering spam emails. If trusted individuals in your organization perform these actions, spam blockers, firewalls, and anti-malware software become useless.
Here are a few tips that will help you ramp up human security within your organization.
Employee Training
You should offer comprehensive security awareness training to your employees so that they are equipped with the skills to protect themselves and your organization from a variety of threats. You can hold training seminars in-house, or you can get support from a third-party to train your employees.
Your employees should learn about the different types of malware, such as worms, ransomware, and Trojan horses. Teach your employees about the capabilities of each form of malware so that they know the warning signs if their device becomes infected.
Establish a strong password policy. Teach your employees about the importance of a strong password and inform them of proper techniques for setting good passwords. Not only is it right to use complicated passwords with symbols, numbers, and uppercase and lowercase letters, but it’s also important that the password is lengthy. You should also have your employees use different passwords for different applications. That way, if a hacker is able to get a hold of a password, they are still not able to access all of the applications within your network.
Security Testing
Not only do you want to train your employee, but you also want to conduct security testing to ensure your employees have learned all the information you want them to know. Security testing is excellent for reinforcing the security practices you want your employees to adopt. According to some studies, security testing has helped some companies reduce susceptibility to threats by up to 20 percent. There are many different software solutions out there that you can use to test your employees. For example, some solutions send fake spam emails to employees. If employees fall for the spam emails, the solution corrects the actions of the employee and tells them what they should do in the future.
For more information about the types of cybersecurity solutions that your business should have, don’t hesitate to contact us.
by Felicien | Nov 9, 2018 | Education
World War I officially ended on June 28, 1919, when the Treaty of Versailles was signed. However, fighting ended seven months earlier due to an armistice on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.” In November 1919, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11th as Armistice Day with these words: “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…”
Although the name “Veteran’s Day” was not used until 1954, this day was designated a legal holiday to celebrate and honor the ending of World War I. In 1938, Armistice Day was “dedicated to the cause of world peace” and to honor the veterans of World War I on November 11th each year, becoming a federal holiday. In 1954, after World War II and the Korean War, President Dwight D. Eisenhower changed the name of the holiday to Veteran’s Day to honor American veterans of all wars. In 2018, Veteran’s Day falls on a Sunday which means there will be a Federal holiday for workers on the following Monday. State and local workers’ schedules are determined locally, therefore you should check with your locality to determine whether offices will be open or closed on Monday, November 12, 2018.
What is the Difference between Veteran’s Day and Memorial Day?
The original concept for the celebration of Veteran’s Day was for a day observed with parades and public celebrations and a brief stoppage of business beginning at 11:00 a.m. The observance of Veterans Day ton November 11th preserves the historical significance of the date and helps focus attention on the important purpose of Veterans Day, a celebration to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.
Memorial Day, also a federal holiday is held on the last Monday in May. It is dedicated to remembering soldiers who lost their lives in battle or from injuries received in battle. Veteran’s Day is a day to honor all veterans, living or dead, who serve or have served in the military honorably during wartime and peacetime. Veterans come from families in all parts of the United States; men and women who serve are embedded deeply in the community. Here are some facts about American veterans:
16.1 million living American veterans served during at least one war.
5.2 million American veterans served during peacetime.
2 million American veterans are women.
7 million American veterans served during the Vietnam War.
5.5 million American veterans served during the Persian Gulf War.
2 million American veterans served during the Korean War.
As of 2014, 2.9 million American veterans received compensation for service-related disabilities.
As of 2014, three states have more than 1 million American veterans among their population: California, Florida, and Texas.
How to Celebrate Veteran’s Day
Veteran’s Day is a good day to find a way to thank veterans for serving the United States. There are many veterans living in communities around the U.S., some of whom don’t have relatives to care for them. You can visit patients in Veteran’s Hospitals, nursing homes or neighbors that you know are veterans. Honoring veterans with celebrations and parades is a great idea, but helping them after their service to the U.S. with daily life has great meaning to them as well. Many restaurants offer free meals to veterans on Veteran’s Day, and other businesses give discounts or assistance in any way they can.
by Felicien | Nov 8, 2018 | Education
Most lawyers realize that their firms would benefit by implementing legal practice management software. Case, contact, and document management tools; accounting, billing, and time tracking features; calendar, schedule, and docket control are all made easier. This allows attorneys to spend their valuable time on clients and cases, rather than on daily paperwork.
There are many benefits to adopting software programs for a law office. They coordinate communication between attorneys and support staff. This helps to properly assign duties and manage deadlines. Additionally, the document management tools allow for a fast, paperless search of files on the go. Generally, practice management software keeps cases organized.
By checking out some of the features that the top law practice management software tools offer, firms can choose the right option for their needs.
How Could Choosing ActionStep Improve the Daily Flow of a Law Office?
This highly flexible, cloud-based practice management solution offers an integrated approach that addresses the basic needs of small to medium-sized firms. ActionStep allows users to design their own workflows to suit their areas of specialty.
Other noteworthy features that ActionStep provides include the following:
Calendar management
Client billing
Client conflict and copyright check
Client Portal
Data Security
Email management
MS Office Integration
Additionally, with this software, attorneys can access, search and retrieve billing, documents, emails, and file notes, etc. with merely the click of the button.
Why Should Attorneys Choose Bill4Time?
Bill4Time is exactly what it claims to be; it is a time and billing software for companies that bill based on hourly rates. In addition to its standard office software, it has a legal edition. The industry-specific version has America Bar Association (ABA) Task Codes. It also offers checks for conflict of interest, as well as trust accounting and reporting.
One of the top-rated options for law firms, Bill4Time integrates with a variety of payment gateways. These include PayPal, Quickbooks, and other credit card processors. Clients have plenty of flexibility in payment options.
How Does Clio Benefit a Firm?
Clio might be the perfect management tool for law offices. It is designed to provide an array of benefits. Users can effortlessly organize case details, create workflows, and set schedules. It allows firms to take control of their finances with accounting system integration.
Its multiple features streamline nearly all of a law office’s processes. It enables the performance of accounting, client, case, documentation, and information management, office finance, time-tracking, and scheduling with one dynamic platform. Plus, it is compatible with Android, iOS, Mac, and PCs.
How Would HoudiniEsq. Improve a Law Practice?
A legal practice management solution, HoudiniEsq runs both Windows and MAC operating systems. This software includes client management, customizable workflow automation, email management, invoicing, and trust accounting. It comes in both desktop and cloud-based versions.
What Does MyCase Offer?
MyCase is a comprehensive, web-based practice management option for lawyers. This software offers procedures that are easy to use, as well as online payment, and a secure client portal. It also resolves the generally inefficient communication between clients and their legal counsel by providing a single platform for information sharing.
Since many legal users prefer mobile options, this software provides android and IOS apps for its users. MyCase offers legal practice management assistance to their customers by way of certified consultants. This ensures successful software use.
Why Should Lawyers Choose PracticePanther for Their Firm?
A management and billing software tool, PracticePanther is designed to be easy to use for those in the legal profession. In an all-in-one automated and secure software, it combines time tracking and billing, expense management, and payment processing.
Additionally, PracticePanther offers the following features and functions:
API Access
Custom Fields
Daily Agenda Emails
iPhone, iPad, and Android Apps
Money-Finder Report
Online Payment Processing
Quickbooks Accounting Integration
Secure Client Portal
Trust Accounting
Unlimited Data Storage
UTBMS Coding & LEDES Billing
Zapier Integration
This software is designed to help users save many hours per week while managing their practice. This results in a better, more lucrative bottom line.
How Can Tabs3 Be of Service?
This is desktop-based, Windows-only software designed specifically for law firms. Tabs3 is one of the most innovative and intuitive software options. It features advanced compensation formulas, client status reports, customizable billing, and time tracking. Plus, with particular additions, it supports electronic billing formats, such as LEDES. It also seamlessly integrates with Tabs3 accounting, financial, and custom report writing software.
In Conclusion
Many law offices have fewer than five employees. However, they still offer the same services as larger firms do. This means they require software that provides the same comprehensive functions as do bigger practices.
Several of the top practice management software options offer free trials or demos. This allows firms to basically “test-drive” a variety of systems. Then, they can compare the features of each before committing to their favorite.
