August 2013

How can you oversee your employees’ use of company e-mails without violating their privacy?

According to a recent nationwide survey, more than 40% of businesses monitor their workers’ e-mails. If you’re one of these companies, a disgruntled employee might well sue you for invasion of privacy (the number of privacy lawsuits has skyrocketed by 3,000% during the past decade).

The best way to protect yourself against this risk is to create a written policy warning employees that you might be monitoring their use of e-mail. Bear in mind that because your business owns the e-mail system – software, network access, and computers – you have the legal right to oversee workers for misusing it to violate company policy or break the law.

The first step in implementing this policy is to have all employees sign a disclaimer that acknowledges the company’s right to monitor their e-mail. You can do this when an employee is hired, at contract renewal, or at a company meeting – and don’t forget to circulate any updates to the policy throughout the company. Apply e-mail monitoring as uniformly as possible, because singling out an individual without a clear reason to do so could leave you vulnerable to a discrimination lawsuit. Finally, be sure to have your attorney review the policy.

A comprehensive e-mail policy can: 1) provide an effective defense against invasion of privacy litigation; and 2) educate your employees on the proper use of e-mail – which should go far to reduce potential problems from misusing the system.

If you’d like to learn more about how to balance protecting the integrity of your company’s e-mail system with your employees’ right to privacy, please get in touch with us. As always, we’re here to help.

Recent headlines about electronic spies hacking into computer networks from the Pentagon to China reinforce the dangerous reality that a “malware” (software that accesses systems to steal sensitive financial and client information) is becoming increasingly sophisticated and widespread.

According to a recent report from the NPD Group, the average U.S. household with a Web connection has 5.7 devices – desktops, laptops, tablets, and/or smart phones — which are highly vulnerable to malware attacks. The more workers who use these devices to access the Web sites of their employers, the greater the threat of cybercrime.

To help protect the security of your company’s data against intrusion from malware, experts recommend taking these precautions:

1. Identify the business processes and data you need to protect and the risks associated with them.
2. Limit access to sensitive data to authorized users. Provide them with strong passwords and don’t allow any sharing.
3. Make sure that employees use only secure wireless networks when connecting to your site.
4. Provide users with strong authentication measures and anti-malware software.
5. Know your users and their behavior. Compare details of incoming login connections with the information you have about the user. If you find anomalies, add such precautions such answering a security question.
6. Look for corrupted devices. Authenticated users might acquire malware on their devices that puts your data at risk once they log in. For example, man-in-the-browser (MitB) attacks can hijack authenticated sessions.
7. Secure high-value transactions. Identify these transactions and refuse to accept them from devices with suspicious configurations.

Our agency’s specialists can work with you in developing and implementing a comprehensive anti-malware program for your company. Please feel free to get in touch with us at any time.

A survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that 69% of U.S. drivers talked on their cell phones – and 31% read or sent text messages or e-mails while driving. “The cell phone can be a fatal distraction for those who use it while they drive,” warns CDC Director Thomas Frieden.

Using cell phones to text behind the wheel can increase the danger of fatal crashes by six to 23 times, and drivers using hand-held devices are four times more likely to become involved in crashes serious enough to injure themselves.

You probably have rules about employees talking on their phones and texting while driving – but are they following them?

According to Jim Evans, president of human resources consulting firm JK Evans & Associates, some bosses turn a blind eye to cell phone use behind the wheel, while others don’t want to cut into their employees’ productivity. His advice to employers: “Dust off the old cell phone policy or unwritten practices and revisit whether employee safety and employer liability is at risk.”

To minimize this danger, your company should require employees who drive on the job to:

• Turn off personal phones or switch them to silent mode before entering a company vehicle.
• Pull over to a safe area if they need to make a cell phone call or send or answer a text message.
• Ask a helper or another passenger to make a return call.
• Contact supervisors or dispatchers when the vehicle is parked.
• Avoid smoking, eating, drinking, reading, and any other activities that distract them behind the wheel.
• Tell people who call them while driving that they’ll call back after reaching their destination.
• Not send or answer text messages, surf the Web, or read e-mails.

Your last newsletter discussed the benefits of Building Ordinance insurance. If you’re planning to build on your property or adding to an existing structure, a related policy – Builders Risk – can protect you from losses during construction, helping make sure that you finish the project.

The amount of coverage should reflect the total value of the completed structure (including the costs of material and labor, but not the value of the land). In most cases, the construction budget will be the best source for calculating this amount.

The policy is usually written for a period three months, six months, or 12 months. If needed, the term can be extended once.

Builders Risk covers damage to the insured structure(s) from a wide variety of causes, ranging from natural disasters (wind, lightning, hail, and lightning) through accidental events (fire, explosion, or vehicle accidents) to human activities (such as theft and vandalism). Coverage usually also includes:

• Fire department service charges for saving or protecting property from a covered cause of loss.
• Removal of debris from property damaged by a covered loss.
• Losses from the backup of sewer and drains.

Most policies exclude losses from earthquake, flooding employee theft, mechanical breakdown, contract penalties, war, government action, or faulty design and workmanship. You might be able to add coverage for some of these exclusions – such as earthquakes and flooding – if the building is in an area that’s prone to one or both of these natural disasters.

Bear in mind that this policy does not provide Liability coverage for accidents or injuries on your property.

We’d be happy to tailor a comprehensive Builders Risk product that fits your needs – and budget. Just give us a call.