WHO Declares H1N1 Pandemic - Now What?
By Bill Brenner, Senior Editor, CSO
On the physical side, private entities should be hammering out a game plan for who would do what and where if the government decided to restrict our movements to contain an outbreak, says Kevin Nixon, an emergency planning expert who has testified before Congress and served on infrastructure security boards and committees including the Disaster Recovery Workgroup for the Office of Homeland Security, and the Federal Trade Commission.
H1N1: Timeline of a Pandemic in the Making
By Kevin M. Nixon, Information-Security-Resources.com Security Editor
On April 29, 2009, Bill Brenner in his article for CSO Online, Swine Flu: To Fear is To Fail quoted FDR’s famous line “The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” The point: power is in the hands of those who hold knowledge, or simply knowledge is power.
Effective Spin Turns Crisis into Opportunity
By Heather Bourgoin, Strategic Alliance Coordinator for Integralis
Responding to a crisis requires confident and decisive action – there isn’t time to crunch numbers or analyze data. Decisions must be made quickly - but not without taking care to ensure that the right message – one that is consistent with the messaging delivered during the normal course of doing business – is conveyed. What you say and do in the hours and days following a crisis speak volumes about your business. There are a few best practices that will help your organization to emerge from a crisis with their brand, not only intact, but stronger.
ISR News: Corp Continuity Plans Examined
Excerpts From Finextra.com
With the number of confirmed swine flu cases continuing to rise, a global benchmarking survey of financial institutions has revealed that, although over 70% of firms have a pandemic-specific business continuity programme in place, many may be dangerously out of date.
ISR News: Pandemic Boosts Security Demand
Excerpts From AEFeldman.com
Some of the biggest banks in the U.S. and London are already preparing for the possibility of a swine flu pandemic, with one acknowledging it is “dusting off playbooks” from the outbreaks of avian flu in 2003, as analysts try to predict the potential impact on the global markets, according to Dow Jones Financial News.
Pandemics and Business: To Fear is to Fail
By CSO Senior Editor Bill Brenner
When the economy faltered last year, fear took over and made the recession deeper than it might have otherwise become. Bankers panicked and credit froze, making it nearly impossible for people to buy things and for companies to meet payroll. Before the Great Depression, during the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918-19, fear caused the government to downplay what was happening. The result was more panic and more death because citizens lacked advice that could have been helpful.
ISR News: Pandemic May Crash the Internet
Excerpts From PCWorld
As the dreaded word “pandemic” tops this week’s headlines about the swine flu virus spreading around the globe, many businesses are dusting off emergency plans for employees to work from home and schools are poised to send students home. If this turns out to be a full-fledged pandemic, not only will people fall ill, the Internet will too.
Business Continuity Guidance for Swine Flu
By Kevin M. Nixon, Information-Security-Resources.com Security Editor
“Business continuity and disaster recovery are crucial parts of sound corporate governance - for industries like the financial sector and the nation’s critical infrastructure, they are mandates. Organizations that fail to plan and prepare for events like public health emergencies, natural disasters, and man-made disruptions face loss of business, and potential corporate exposure if they fail in these obligations. It is time to get serious about earlier and better handling of risk issues.”
