Sunday, July 26, 2009

Data Way to Go - Why Data Theft is a Continuing Problem


“Stealing, you'll go far in life. Actually, there is something funny about getting away with it.” American TV and film producer Mike Judge might have had his tongue firmly planted in his cheek when he said the above quote but the phenomena of having private information stolen is certainly no laughing matter. Whether it is internet fraudsters or negligent banks and hospitals, having your personal information tampered with is a common occurrence nowadays.

More and more cases of data theft are appearing in the Irish news. It is not as if this happens every single day but the upward trend in incidents is worrying.

The recent theft of a laptop containing files on more than a thousand patients from the house of a senior medical officer in the Health Service Executive, just highlights how easy personal information can be taken without our consent.

AIB bank officials were left red-faced when confidential bank documents were found when diggers excavated them at a former dump in Cork. This was the same site that hospital patients’ medical records from Cork Regional Hospital were found at an earlier date. Fine Gael TD Bernard Allen was being sensible when he suggested these matters be handled by the police and not the institutions involved.

In another calamity, a laptop containing the records and personal data of more than 170,000 Irish blood donors was snatched in New York of all places. A blood bank worker in the Big Apple who was contracted to upgrade software for the files had the laptop robbed from him outside his home. With examples like this it’s no wonder that people are wary about handing out personal details so easily.

The internet is fast becoming the easiest way for criminals to gain access and take advantage of a person’s private information. Credit card fraud has become a really lucrative business for criminal hackers, luring innocent victims to visit bogus websites and give their card details thus enabling the fraudsters to spend on the card.

Even if you are not that easily roped in, internet crooks can send out Trojan horse viruses that once downloaded onto your desktop will gather vital information such as your Visa or Mastercard number. The only good news in this kind of criminal activity is that most credit card companies will cover you for the majority of the illegal spending done on your card. Usually a fee of around €50 or €60 will be the most a person will pay and the rest will be insured.

So what to do if you feel your precious data is not secure? For computer use the general answer is to just use your common sense and don’t follow links to advertisements. Many of these can be phishing scams which basically are false links to websites that will do their best to get you to part with your hard earned euros. Be careful when using your plastic on the net by only using well-established websites like E-Bay or Amazon. These sites pay a lot more money for security than any of the smaller companies in cyberspace. Use a good anti-virus that will deter Trojans or spam from infiltrating your computer.

We certainly have a responsibility to ourselves to be less reckless when it comes to our own personal information. As well as our PC’s and laptops, people need to be careful with other gadgets that hold private info. Cellular phones are the prime example. It is easy to be careless with your mobile when out on the town having a few jars but it must be remembered that yours as well as your friends' and family’s personal data are on there too. With technology advancing at a rapid rate people are storing larger amounts of information on their phones so the loss can be quite painful.

With regard to medical or financial files, you’ll still have to put your trust in the hospitals and banks that have them and hope that they treat your vital statistics with the care and attention they obviously deserve.

Friday, July 24, 2009

Spend Low, Sweet Charity


Why do I feel slightly cagey when I enter the Oxfam on George’s Street in Dun Laoghaire? Am I experiencing a twinge of shame at being seen going into a charity shop? Am I surreptitiously checking that nobody I know has witnessed me going in?

Although I hate to admit it, maybe the well-hidden snob in me has risen to the surface. The same paranoid feelings overpower me when ever I enter the bookies. A rarity of course but strangely I started this article by handwriting it using a Ladbrokes mini-pen. I proceed gingerly. A guilty, cold sweat is forming on my back. It feels like somebody is watching my every move.

As I step over the threshold into used items land my eyes dart all over the shop. Literally. Jackets, dresses, shoes, books, magazines, random bric-a-brac are all vying for my attention. So many pieces of other people’s lives ready for strangers to usurp.

Things for sale in second hand stores always get me asking the same questions. Who used to own this item? Where are they from? What exactly made them give this away? Am I reading too much Kafka? Inside the shop several elderly ladies are trawling through multi-coloured clothing and really enjoying themselves by the look of it. The woman at the till scans me suspiciously as I wonder where in the shop to go first. I am on the receiving end of a thousand yard stare. To her I must look like a map-entranced tourist with that lost, blank, vacant visage.

As I make my way past her, I spot a young chap in a tracksuit trying on a sweatshirt near the back of the shop. He has that same look of guilt I must surely have, smeared across his face. I’m sure he’s just come from the bookies. I decide to bury my head in the book section and attempt to uncover a literary bargain. Stephen King, Maeve Binchy, Harlen Coben and friends are all crying out to be snatched from their shelf and placed in my college bag. After paying for them of course, just in case you were wondering. Nothing leaps out at me however and I choose to exit the building. Now, where the hell is that Mrs. Quinn’s charity shop?

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Suceava



Suceava city, capital of Suceava County, is one of the main regions of the province of Bucovina in north-eastern Romania. The original Hungarian translation of Suceava means ‘city of furriers’. The city does indeed have a long and fascinating history. From 1388 to 1564, Suceava became the capital of Moldavia. During this period, Iasi became the Romanian capital, later to be changed to Bucharest. Suceava actually began its existence on a terrace on the right-sided bank of the Suceava River in the 14th century. The city features the groves of Zamca and Sipote, Zamca Hill being the highest point in the city.

During Stephen the Great’s reign in the 15th century, Suceava developed as one of Romania’s biggest trading centres and also a main customs point. Countless warehouses were to be found scattered around the city and a strong citadel was built up. In the 16th century the Turks invaded and destroyed much of the city but in 1775 they conceded the region to Austria. It wasn’t until 1918 that Suceava again became populated by Romanians. During its communist period, Suceava became very heavily industrialized and factory employment was very easy to come by.

The city is chock full of historical buildings and Suceava is a good starting point if you want to visit the Painted Monasteries of Bucovina. Every time Stephen the Great defeated an invading army he built a new church in the area, so there is certainly no shortage of those. The St. George’s Church is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site and the remains of the Princely Court and the Bucovina Ethnographic Museum are also extremely popular for visiting tourists.

Other well-known attractions are the 14th century Mirauti Church (where Stephen the Great was crowned king of Moldavia in 1457), Zamca Monastery and the Bucovina Village Museum. The Bucovina History Museum includes displays of ancient documents, medieval armour and coins among other historical artefacts, and is well worth a visit.

Suceava became an established area of Jewish settlement in the 16th century, but sadly most of the synagogues and Hasidic prayer rooms were destroyed during the 1950’s ‘communist renewal’ period. Only one synagogue and two Jewish cemeteries still stand to this day.

The city is accessed by Stefan cel Mare international airport and a main train station. From Bucharest to Suceava, flights are approximately one hour and train journeys the best part of seven hours. The people are very friendly and food and drink are cheaper than many parts of Europe. It is hot and humid in the summer and cold and snowy in the winter time, so suitable clothing will be necessary. Suceava has a lot to offer and is a worthy place to plan a holiday to.