@Risk

Here’s a remarkable statistic: Among the more than 900 electronic records breaches that Verizon Business experts investigated last year, a whopping 96 percent could have been avoided if security basics had been followed.

That’s right. Nearly all of these breaches could have been avoided; only 4 percent of the breaches analyzed required difficult and expensive protective measures. In addition, most victimized organizations (87 percent) had evidence of a breach in their security logs, but overlooked these red flags due to a lack of staff, tools or processes.

The new 2010 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report , which for the first time was prepared in collaboration with the US Secret Service, is filled with other fascinating results, too –all of which offer some important perspective about the vulnerability of business data and the most effective approaches for mitigating cybercrime threats.  For instance, the report also reveals that: (more…)

A voluntary system to trace livestock movement across state lines has fallen short of expectations, and so the US Department of Agriculture is drafting more stringent regulations.

Federal officials are working on a new system that involves mandatory regulations because they want to make it easier to track diseases such as brucellosis and tuberculosis in livestock.  According to an article in The Billings Gazette, more than 19 million of the nation’s 30 million beef cows and 9 million dairy cows crossed state lines in 2009. But, data from 2006 and 2007 show that only about one quarter (28 percent) of the nation’s adult cattle had any form of official identification that would allow them to be tracked.

Although this animal disease traceability system is focused on animal health, it can also help promote a safe, healthy food supply. For example, a USDA fact sheet says that: (more…)

Optimists are known for saying, “Every cloud has a silver lining,” and now, new survey results indicate that, at least with regard to the recession, they may be right.

The July 2010 Korn/Ferry Executive Quiz, which polled senior executives and board members from across the world, shows that in the aftermath of the recession and multiple high-profile financial meltdowns, many organizations are approaching risk differently. In fact, they’re now actively identifying and addressing their own risk management issues more than ever before.

For example: (more…)

Analysts estimate that India’s retail sector is worth $450 billion. However, India’s government has kept this giant marketplace largely closed to foreign firms.

Could all that be about to change?

Late last month, Indian officials circulated a discussion paper about easing up on the restrictions, and not surprisingly, that move has ignited international debate. As it stands now, overseas firms can only operate in India as wholesalers and they are required to partner with domestic firms. But, a few weeks ago, Walmart said it could open “hundreds of stores” in India if the country unlocked its retail sector to foreign investors.

Of course, achieving that goal would require significant improvements to the supply chain. As Reuters points out,  “in a country where at least 40 percent of produce is wasted because of inadequate storage and transportation, large investments in warehouses, refrigerated trucks and other amenities are needed.”

Currently, organized retail accounts for only 6 percent of the total retail sector in India. The remainder is in the hands of “mom and pop” shops, which rely mostly on farmers and other local suppliers. Overhauling the system to accommodate retailers like Walmart could take years. In fact, the managing director and chief executive of one of the few Walmart wholesale ventures allowed in the country, predicts India needs at least a decade to establish a supply chain of “international quality and standard.”

A decade and plenty of foreign capital, that is. What investment –in time, effort and resources –would you be willing to make in order to gain market share in the world’s second-fastest growing major economy?

The percentage of US mid-sized companies planning to increase their overseas sales targets has risen to a three-year high, according to new survey results from HSBC’s Commercial Banking division.

The US component of the HSBC survey, conducted for the third year in a row, polled nearly 650 US senior financial executives from companies with annual sales between $20 million and $5 billion and found that these mid-sized companies are increasingly pinning their growth plans on overseas markets.  About seven in ten (72 percent) of those polled said they are planning to increase their overseas sales targets –that’s up considerably from 49 percent in 2008 and 56 percent in 2009.

Interestingly, more than half (56 percent) of those in the survey reported that their overseas sales are growing faster than domestic sales. (And even though that’s a slight rebound from 52 percent last year, it’s still below the 67 percent level seen in 2008.)

But, which countries are currently the most appealing for cross-border business?

(more…)