Raj Goel
Security & Compliance Consulting Practice
www.rajgoel.com
raj@rajgoel.com
(917) 685-7731
Cyber spies are everywhere says security expert
School systems, cell phone companies and the NSA, all are cyber spies says noted security expert
It may seem harmless, but the reality is cyber spies are everywhere and come in every form, said Raj Goel, a noted international cyber security expert. Some examples are the family doctor’s office, school, Verizon, Facebook, banks and the apps downloaded to a smartphone.
“Every time you give a company personal information, it’s entered into a computer. That information is then updated regularly so the company holding your personal data knows far more about you than you might want to them took” Mr. Goel said.
His presentation “Architecture Of Global Surveillance: Laws and Regulations Track” on Oct. 23 is part of the overall Information Systems Security Association International Conference in Orlando, Oct. 22 & 23.
“You may think the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability act (HIPAA) protects your medical records. You are wrong. Doctors’ office and hospital computer networks are just as likely to be targeted by cyber criminals as banks and huge departments store chains. Further, their protections are probably not as good as a major bank or department store. Your personal information is at risk,” he said.
A doctor’s office is not taking personal informational way to harm a person, but it’s still personal information. Mr. Goel said most people are surprised at how much personal information is available online with just a few keystrokes.
“Making this worse, it’s information you volunteered. If you have a Facebook account, they have reams of information about you. They know what you like, who you talk to, what you talk about and how you spend your money, You may say you don’t care about others having that information, but the fact is the NSA and other government agencies also use this information to build a profile about you,” he said. “If their information is wrong or slanted the wrong way, as it often is, you have little recourse to get changes made.”
Mr. Goel’s presentation is based on a decade’s worth of research and study into cyber security. As a global expert on improving and upgrading security systems as well as advising individuals how to be more secure, his talk will cover the various laws in several countries about the right to privacy.
“Germany has taken steps in what we call ‘a right to be forgotten’ or its citizens. However, that’s Germany. What small data mining agencies outside Germany can do cannot be controlled by Germany,” he said. “The European Union has a privacy charter, but how effective ls it. How does the Bill of Rights apply to you today?”
Such questions have been discussed in famous literature like George Orwell’s dystopian novel “1984.” Orwell, Mr. Goel notes, was prophetic in that novel. He said the writer saw what was coming and tried to warn the world.
“Now, we of the future Mr. Orwell warned us about, need to apply the lessons he gave us. We need to learn what we can do to protect our personal information from the cyber spies who surround us. I will tell you what you can do to be more secure and how you can prevent others from getting personal information you don’t want them to have.”
Raj Goel is a globally known IT and security expert. He regularly gives presentations around the world at the top IT conferences. For more information about Mr. Goel and his work, please visit www.RajGoel.com.
For more information on the ISSA conference, visit http://www.issa.org/?issaconf_home