Massachusetts Air National Guard

Patrick Kane joins Assurity as Senior Sales Manager for Individual Sales

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, April 2, 2024
Insurance, Eye, Family, Massachusetts Air National Guard, Growth

LINCOLN, Neb., April 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Patrick Kane joined Assurity as its new Senior Sales Manager for the Northeast region, where he and Regional Wholesaler Christy Magorian will be the point of contact for thirteen states and the District of Columbia.

Key Points: 
  • LINCOLN, Neb., April 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Patrick Kane joined Assurity as its new Senior Sales Manager for the Northeast region, where he and Regional Wholesaler Christy Magorian will be the point of contact for thirteen states and the District of Columbia.
  • He brings more than two decades of insurance experience to his new role.
  • He has previously held management positions across the industry, developing close relationships with independent distribution, banks and benefit firms to grow life and disability insurance sales.
  • "Patrick is a natural fit for the Assurity team," says Nathan Driskill, Vice President of Individual Sales.

Lessons from 'Star Trek: Picard' – a cybersecurity expert explains how a sci-fi series illuminates today's threats

Retrieved on: 
Friday, May 12, 2023
Psychology, Technology, Geordi La Forge, DNA, Music, Human, Industry, Education, Solution, ChatGPT, Humanities, History, Foundation, Government, Organization, Literature, Philosophy, Recreation, La Forge, United Federation, Sport, United, Massachusetts Air National Guard, Environment, Ownership, Software, Book, Medical device, Risk management, Planet, Starfleet

Society’s understanding of technology and cybersecurity often is based on simple stereotypes and sensational portrayals in the entertainment media.

Key Points: 
  • Society’s understanding of technology and cybersecurity often is based on simple stereotypes and sensational portrayals in the entertainment media.
  • Or think of counterintelligence specialists repositioning a satellite from the back of a surveillance van via a phone call.
  • And that’s important, because whether it’s a large company, government or your personal information, we all share many of the same cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities.

The nature of the threat

    • Starfleet is the military wing of the United Federation of Planets, of which Earth is a member.
    • In Season 3, the final season, Picard’s ultimate enemy, the Borg, returns to try conquering humanity again.
    • The Borg is a cybernetic collective of half-human, half-machine “drones” led by a cyborg queen.
    • Equally important, “Star Trek: Picard” presents the very real and insidious nature of the insider threat faced by today’s organizations.

Humans remain the weakest link

    • The ultimate safeguard.” With these words, humanity’s military defenders activated a feature that linked every Starfleet vessel together under one unified automated command system.
    • In essence, Starfleet created a Borg-like defense system that the Borg itself used to attack the federation.
    • But even then, technology alone can’t protect humans from ourselves – after all, it’s people who develop, design, select, administer and use technology, which means human flaws are present in these systems, too.

Resiliency is not futile

    • To counter the Borg’s final assault on Earth, Picard’s crew borrows its old starship, Enterprise-D, from a fleet museum.
    • Offline from the others.” From a cybersecurity perspective, ensuring the availability of information resources is one of the industry’s guiding principles.
    • Here, the Enterprise-D represents defenders in response to a cyber incident using assets that are outside of an adversary’s reach.

Prepare for the unknown

    • The “Star Trek” universe explores the unknown in both the universe and contemporary society.
    • Often, such solutions are derived from characters’ interests in music, painting, archaeology, history, sports and other nontechnical areas of study, recreation or expertise.
    • Season 3, in particular, offers viewers both entertainment and education – indeed, the best of both worlds.

Yet another case of mishandling classified documents and alleged violations of the Espionage Act: 3 essential reads

Retrieved on: 
Monday, April 17, 2023
Review, Massachusetts Air National Guard, Department, Classification, Disclosure, United States Department of Justice National Security Division, Trump, Intelligence, Embarrassment, Judgement, Government, Reality Winner, United States Department of State, Espionage Act of 1917, Risk, 1922 Bulgarian war criminal prosecution referendum, U.S. Department of Defense Strategy for Operating in Cyberspace, Motivation, Private investigator, Medical device

Over the years, The Conversation U.S. has published numerous stories exploring the nature of classified documents – and how different motivations play a part in an individual’s decision to mishandle the nation’s secrets.

Key Points: 
  • Over the years, The Conversation U.S. has published numerous stories exploring the nature of classified documents – and how different motivations play a part in an individual’s decision to mishandle the nation’s secrets.
  • Violations of the Espionage Act
    On April 14, 2023, U.S. prosecutors charged Teixeira in connection with violations of the Espionage Act.
  • She points out that criminal prosecutions alone may not be the only way to prevent the flow of classified information.
  • Known as internal whistleblowing, such actions may prove effective in not only protecting classified information from reaching the public but also prevent another national security embarrassment.

Pentagon leak of US intelligence on Ukraine and other allies shows failure to learn from Chelsea Manning affair

Retrieved on: 
Monday, April 17, 2023
Intelligence, Arrest, United Nations, Eye, Attention, Video, Thought, Chelsea Manning, Discord, CIA, NSA, United, Logic, Massachusetts Air National Guard, Manning, Arms industry, Private investigator, Cryptocurrency, WikiLeaks

And how US intelligence security could have allowed him to allegedly share this classified material on a Discord server normally used to discuss video games.

Key Points: 
  • And how US intelligence security could have allowed him to allegedly share this classified material on a Discord server normally used to discuss video games.
  • The affair suggests that US intelligence agencies are still as vulnerable to this kind of leak as it was at the time of Chelsea Manning in 2010.
  • Russia’s large intelligence community is skilled in both electronic interception, and human intelligence through its undercover officers and informant handling.
  • More importantly, the intelligence trove will show how US, Ukraine and other countries’ analysts are assessing the progress of the war.

Intelligence lapses

    • But it is not immediately clear why the Massachusetts Air National Guard needs top-secret intelligence about Ukraine.
    • This suggests, as was the case with Manning, that the armed forces are the weak link in US intelligence.
    • The siloing of intelligence is part of how the plotters managed to evade the US authorities.
    • Siloed information was judged to be a weakness of the US intelligence system, and resulted in more openness.

Special relationship?

    • For the UK, the confirmation that special forces are operating in Ukraine is potentially awkward.
    • Limited special forces activities to extract individuals or perform limited tasks, such as destroying a particular Russian capability on a “get in and get out” basis, has some logic to it.
    • Reports have focused on the “revelation” that the US might be spying on its allies, and the United Nations.