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Daily Archives: April 16, 2014

Beyond Data Breaches: Global Interconnections of Cyber Risk

“The Atlantic Council and Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) have released a pioneering report, Beyond Data Breaches: Global Interconnections of Cyber Risk, to better prepare governments and businesses for the cyber shocks of the future. Through a combination of stable technology, dedicated technicians and, resistance to random outages, the Internet has been resilient to attacks on a day-to-day basis, creating an extended period of prosperity. Yet, as we approach nearly absolute dependence on the Internet, cyber attacks of the future can and will affect globally interconnected systems like electrical grids and worldwide logistics systems. This Internet of tomorrow will be a source of global shocks for which risk managers, corporate executives, board directors, and government officials are not prepared…Recommendations to be resilient to cyber shocks include:

  • Putting the private sector at the center of crisis management, since government management of cyber risk lacks the agility needed
  • Developing plans within organizations that have system-wide responsibility that ensure the stability of the system as a whole, rather than risks to an individual organization
  • Creating redundant power and telecommunications suppliers and alternate ISPs connect to different peering points
  • Investing in trained teams ready to respond with defined procedures
  • Conducting simulations of the most likely and most dangerous cyber risks to better prepare.”

Federal Reserve Board Beige Book – April 16, 2014

Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District – Prepared at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and based on information collected before April 7, 2014. This document summarizes comments received from businesses and other contacts outside the Federal Reserve and is not a commentary on the views of Federal Reserve officials. “Reports… Continue Reading

The Distribution of Household Income and the Middle Class

CRS – The Distribution of Household Income and the Middle Class. Craig K. Elwell, Specialist in Macroeconomic Policy, March 10, 2014 “The shape of the income distribution is not itself a subject of legislation, but Members of Congress appear to consider it in their decision-making process concerning a number of policy issues such as taxes, means-tested benefits, and… Continue Reading

The Bureau of Prisons: Operations and Budget

CRS – The Bureau of Prisons (BOP): Operations and Budget. Nathan James, Analyst in Crime Policy, March 4, 2014 “The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is the largest correctional agency in the country, in terms of the number of prisoners under its jurisdiction. The BOP must confine any offender convicted and sentenced to a term of imprisonment in a federal court. Changes in federal criminal… Continue Reading

New York City Adds 30,000 Photos to Online Gallery

“The New York City Department of Records and Information Services, announced the addition of 30,000 photographs to its on-line gallery. The new additions consist of pictures drawn from the Municipal Archives vast holdings and include 187 historical pictures from the New York City Police Department’s (NYPD) Alien Squad.” “Welcome to the New York City Municipal… Continue Reading

Banking union: restoring financial stability in the Eurozone

Press release (includes charts and graphs): “Since the crisis started in 2008, the European Commission has worked hard to learn all the lessons from the crisis and create a safer and sounder financial sector. The Commission has proposed 28 new rules to better regulate, supervise, and govern the financial sector so that in future taxpayers… Continue Reading

Recent Trends in Federal Home Loan Bank Advances to JPMorgan Chase and Other Large Banks

Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General, Evaluation Report, EVL-2014-006, April 16, 2014.  Recent Trends in Federal Home Loan Bank Advances to JPMorgan Chase and Other Large Banks. “The Federal Home Loan Bank System (System) is comprised of 12 regional Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks) and the Office of Finance. The FHLBanks make secured loans, known as advances, to… Continue Reading

Tax burdens on labour income continue to rise across the OECD

“Personal income tax has risen in 25 out of 34 OECD countries over the past three years, as countries reduce the value of tax-free allowances and tax credits and subject higher proportions of earnings to tax, according to new data in the annual Taxing Wages publication. The increases in tax burdens on labour income in 2013 were largest… Continue Reading

New GAO Reports – DoD Contracting, Foreign Aid, NASA, Environmental Policy Act

ARMY MODULAR FORCE STRUCTURE: Annual Report Generally Met Requirements, but Challenges in Estimating Costs and Assessing Capability Remain, GAO-14-294:  Published: Apr 16, 2014. Publicly Released: Apr 16, 2014. DEFENSE CONTRACTING: DOD’s Use of Class Justifications for Sole-Source Contracts, GAO-14-427R: Published: Apr 16, 2014. Publicly Released: Apr 16, 2014. FOREIGN AID: USAID Has Increased Funding to Partner-Country Organizations but Could Better… Continue Reading

PRA publishes information on data collection requests relating to life and general insurance firms

“The PRA has updated its website with information about data requests that will be sent to a number of life and general insurance firms in 2014- 2015 to support preparations for, and the transition to, Solvency II. The PRA will send the first data request directly to all firms in early May 2014. The deadline for… Continue Reading