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Study notes pandemic’s impact on networks

Jan. 9, 2008—A study on how communications networks stand to be affected by greater telecommuting during a pandemic shows heightened risks of network congestion at such times and offers recommendations on how to prepare.

The study was coordinated through the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Cyber Security and Communications.

Subject matter experts in the study, drawn from a wide array of private sector and government fields, looked at what is likely in the event of a rise in telecommuting during a pandemic. Participants agreed that many enterprise systems may not be large enough to handle the spike in use and that local, residential networks are likely to face similar strains. To help mitigate the impact, they came up with recommended preparations and developed a model to test those.

The modeling produced some key assumptions for businesses, telecommuters, the public and network providers in preparing for a pandemic situation. These include:

· businesses should use a 40 percent absenteeism rate as a guideline but tailor that to their specific situation, size and remote-user capabilities;

· employees planning to telecommute during a pandemic and who are critical to operations should not rely on best-effort, residential Internet access;

· limiting non-critical recreational traffic among the general public, especially during daytime work hours, will be key;

· network service providers, which will be working with a reduced work force, will be limited in their ability to respond to a surge in traffic or to increase capacity.

Phishing is the term coined by hackers who imitate legitimate companies in e-mails to entice people to share passwords or credit-card numbers. Recent victims include Charlotte's Bank of America, Best Buy and eBay, where people were directed to Web pages that looked nearly identical to the companies' sites

The term had its coming out this week when the FBI called phishing the "hottest, and most troubling, new scam on the Internet." The name appears to have no connection to the band Phish, an FBI spokesman said.
—Andrew Shain, "Phishing to steal your information," Charlotte Observer, July 25, 2003

Tips on how to avoid the Internet scam known as phishing.

	If you receive an unexpected e-mail saying your account will be shut down unless you confirm your billing information, do not reply or click any links in the e-mail body.
	Before submitting financial information through a Web site, look for the "lock" icon on the browser's status bar. It means your information is secure during transmission.
	If you are uncertain about the information, contact the company through an address or telephone number you know to be genuine.
	If you unknowingly supplied personal or financial information, contact your bank or credit union immediately.
	Suspicious e-mail can be forwarded to uce@ftc.gov, and complaints should be filed with the state attorney general's office or through the FTC at www.ftc.gov.
	Please notify the credit union of any suspicious emails claiming to be from the credit union.

Identity Theft

Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personally identifying information, like your name, Social Security number, or credit card number, without your permission, to commit fraud or other crimes.

The FTC estimates that as many as 9 million Americans have their identities stolen each year. In fact, you or someone you know may have experienced some form of identity theft.

Deter identity thieves by safeguarding your information.

	Shred documents with personal information before discarding
	Don’t give out your Social Security number or other personal information unless you know who you’re dealing with

Detect suspicious activity by routinely monitoring your financial accounts and billing statements.

Inspect your credit reports, financial statements and bills regularly for activity you did not authorize or expect

Defend against ID theft as soon as you suspect it.

	Place a “Fraud Alert” on your credit reports
	Close the affected accounts
	File a police report
	Report ID theft to the FTC

Learn more... click the "Play" button below and watch a 10-minute educational video that provides an overview of identity theft and outlines the steps consumers can take.

For more information, visit ftc.gov/idtheft

Study notes pandemic’s impact on networks

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