Privacy Means Profit: Prevent Identity Theft and Secure You and Your Bottom Line

Chapter 1. Motivate the Troops

People don't change bad habits until they have a compelling reason. Too often that compelling reason is the result of a habit's negative outcome; but the promise of positive rewards resulting from the establishment of good habits can be a strong motivator. In the workplace, aligning responsible information stewardship with personal and professional gain can set the stage for good privacy habits.

Let My Failure Motivate Your Change

At breakfast on the morning of August 12, 2003, a small and profitable computer company thrived at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. By lunchtime that day, that same business was on its way to ruin. Within 12 months, due to the theft of personal and company information, a 40-year-old family-business-turned-software-startup was doomed, and John, heir to the prosperous enter-prise, faced the prospect of prison for crimes he didn't commit.

Beyond the specter of prison time for John, the situation held dire conse-quences for his family and friends. There was a real threat that his wife and two young daughters might be separated from their husband and father, if John went to prison. John's parents, who founded the company in 1964, shouldered most of the financial responsibility for the dying business and experienced declining health from the resulting stress. In the end, the situa-tion would expose a dark secret kept by John's close friend, Doug, a recent partner in the business.

It sounds like fiction, and sometimes when I'm recounting ...