On October 10th, Joyce Musante, Privacy Office Lead for CIGNA, notified the Maryland Attorney Generals Office that a disk sent to a governmental agency by a certified courier on June 20th had been lost.  The unnamed courier notified CIGNA on September 9th that the package had been damaged and the contents were missing. Despite an investigation, the disk has not been located.
The disk contained medical claims data on an unspecified number of CIGNA members or their dependents, including their names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and medical information.
Although CIGNA has offered those affected two years of credit monitoring and identity theft protection, the breach raises a few questions:
1.  If the package was shipped on June 20th, what follow-up procedures does CIGNA use to ensure that packages are received in a timely fashion?  How is it that no one from CIGNA noticed for over 2 months that there was no receipt for the package?
2.  If CIGNA notified the government agency that it was shipping the package on June 20th, how is it that no one on the receiving end noticed that it hadnt arrived?
3.  Why is the company still using Social Security numbers?
Posted under U.S.

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If you work in another industry, you might consider your inventory your most valuable asset and so you might need to physically walk through a warehouse and count things. Well, thats no different when you work on the Internet except for the fact that youre most valuable asset in a lot of cases here is the information thats stored on your computer. However youll still want to know where it is and youll want to be able to get to it at a moments notice.
The modern business man needs to be aware that there are a new set of issues that go along with working on the Web and the first of these is data security. There are no padlocks at the gate of a computer so you need to find another way to make sure that the information that youve got is safe and the best way that you can do that is to get the right online backup service.
The best of these will be able to provide a variety of functions that include:
* Account and File sharing
* Remote File Access
* Easy File Restoration
When you find a firm on the Web that can supply you with all of these features you know that your business will be secure. However, there is one final feature that will cement the deal and that has everything to do with the kind of security that the system youre looking at has. There are a few things that you really need to make sure that the company youre considering has and at the top of that list are the right Firewall technology.
Remember that its one thing not to trust the security that you have in place for your own system, but not being able to have confidence in the data security youre paying to use the services of is unforgivable. For that reason youll want to make sure that a top name like Cisco comes up when youre looking at the Firewall technology thats being offered. You can trust names like this since they have been one of the leaders in Network Security for years now.
Dan Dugal is the CEO of Remote Data Backups, a successful date protection company with hundreds of satisfied customers. You can see all of RDBs data security options at
http://remotedatabackups.

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It is unfortunate that while so many charities accept non-cash gifts such as donating cars, stocks or durable goods, few of them handle this task themselves. This practice, involving a partnership of for-profit firms who manage the towing and paperwork with the charity itself, often result in a perfectly good car though it may need some minor work - being sold at a wholesale auction. Very often these cars are sent out for parts or sold elsewhere for yet another profit that goes to for-profit car lots (often those that prey upon low-income folks with few options) rather than the charities that actually serve people who need transportation. Perhaps worst of all, donating your car to such a company results in a far lower allowable tax deduction when donating a car for tax break purposes. Of course, one of the most compelling why many people consider car donation past their prime is the hefty tax deduction benefit that many car donation services advertise. However, since 2005, the rules that govern how you may take your deduction have changed. Now, you are only able to deduct (from your Form 1040, Schedule A, Itemized Deduction worksheet) the amount that was actually delivered to the charity of your choice. As such, when donating a car, you want to make sure you and the non-profit organization both get the most for your car as possible. Generally, no matter how you go about donating, cars are either sold as is, refurbished and sold, or refurbished and given away. While the first option is most often subject to the very tight fist of the wholesale automotive market, the other 2 options usually allow you to take a much higher deduction that is more likely to be in line with the actual “fair market value” of your car. Your best bet for a good-sized deduction when donating your car, however, is to find someone who can actually use the vehicle or fix it up. From a charitable standpoint, perhaps the best option is utilizing a charity to help match you with someone in your community that needs a car to get to an anti aging skin care and beauty product for work or to take the kids to daycare. There are many reasons why people need vehicles and quite a few places (and even municipalities and governments) that will facilitate this sort of charitable exchange between people. There are also instances where donating a car is a chance to teach people in the community how to fix cars. This is especially true of vehicles that aren't too badly damaged, but are in otherwise good enough shape to warrant a single major repair, especially if it is more labor intensive than reliant upon expensive parts. You need to do some very careful evaluation to see if donating a car for educational use is a good option. If so, your local high school, college or even police department are all perfectly legal and potentially useful places to go about donating a car you no longer need or want.

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So this year Im not ordering nearly the same amount of gifts online.  Instead Im doing more gift cards and coupons.  What coupons as gifts?  You would not want to be my friend right?
First, Costco is selling 5 - $20 gift cards to Starbucks for $79.99. Yep thats right a 20% discount.  I bought 2 sets to give away.  Ill be sticking it in with our Christmas Cards and mailing them off.  Its not a large gift, but its the thought that counts.  I know my MIL drinks starbucks everyday (yes I know the latte factor, but she CAN afford it), so its a great gift!  Also I get 2% for being a Costco Executive member and 1% back from American express.  So a total of 23% off.  Not a bad deal.
Second, I am using AAA to buy discount AMC movie tickets.  A 4 pack costs $28 for unrestricted movie tickets.  I buy them typically for my DH and I to see movies occasionally.  At least once a year we love to see blockbusters on the big screen.  So my BIL loves movies, lives near to an AMC, is single, and this way he can have a few dates on us!  Again an easy gift to mail!  If you are not an AMC member, Costco sells 2 tickets for $15.99, or $8/ticket.  Dont say I didnt turn you onto a deal!  Realize the regular price of a movie is $11!  Ouch!
Third, Im buying Entertainment books for people.  Right now they are discount $10, free shipping, and you can rack up reward points with places like Mypoint.com!  Its basically a book of Buy One Get One free coupons for meals!  Granted there are lot more things than just food like travel discounts, shopping, etc, but I buy it for the food and movie tickets.  Im getting one for myself because we often try new places based on the book.  It gives us a reason to explore instead of sticking with safe choices.  Also I know my parents and in-laws love to eat out, but they never buy their own book,though they admire ours. 
The movie discount for Regal Cinemas are the best. You can see a movie for $6 after its been out for 2 weeks.  Sometimes we use that, and yes I still buy the AMC for I have to see.  Though its been rarer, although Lord of the Rings triology we did see opening weekend. 
Finally, while not frugal I give my family gifts that they normally would not buy for themselves.  Luxury items.  Like what?  Well I give my grandmother a subscription to Star magazine, yes the tabloid, she adores the crossword puzzle and the gossip.  She wouldnt actually buy it but since I subscribe for her she like it.  I also buy my mom Money Magazine, I hope she reads it.  So perhaps give the gift of a magazine subscription and let your love one spend their money elsewhere.
Living so far from family, I typically buy gifts online so I dont have to deal with packaging and shipping them overseas.  Thus these are the gifts Ill be using this Christmas.  Ive bargain shopped online for food before, but this time Im sticking with these new ideas.  If they are a hit, I might make it a tradition. 
What are your frugal gift ideas.

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A magistrate and his teacher wife attempted to disguise their car and changed the number plates in a bid to avoid a £60 speeding fine, a court heard. Michael Rodger and his wife Diane removed stickers from the windscreen of their Skoda and told police the car must have been cloned.

Mr Rodger, a deputy church warden, wrote five letters to police in protest at the fine, claiming alternately that the car had been parked at the time and then that police photographs were too unclear to identify the driver. They sent their own pictures of the altered car to officers in an attempt to show it did not look the same.

In each letter sent, the 43-year-old added the letters JP - Justice of the Peace - after his name.

But the couple's attempts to evade justice backfired spectacularly when police officers visited their home and immediately recognised Mrs Rodger and her daughter. Instead of a £60 fine and three points off her licence, Mrs Rodger and her husband were told to pay £5,000 costs and narrowly escaped jail for perverting the course of justice.

Passing sentence at Derby Crown Court, Judge David Brumming gave both a six month jail term, suspended for two years, and ordered them to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work. "It is almost beyond belief that you should have done what you did," he told the weeping church-going couple. "You embarked on a course of dishonesty to escape this small penalty.

"Between you, you cooked up five letters and persisted in your claim that your car had been cloned and you were not responsible. Given your family background and faith, it was an extraordinary and staggeringly stupid decision that has led to disgrace for you both and put your jobs and livelihood at risk.

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