Empire State Strikes Back
It might be too little, too late, but I do at least find it encouraging that governments are at least attempting to catch up with the cybercrime epidemic with state-level security legislation. New York is lighting the way with a bill known as NYCR500, which applies to all agencies that transact business in the state or operate under a business license issued there.
Of course, with new legislation comes new red tape, and even though the trade-off is probably worth it this time, that doesn’t make complying any less of a challenge for company leaders who are already pressed for time while…you know, running a business.
The good news is that the insurance association in your state may be able to assist you in navigating the trickier and stickier parts of the new guidelines in case you don’t actively enjoy filling out forms.
Becoming a Cyborg (kinda)
As with most humans, my eyes aren’t quite what they used to be…legal blindness is a ways off, but I find myself doing a lot of unprescribed squinting in my everyday life, and so anything that makes images larger and clearer is a big help.
That’s why I use my iPhone as a magnifying glass on a regular basis thanks to this handy little guide, and I’ve also gotten myself a little portable pair of reading glasses that slip into the back of a special iPhone case, because if I have to get old I’m at least going to do so futuristically.
Vintage Vicodin
Have you ever had a thunderous headache and fled to your medicine cabinet looking for answers only to find that your only medication is months out of date? Well, depending on the severity of the situation, you can at least consider taking it anyway.
That’s right, according to this Lifehacker piece, medication expiration dates don’t refer to a timeframe for the pills self-destructing or turning into pure poison, but how long the medication is expected to retain its full effectiveness, and so the dates are a lot earlier than they have to be.
It’s important to note here that this isn’t the opinion of some random blogger who spent an hour or too on Google, these are the results of a recent scientific study, the results of which are backed by FDA policy.
They stop short of telling people to ignore expiration dates entirely because wrongful death lawsuits can be very inconvenient for all parties involved, but the fact is that most medications are good for a lot longer than claimed, so those Bush-era Ibuprofen are probably fine.
Streets of Rage
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but driving in LA can be somewhat troublesome at times. After spending a lot of time on YouTube watching unfiltered insanity unfold on Russian dashcams, I’ve decided that if the unexpected is to happen, it should at least be recorded.
As a result, I’ve been on the hunt for a dashcam system for a few weeks now, and this one on Amazon has a wide-angle view as well as night mode and built in Wi-Fi for instant uploading, and for 90 bucks you’re not going to get a much better deal.
It’ll really come in handy during my next impromptu Monster Truck rally on the streets of LA.
Coast-to-Coast Consultation
Okay, so I know the City of Angels is a frequent topic of discussion for me, but unlike the Red Hot Chili Peppers, I keep in mind that other areas of the country exist on a full-time basis.
We provide expert IT support to agencies across this great nation of ours to agencies of all sizes, and if you don’t want to fire your ‘computer geek’ brother-in-law for only knowing about 10-15 percent more than you, we can offer consultation to make him better at his job instead.
I do what I do because I have a passion for highlighting the full benefits of technology in our lives—surprise—and if you want to know a little more about Brad Ruben Consulting, this Google Drive doc has more information about it.
The Last Word
All right, that seems like a good run for this week. Thanks as always for making time early in your 5 day cycle for another fun installment of “Brad’s Blog.” I’m pretty sure you know when to expect me next, and I’ll try not to be watching crazy dashcam videos until then.
On an even more positive note, we at Archway are providing a personalized step-by-step guide to the process to our clients because they are special and therefore deserve better things.
The ever-helpful SueAnn is taking the lead on this project, so feel free to reach out to her here if you have any questions about the new legislation and how it affects your agency.