It would not make much sense working at home doing something that you do not really enjoy, so firstly, before deciding which home business is best suited to you, find your who *you* are. You need to consider the things you are good at and list your skills, hobbies, personality, likes and dislikes.

This discussion will help guide you with some great ideas for your own home business. Here are a few questions to ask yourself to zero in on what business ideas are well suited for you.

Are you a creative person?  Event planning such as weddings, corporate events, birthday parties may be may something to look into.  Perhaps you are already into the internet so maybe web design would be great for you. What about photography or creating your own custom gift baskets. A creative mind allows for endless home business possibilities.

Is business your ‘thing’? You may be like many others and not like having a boss, but you have a head for business. Administration and keeping books is what you like to do. Have you considered doing accounting work for other home businesses? As more people look to work from home on a full-time basis, they will need some of these tasks done for them. Being a consultant is another option if you already have a specialty.

Are you a writer? How about writing an e-book (a book written and delivered in digital format) and selling it online? The one thing that drives the Internet is the desire for information. If you have a knack for writing, then you should have no shortage of potential income. Proofreading and ghostwriting are also viable ways to earn an income from home. Your expertise, reputation and demand will determine how much you can charge for any writing.

Are you a marketing person?  An online affiliate marketing business may be the choice for you.  Set up your own website, join a number of reputable affiliate programs and market several products at once to generate multiple streams of income. 

Are you task oriented? Even those who are not creative can do very well. Something as simple as setting up a reminder service is ideal for those that are task oriented. People often need research done, or data analyzed and are willing to pay for it.

These are just a few ideas to get you thinking. You know yourself better than I do. Get to know yourself and ask yourself the tough questions.  Consider the time spent doing this as an investment in your future.

Knowing who you really are will help you build a home business that you are happy with. It really is possible. Every day, new people are discovering how fulfilling owning their own business and being their own boss can be.

Also there are so many intangible benefits of being your own boss. Setting your own schedule, flexibility, and more time to do the things you love are high on the list. Now that you have some idea of what types of businesses are a good match, you can explore the home business ideas further. Soon, you may find yourself without a boss, doing something you love from your own home.

Information Security Policy

For



Paoletti and Gusmano



Table of Contents

Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 1

Ethics and Acceptable Use Policies ………………………………………………………………………… ……….1

Disciplinary Action……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 2

Protect Stored Data……………………………………………………………………………………………………….2

Protect Data in Transit …………………………………………………………………………………………………. 3

Restrict Access to Data…………………………………………………………………………………………………..3

Physical Security……………………………………………………………………………………………………………3

Security Awareness and Procedures…………………………………………………………………………………4

Security Management / Incident Response Plan ……………………………………………………………… 5

Appendix A – Agreement To Comply Form ……………………………………………………………………….6

Security Policy

Introduction

This policy covers the security of company information and must be distributed to all company employees. Management will review and update this information security policy at least once a year to incorporate relevant security needs that may develop. Each employee must read and sign a form verifying they have read and understand this policy.



Ethics and Acceptable Use Policies

The company expects that all employees conduct themselves in a professional and ethical manner. An employee should not conduct business that is unethical or illegal in any way, nor should an employee influence other employees to act unethically or illegally. Furthermore, an employee should report any dishonest activities or damaging conduct to an appropriate supervisor.



Security of company information is extremely important to our business.

We are trusted by our customers to protect sensitive information that may be supplied while conducting business. Sensitive Information is defined as any personal information (i.e. – name, address, phone number, e-mail, Social Security number, driver’s license number, bank account, credit card numbers, etc.) or company information not publicly available (i.e. – clients, financial information, employee information, schedules, technology, etc.). It is important the employees do not reveal sensitive information about our company or our customers to outside resources that do not have a need to know such information.

Disciplinary Action

An employees failure to comply to the standards and policies set forth in this document may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment.



Protect Stored Data

Protect Sensitive Information stored or handled by the company and its employees. All Sensitive Information must be stored securely and disposed of in a secure manner when no longer needed for business reasons. Any media (i.e – paper, floppy disk, backup tape, computer hard drive, etc.) that contains sensitive information must be protected against unauthorized access. Media no longer needed must be destroyed in such a manner to render sensitive data irrecoverable (i.e. – shredding, degaussing, disassembly, etc.).



Credit Card Information Handling Specifics

• Destroy cardholder information in a secure method when no longer needed. Media containing card information must be destroyed by shredding or other means of physical destruction that would render the data irrecoverable (shred, degauss, etc.).

• It is prohibited to store the contents of the credit card magnetic stripe (track data) on any media whatsoever.

• It is prohibited to store the card-validation code (3 or 4 digit value printed on the signature panel of the card) on any media whatsoever.

• All but the last 4 numbers of the credit card account number must be masked (i.e. – x’s or *’s) when the number is displayed electronically or on paper.











Protect Data in Transit

If Sensitive Information needs to be transported physically or electronically, it must be protected while in transit (i.e. – to a secure storage facility or across the Internet).

• Sensitive Information and Credit card account numbers must never be e-mailed without using proper encryption technologies (i.e. – PGP encryption).

• Media containing Sensitive Information and credit card account numbers must only be given to trusted persons for transport to off-site locations. Restrict Access to Data Restrict access to sensitive information (business data and personal information) to those that have a need-to-know. No employees should have access to credit card account numbers unless they have a specific job function that requires such access.

Restrict Access to Data



Restrict access to Sensitive Information (business data and personal information) to those that have a need-to-know. No employees should have access to credit card account numbers unless they have a specific job function that requires such access.

Physical Security

Restrict physical access to Sensitive Information, or systems that house that information (ex. computers or filing cabinets storing cardholder data), to protect it from those who do not have a need to access that information. Media is defined as any printed or handwritten paper, received faxes, floppy disks, back-up tapes, computer hard drive, etc.

• Media containing Sensitive Information must be securely handled and distributed.

• Media containing stored Sensitive Information (especially credit card account numbers and social security numbers) should be properly inventoried and disposed of when no longer needed for business by deleting, shredding, or degaussing before disposal.

• Visitors should always be escorted and easily identifiable when in areas that may contain Sensitive Information.

• Password protected screen savers should always be used on any computers that may contain Sensitive Information. Security Awareness and Procedures Keeping Sensitive Information secure requires periodic training of employees and contractors to keep security awareness levels high. The following company policies and procedures address this issue.



Security Awareness and Procedures

Keeping Sensitive Information secure requires periodic training of employees and contractors to keep security awareness levels high. The following company policies and procedures address this issue.

• Hold periodic se

curity awareness training meetings of employees and contractors to review correct handling procedures for Sensitive Information. Offline Merchant Security Policy

• Employees are required to read this security policy and verify that they understand them by signing an acknowledgement form (see Appendix A).

• Background checks (such as credit and criminal record checks, within the limits of local law) will be conducted for all employees that handle Sensitive Information.

• All third parties with access to credit card account numbers are contractually obligated to comply with card association security standards (PCI/DSS).

• Company security policies must be reviewed annually and updated as needed. Security Management / Incident Response Plan

There will be an employee of the company designated as the security officer. The security officer is responsible for communicating security policies to employees and contractors and tracking the adherence to policies. In the event of a compromise of Sensitive Information, the security officer will oversee the execution of the incident response plan.





















Security Management / Incident Response Plan

1. If a compromise is suspected, alert the information security officer.

2. Security officer will conduct an initial investigation of the suspected compromise.

3. If compromise of information is confirmed, the security officer will alert management and begin informing parties that may be affected by the compromise. If the compromise involves credit card account numbers perform the following:

• Contain and limit the extent of the exposure by shutting down any systems or processes involved in the compromise.

• Alert necessary parties (Merchant Bank, Visa Fraud Control, law enforcement)

• Provide compromised or potentially compromised card numbers to a Fraud Control within 24 hrs.

Appendix A – Agreement To Comply Form

Agreement to Comply With Information Security Policies

Employee Name __________________________________________Department ___________________

I agree to take all reasonable precautions to assure that company internal information, or information that has been entrusted to the company by third parties such as customers, will not be disclosed to unauthorized persons. At the end of my employment or contract with the company, I agree to return all information to which I have had access as a result of my position. I understand that I am not authorized to use sensitive information for my own purposes, nor am I at liberty to provide this information to third parties without the express written consent of the internal manager who is the designated information owner.

I have access to a copy of the Information Security Policies, I have read and understand these policies, and I understand how it impacts my job. As a condition of continued employment, I agree to abide by the policies and other requirements found in the company security policy. I understand that non-compliance will be cause for disciplinary action up to and including dismissal, and perhaps criminal and/or civil penalties.

I also agree to promptly report all violations or suspected violations of information security policies to the designated security officer.

Employee Signature ________________________________________Date_______________________

Resource Box

Frederick D. Paoletti, Jr. is the founding principal of Paoletti & Gusmano Attorneys at Law, a criminal defense and personal injury firm located in Bridgeport, Connecticut. For more articles related to protecting yourself during personal injury and criminal situations, please visit http://www.paolettilaw.net.

Not long ago I was cleaning out my files and shredding bills from years ago. Each year I dutifully box up my bills and income tax statements and store them away in case I ever need to reference them. Periodically I dispose of them after sufficient time has passed and they no longer serve any purpose. On this particular occasion I was examining what I had been paying for over ten years ago.

One of the first things I noticed was the difference in my telephone costs. I used to pay for just a land line at about $50 a month which also accommodated my long distance charges. Today, I average about $170 a month in telephone costs which covers my cable telephone and the cell phones used by my family. And this doesn’t include the hardware costs which range from $50 to $400 for the phones themselves.

Does anyone remember when television was free? I do. We didn’t have a lot of channels back then and the programming was probably a lot better than it was today as only the cream of the crop made it to the airwaves. Today, my cable bill averages at about $36 a month for the basic package. I know a lot of other people who are paying a heckova lot more for premium channels. This means we have many more channels than in the old days, but I can’t say we have better programming as many stations put just about anything on to fill the time. Something else; does anyone remember the original premise of cable? That there would be far fewer commercials, if any? I guess the cable networks missed the memo. Let us hope XM radio, another technology we now pay for, doesn’t forget this.

For entertainment, we played cards and board games or just socialized. If we went to the movies, we would go to the local theater and pay a couple of bucks. Today we have cineplexes to watch many different movies, usually computer generated, in Dolby “surround-sound” for about $10 per person. Renting movies isn’t too bad as there is some fierce competition out there. I’ll be curious to see what impact the downloading of movies will have on the price of a movie.

We also pay a lot for video games. The Xbox and Playstations range in price from $350 to $600 depending on the options you order, and this doesn’t include the games themselves which range from $30 to $60 each. For example, the much touted “Halo 3″ sells for about $60.

Computer hardware prices have gone down, but interestingly, software has gone up, particularly the price of operating systems (which range from about $100 to $300) and office suites ($120 to $500); then you’ve got financial packages, graphics packages and anti-virus packages and other utilities, etc. It’s not cheap. In total, computer costs have actually gone up, not down.

Household cameras and film processing used to be pretty inexpensive too. Today we have digital cameras and camcorders which range in price from hundreds to thousands of dollars. I don’t think anyone remembers “Brownie” cameras, “Instamatics,” or Polaroids anymore.

One has to ask, as the price of technology goes up, has our quality of life gone up? I guess that’s debatable. I know driving has become infuriating as people actively chat on their cell phones as opposed to concentrating on the road. It also seems people like to “tune out” on their iPods or other devices as opposed to socializing. And I question the quality of our programming on television. All I can say is “Thank God for remote controls.” I can’t image a television set without one anymore.

If you were to add it up, you would probably find that technology has quadrupled the cost of living, and that’s probably a conservative estimate. Kind of scary isn’t it? Maybe the best thing I should do is simply not open those boxes of bills and just burn them instead.

Such is my Pet Peeve of the Week.

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For a listing of Tim’s Pet Peeves, click HERE.

Copyright © 2007 by Tim Bryce. All rights reserved.