The Beacon Bulletin

And There Goes The Truth As An Absolute Defense

2009-02-22T20:31:00.004-05:00

We've moved! (Very shortly, we'll have migrated the archives to the new site but in the meanwhile; come visit, sit down for a while, enjoy some snark, take a survey....)

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The Beacon Bulletin

Acquire Abandoned Domains & Unusual Law Firm Names

2009-02-16T16:32:00.000-05:00

by Lina M. Maini
President
Beacon Network Investigations, Inc.

A curious, but not unexpected, occurrence is happening online; that of domain name abandonment. Curious in that you would think that by now someone would have created a personal domain tracking app, (much like Roboform, a personal password tracker), that maintains your domain expiration dates for you, as opposed to entrusting a registry company, such as godaddy or Network Solutions. Domain registration abandonment is expected, however, as people and companies move on, go out of business, shift focus... and simply forget to renew the domain or decide not to.

Our friend, Bill Myers, discovered a great free tool to check the availability of great domain names. This free tool searches all available combinations of any given word (and synonyms) instantly and shows what domain names are available. Suppose you have a niche market you are curious about, e.g. "learning", this search tool will even give you available domains with the word "study" in it.

I'll let Bill explain it in his video: http://www.bmyers.com/public/1546.cfm

(You can skip the video, though I recommend viewing it, and go directly to the free domain name finder: http://domain.domainsection.net/domain.php?action=domain_suggest.)

Happy hunting.

Now, because it's a Monday (and we are not the only ones working this President's Day) and well, it's my sense of humor, the WSJ posted these funny law firm names and or domains:

First prize goes to:

Payne & Fears

Followed very closely by:

MoFo

With runners-up:

Slaughter & Slaughter

Bickers & Bickers

Ball & Weed

It isn’t the firm name that’s funny, but Holland & Knight has two partners, one named Harry Potter and the other, Frank Sinatra.

Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen in Chesterfield, Va.
Only two of the allens are represented in the domain name: http://www.allenandallen.com/

Ice Miller

Held, Held and Held

Freeborn & Peters: site: freebornpeters.com

Bull & Lifshitz, LLP

Lawless & Lawless

Angst & Angst

Butts & Johnson – the firm's site is bjlaw.com

Slappey & Sadd

BNI Operatives: Street smart: web savvy; humor inclined.

As always, stay safe.

Technorati Profile

Free Laptop Lojack

2009-02-09T06:25:00.000-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

Relating to stolen laptops, below are the latest (U.S.) stats (from networkworld and slashdot):

- Every 55 seconds, a laptop is stolen.
- 12,000 laptops a week are stolen from airports.
- 600,000 laptops are stolen each year.

There are many laptop physical recovery aid pay services one can subscribe to such as lowjackforlaptops and brickhousesecurity.

Recently, however, we tested (and are completely sold on) a free, unique open source laptop tracking service, Adeona. Created (and with continuing research and upgrading) at the University Of Washington, Adeona is technologically miles ahead of its privately-developed rivals; primarily due to continual upgrading from UW's computer lab students, joined now by researchers from UC, San Diego and UC, Davis. Here's the best part: there is no third-party or middleman involved. Only YOU can track YOUR laptop.

This short video explains the free downloading and installation.

Also, straight from the Adeona site, for those of us that are very security conscious and carry sensitive information on our portable devices, below is a brief overview and one-line use direction:

Overview
What is Adeona?
Adeona is the first Open Source system for tracking the location of your lost or stolen laptop that does not rely on a proprietary, central service. This means that you can install Adeona on your laptop and go — there's no need to rely on a single third party. What's more, Adeona addresses a critical privacy goal different from existing commercial offerings. It is privacy-preserving. This means that no one besides the owner (or an agent of the owner's choosing) can use Adeona to track a laptop. Unlike other systems, users of Adeona can rest assured that no one can abuse the system in order to track where they use their laptop.

Adeona is designed to use the Open Source OpenDHT distributed storage service to store location updates sent by a small software client installed on an owner's laptop. The client continually monitors the current location of the laptop, gathering information (such as IP addresses and local network topology) that can be used to identify its current location. The client then uses strong cryptographic mechanisms to not only encrypt the location data, but also ensure that the ciphertexts stored within OpenDHT are anonymous and unlinkable. At the same time, it is easy for an owner to retrieve location information.

How do I use it?
Using Adeona only requires downloading and installing a small software client. Adeona is free to use.

I cannot stress strongly enough how important this software is for legal and law community professionals.

BNI Operatives: Street smart: web savvy.

Stay safe.
Beacon Network Investigations, Inc.

The Best Things In Life Are Free (Software)

2009-02-02T07:51:00.007-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

This week's Bulletin comes from our IT head, Jonathan Caspian; a timely update regarding computer virus software.

Most firms have fairly good firewalls in place but that protection generally does not extend to individual laptops, home PCs, smart phones...

This week's Bulletin is a short and sweet list of free security app tips for those can't-do-without gadgets:

Tip 1 (For Windows users, any version):
Free Malicious Software Removal Tool from Microsoft. This software, which should be run once a month (at least) whether you think your computer has been infected or not, scans your computer and removes the most popular and pernicious viruses and malicious software. This software is free from Microsoft:

http://www.microsoft.com/security/malwareremove/default.mspx

Note: FOR THE FREE VERSIONS OF THE FOLLOWING TWO APPS, GO TO DOWNLOAD.COM. (dl.com also has many other tools, software, patches... that you can download for free and with very accurate editor and reader reviews. CNET tested.)

Tip 2 (Spyware Removal)
SPYBOT. For immediate removal of those pesky cookies, spyware and malware, Spybot is the best in the business. The computer security industry gives Spybot high points for ease of use, efficiency, effectiveness and it constantly updates itself for new hacker threats.

Tip 3 (All around firewall, virus protection)
AVG. There is no better security monitor and virus removal software. Again, it's free.

All three of these protection softwares will offer a report at the end of a session (which you can program on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly basis).

BNI Operatives: Street smart: web savvy.

Stay safe.

Small Phones; Big Ears: Phone Security Breaches

2009-01-26T17:56:00.000-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

(This week's Bulletin carries updates to our BB Vol. 7, May 12, 2008 edition regarding widespread telephone tapping and how to avoid having your firm fall victim to cell phone security breaches. The related video below cotains an actual conversation between a TV producer and her attorney. They are on the 36th floor of an office building; the intruder is FOUR MILES away.)

Small Phone, Big Ears: Cell Phone Tapping
Particularly disturbing law firms these days is the potential that client meetings, conferences... can be secretly monitored via the attorney's own cell phone.

How it is done:
To remote access your cell phone's "firmware" (hard drive), an interested party can:

1. scan for your phone's frequency signature and bounce back an electronic tracer signal. In less than a nanosecond, your cell phone now serves as a broadcaster or

2. install spy software on your phone.

The obvious ethical issues of client/attorney privilege aside, firm operating procedures, sensitive case information, negotiation tactics... are delivered on a silver headset to outsiders with a desire to know.

How to tell if your phone is tapped:
The tech and investigation experts in the below video demonstrate cell tapping techniques , threat management and elimination. (Important note: the video concentration is on spy software installed on your cell, but your phone can be remotely tapped. There is no need for the thief to have physical possession of your phone.)

Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCyKcoDaofg

Spoiler: the three main clues that your cellphone is tapped are:
1. It feels unusually warm.
2. The battery drains more quickly.
3. You get static feedback from speakers on other electronic equipment within range of your cell.
How to prevent cell phone tapping:
1. Remove the battery before sensitive meetings.
2. Don't take the cell phone into any high-stakes meetings.
3. Carry a signal jammer. Many are disguised as business card holders or similar small accessories and are extremely effective.

BNI Operatives; Street smart; Web savvy.

As always, stay safe.

Who's Your Daddy? Paternity Testing

2009-01-19T06:15:00.000-05:00

Whether for personal knowledge or court-directed, paternity tests are now as common as the phrase "locked in an Albany political boondoggle". (Snarkiness can be expanded to other states' capitals political machinery.)

There are many "off the rack" paternity testing kits that one can order online. The purpose of this week's Bulletin is to provide information regarding a) sample types, b) gathering techniques and c) admissibility.

The full article is in your mailbox if you are a registered Beacon Bulletin reader. If you have not registered with us yet, we invite you to do so now. It's free, delivered each Monday and full of reader-requested information. Please note that registration is limited to licensed legal professionals and law enforcement. We do verify our registrants.

Email - True Or Scam?

2009-01-12T06:09:00.001-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

We're barely into the new year, and already the scammers are flooding our inboxes with fake email, promising riches.

Below is an email I received. In that it was sent to me by a very skeptical Bulletin reader as a heads-up, I double-checked with the best source for scam busting: Hoax-slayer. (More on HS below the scam email.)

Subject: Please Read This. It Was On Good Morning America!

What do you have to lose?

This was sent to me by my accountant... if you think this is ridiculous I have no problem giving you his contact information...Read carefully...THIS TOOK TWO PAGES OF THE TUESDAY USATODAY - IT IS FOR REAL. To all of my friends, I do not usually forward messages,But this is from my friend Pearlas Sandborn and she really is an attorney. If she says that this will work - it will work. After all, what have you got to lose?

SORRY EVERYBODY.. JUST HAD TO TAKE THE CHANCE!!! I'm an attorney, And I know the law. This thing is for real. Rest assured AOL and Intel will follow through with their promises for fear of facing a multimillion-dollar class action suit similar to the one filed by PepsiCo against General Electric not too long ago. Microsoft and AOL are now the largest Internet companies and in an effort to make sure that Internet Explorer remains the most widely used program, Microsoft and AOL are running e-mail beta tests. When you forward this e-mail to friends, Microsoft can and will track it (if you are a Microsoft Windows user) for a two week time period. For every person that you forward this e-mail to, Microsoft will pay you $245.00 For every person that you sent it to that forwards it on, Microsoft will pay you $243.00 and for every third person that receives it, you will be paid $241.00. With in two weeks, Microsoft will contact you for your address and then send you a check.

Regards. Charles S Bailey General Manager Field Operations1-800-842-2332 Ext. 108 5 or 904-1085 or RNX 292-1085

What's particularly clever (other than none of the text) is the use of an 800# that generates a message that the caller "cannot reach this party from (your) area code". If you get email that you'd like to verify, visit the the guys over at Hoax-Slayer.

"Hoax-Slayer is dedicated to debunking email hoaxes, thwarting Internet scammers, combating spam, and educating web users about email and Internet security issues. Hoax-Slayer allows Internet users to check the veracity of common email hoaxes and aims to counteract criminal activity by publishing information about common types of Internet scams. Hoax-Slayer also includes anti-spam tips, computer and email security information, articles about true email forwards, and much more. New articles are added to the Hoax-Slayer website every week." - Hoax-Slayer

Stay safe.

Finding Old Faces In The New Year

2009-01-05T06:52:00.005-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

Welcome back and a happy, prosperous, safe and sane 2009 to all.

This time of the year, the dual-faced Janus finds us simultaneously looking backward at unfinished business and forward to the future. It is not surprising, therefore, that we notice an uptick in requests for people locates in December and January.

Barring criminal activity, most of us innocuously and accumulatively lose people in life, usually due to school, work, family, careers...

As our readers know, BNI works exclusively for the trial law and legal community. We do not accept service requests from the general public. Every so often, however, one of our attorney or corporate clients will ask us to conduct a personal subject locate. In the spirit of hope and unity in a new year, we offer the following tips gratis for this search type:

Tips for Finding Missing Persons:

The first suggestion is what NOT to do:

Do not use alleged free search sites such as alliedpeoplesearch.com. "Alleged" because it is a teaser site - forcing you to register at Reunion.com before releasing unqualified information.

Now for the DO list:

1. Google the person. (Put the "name" in quotes to reduce irrelevance and redundancy.)

2. Search the ultimate white and yellow pages - Argali. (This site simultaneously searches multiple search engines - white pages, infospace/intellus, anywho...)

3. Search genealogy sites: (First check Cyndi's List - an archive of 250,000+ genealogy sites, starting off with the most populated, Ancestry and YourFamily, registries.

4. Check the Missing Persons Org site if you believe the person may have been reported missing.

5. And, if you have reason to believe the person may have passed on, research the Social Security Number Index site. (You don't need the subject's SSN; just the name - although, if in the registry, the SSN will return.)

Finally, be creative. Think of activities or interests the person may have enjoyed and search those sites, leave posts on their bulletin boards or conversely, put up your own web site with a missing person page. It all comes down to algorithms. Increase your chances of a successful locate by putting it out before potential millions of eyes that you are searching for that person.

Of course, if all else fails, or there is a legal and or time constraint, you can give us a shout.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; web savvy.

Stay safe and again, a happy New Year to all.

Happy Holidays & Some Snark!

2008-12-22T06:32:00.006-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

Happy holidays to all. We'll be back after the New Year. But we wanted to leave you with a few thoughts...

Over the years, BNI (our investigation company), staff has encountered memorable experiences, portrayed below via our friends at Billable Hours and Stus:

In dealing with witnesses and evidence:

Locating expert witnesses:

and a unique service request approach (I'm on the right):

But always, great clients, to whom we sincerely wish:

From the BNI gang (and, as several wonderful clients have referred to us as, "Monster! Private Investigators"),

Safe, sane and healthy holidays!

copyright Mainiac Productions, Inc.

SeeThruNY (not Illinois)

2008-12-15T03:15:00.004-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

Annual Pensions for New York State School Retirees

SeeThruNY is a site that we've been following for the past year. It's populating rapidly, (not sure how thrilled we were to see the Retired Teachers Pensioneers list though... seems a bit invasive), bringing comprehensive NY State government worker data (salary, agency, title...) to the public.

Suspiciously, there is no SeeThruIlinois. We checked. There was a comparable listing of Illinois positions and salaries that was just recently pulled down.

A Chicagoan friend ponders the difference between Illinois Governor Rod (F*** 'Em)Blagojevich (and his equally as effin eloquent wife, Patricia) and the Rogue Three of Albany (RTA). Simply: Hair Club for Men advocate Blago wanted real money for an active state Senate seat; in NYS, the RTA, not the MTA, (albeit an understandable mistake) wanted real money for not-as-of-yet created administration positions in exchange for allowing Sen. Malcolm Smith his Senate majority leadership role.

I guess it's easier to slink away from the criminality if one can legitimately call it a "what-if" theoretical situation, a "let's pretend such and such a position were to be created" for one's support as opposed to screaming "Senate for Sale" into every exposed Fed bug from here to Putin's bedroom (which I hope we really have tapped). This all makes me miss the good ole Clinton "parsing" days. Figuring out what Clinton "did" as opposed to what he "said"... Ahhh, like solving a particularly challenging NYT Sunday x-word puzzle. You knew you would eventually finish it, but it was just so much fun getting there. Bill should have opened a school - Parsin's School By Design.

Here are the real differences: Theoretical v. application. Media lights v. perp walk. Fat guy squeezing down the chimney v. skinny guy digging a tunnel.

My big question is, so which administration gets credit for Poof-n-Play Blago Bingo? Monopoly should come out with a new edition: crackhouses, welfare hotels, the jail looking suspiciously like the Ill. Gov's mansion. Passing Go will land you $200, unless an emissary comes by and offers the Banker more for it and pushes his piece ahead. Of course, you can hope that everyone plays ethically. And my opening at the Met is scheduled for next October 9th, 9:00 p.m.

Stay safe all.

We Can't Let This Bank Fail

2008-12-15T02:50:00.000-05:00

by Lina M. Maini

This year, for the first time in 25 years of operation, the Community Food Bank of New Jersey is running on bare shelves. People having to make decisions of whether to buy medicine or food. This is America. Lack of food is unAmerican.

Please take a look at this YouTube video:

For a link to a website that lists local food pantries by county go here: Sefan.org.

Do what you can.

Locate Email Addresses In 8 Seconds

2008-12-07T12:49:00.027-05:00

by Lina Maini

Take my word on this. BNI is not the world's first not-for-profit private investigation company. We truly enjoy investigative work. Although several base components of a case (type, agency protocol, basic investigation outline...) are usually the same, each matter is always different. Those differences enable our curiosity to remain engaged. That said, we often receive requests for email searches. We don't take candy from babies either.

Below is a really cool tip, developed by our IT genius, Jonathan Caspian, for conducting email searches from your desktop or Blackberry that should gain you the results you need in less than 10 seconds. (Of course, if it's a real toughie, feel absolutely welcome to call our very much for-profit office.)

Tip:

In the address bar (the field at the top of your screen, identifying the curent site you are on: (e.g. https://www.google.com), input: @companyname email surname. Eaxample: (@bniinvestigations.com email maini).

Click on the pic below for an enlarged example:

Give it a shot. It may be also interesting to see where else people pop up. (This type of search can pull up social networking info. On a tangential note, was it really necessary for the print and online media to continually post the adult costumed pics of the practioner who recently met with an unfortunate and violent demise while in physical defense of his gf, Jade Vixen? Now that is truly an egregious posthumous invasion of privacy, which we understand does not legally exist... but still...)

I'm not going down that road today. Have a great upcoming work week!

BNI Operatives: Street smart; web savvy.

Stay safe.

CarFax - Some, Not All, Of The Facts

2008-12-01T02:42:00.000-05:00

by Lina Maini

For a variety of reasons (defect history, ownership records, prior accidents...) attorneys often turn to Carfax for vehicle background checks in MVA-related incidents, car purchases and increasingly, in bad faith online car sales actions (usually processed through ebay).

Carfax is a private corporation; compliance is voluntary. Many dealerships join Carfax to lend credibility to their merchandise and often, potential buyers uncover previously unknown details that influence his or her purchasing decision. CarFax legitimately compiles as much information as is publicly available on vehicles in their registry but Carfax should never be mistaken for a governmental agency or presumed to provide complete and vetted information. It is simply a general-access information tool (albeit one of the better ones available) and should be treated accordingly - as a starting point in any vehicle investigation or research.

Be thorough and use a variety of sources such as:

- the owner's personal records
- your state's DMV records
- safercar.gov (a division of the NHTSA) for vehicle recalls and defect records

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy.

As always, stay safe.

One-Stop Legal Shop

2008-11-23T14:08:00.006-05:00

by Lina Maini

Well, here's an interesting concept whose time has come: JD Supra: a repository of free legal information shared by the professionals who generate it. From legal documents, legal forms, court filings to newsletters that benefit the legal community, legal consumers, the media, and the general public, you'll find it all in an easily navigable site: JD Supra.

You can also find the Beacon Bulletin there every Monday!

Contribute, stay informed and find information.

BNI Operatives: Street Smart: Web savvy.

Stay safe.

Sex Sells; Lawyers Prove It

2008-11-16T17:32:00.009-05:00

We've covered legal marketing in numerous Bulletin issues and have imparted this known advertising truth: Sex sells. Not the generic type ad execs are prone to clone but the simple hardwiring differences between the genders. Our minds are primal-brain trained for long term survival.

This seems to be a duh-factor for most, but, and the focus of this week's Bulletin, is that even that old Mad Men maxim has cleverly reached previously untouchable, seemingly unrelated, niche markets. Specifically, the greenies. Two examples of brilliant sex/green cross marketing campaigns, using a simple advertising tool - the annual calendar are:

- The Philadelphia Eagles 2009 cheerleaders' calendar, printed on recycled paper, features the cheerleaders wearing bikinis made from 100% organic cotton and accessorized with natural stones jewelry.

- Habana Outpost, NYC's cool new eco-friendly restaurant (utensils are made from potato-based compost, they use corn cups and smoothies are processed through a bike-powered blender, $1 off if you ride the (stationary) bike yourself) offers up its 2009 Chicas Habas (Girls Gone Green) calendar on recyc paper, of course, and printed with soy ink.

And lawyers almost hit the ultimate feel-good, carbon footprint accounting, animal friendly marketing trifecta with the (possibly first ever) Beautiful Lawyers calendar to benefit Greater Boston Legal Services (whose sub charities list includes the Animal Rescue League of Boston). The Beautiful Lawyers calendar is also equal op: male and female JDs, (no bikinis, on either) but it is printed on REAL, glossy expensive paper with regular multi-color ink, no less. Sigh... Wait, we have 2010!

But now, my innate competitive NY spirit demands that the 2010 BL calendar be an Empire State version. Send in pics and charity suggestions. We'll donate our marketing advice on covering the green brownie points. NY can't get beaned on this one!

BTW, is anyone else curious about the Habana Outpost's chicken and steak menu?

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy; Green conscious; Pet friendly. (No, as far as we know, there are no plans for a Police Canine calendar for furry friend lovers.)

(This entire post may be an outpouring of the stress of enduring a 2-year presidential campaign but lately, I'm finding it easier to concentrate on wall calendars than mega-worries Wall Street, Detroit and France's new found admiration for the U.S..)

Seriously, stay safe all,

Lina

Drawing A Line In The Cement: NYCRR: Sidewalks

2008-11-10T11:43:00.008-05:00

It's later in the year than we would normally re-issue this article but at least we are getting it in before the big freeze or snowfall.

We're tackling the issue of NYC's sidewalk maintenance, use and liability, early this year, before any unintended skating events occur on any of the City's 12,750 miles of sidewalks.

The following information pertains to the sidewalk rules and regulations for the 5 boroughs of New York City.

Sidewalk Maintenance

The sidewalk in front of any building or lot must be maintained and repaired by the property owner. Any defects must be promptly repaired. The owner of all property with four or more families is responsible for any injury caused by the owner's failure to maintain the sidewalk in a reasonably safe condition. If the repair covers more than 25 square feet of the sidewalk, the owner or contractor must obtain a Sidewalk Replacement Permit from the Department of Transportation.

Sidewalk Use

All businesses intending to use a portion of the sidewalk for daily operation, or who wish to attach to or place upon the sidewalk any items such as canopies, bike racks, benches, planters, or who wish to use a basement vault, must obtain a renewable permit or a revocable consent from the Department of Transportation. The placement of any item on the sidewalk must not interfere with the use of the sidewalk by pedestrians. A minimum of 8 feet or half the sidewalk, whichever is greater, must be kept clear between the item and any obstacle on the curbside, such as hydrants and traffic control devices. No business may prevent parking or paint the curb, sidewalk, or roadway to advertise the business.

Sidewalk Obstruction

Businesses are responsible for keeping the adjacent section of sidewalk free from all obstructions such as refuse, refuse containers, and A-frame signs to allow the free flow of pedestrian traffic. It is illegal for anyone to place or leave any box, barrel, or other moveable property (regardless of ownership) upon any public street or public place. This law applies to construction or demolition containers, which may only be placed on the street with a permit from the Department of Transportation. In addition, restaurants may not place obstructions such as stanchions or cones in the street to prevent parking or to provide ingress/egress for customers.

Snow and Ice Removal

Snow and/or ice must be removed from the sidewalk within four hours after the snow has stopped falling, or by 11 AM if snow has stopped falling after 9 PM the previous evening. If the snow or ice becomes so frozen that it cannot be removed, the sidewalk may be strewn with ashes, sand, sawdust or similar suitable material within the same time limits. The sidewalk must be thoroughly cleared as soon as weather permits.

Stay safe,

Jonathan Caspian
Writer
Beacon Bulletin

IP Theft - Not If but When

2008-11-03T08:52:00.007-05:00

Intellectual property (IP) theft is on the rise. It is of particular interest to us in that it is a challenging area of research and investigation, with which we have formidable experience but also because of the sheer laxity with which people, unintentionally, treat their personal concepts and/or corporate secrets. One of the most infamous IP hijack attempts is the one by a Pepsi employee several years ago, of rival, Coca Cola's age old secret formula. (This situation was more of a former Coke employee, turncoat cum extortionist, caught in the act.)

No longer is it the ragged thief on the sidewalk selling bootleg DVDs (although, despite recording and film industry-instigated aggressive prosecution, continues at a multi-billion dollars a year loss). Cyber thievery is the crime du jour. The mastermind cyber criminal needs only to bring in a skilled hacker (he/she may not even be old enough to vote - although we encourage everyone to get out tomorrow, Election Day '08!) and if there is a focus on your product or concept, and you've maintained it on your corporate or personal PC, it can be retrieved from the outside. For that matter, it's not just traditional IP materials that are vulnerable to cyber theft, so are your client lists, address book, confidential case file data, etc. As you can see in the CBS News clip below, there are actually hacking kits on the market.

Cyber Crime/Intellectual Property Protection Tips:

1. Have all employees, affiliated vendors.. sign confidentiality agreements. Specify the agreement to your firm's concerns.

2. Conduct specific prior IP theft prosecution background checks for any employee or potential subcontractor, vendor... who may potentially gain access to proprietary company information.

3. Change passwords. Frequently. This can be a hassle but there are off the shelf programs (roboform comes to mind immediately) that can automatically enable and track these changes for you.

For more info, there is an up-to-date, comprehensive cyber crime area on the USDOJ site.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy.

Stay safe and VOTE!,

Lina

DIY Background Checks From Your Desk

2008-10-27T06:29:00.001-04:00

Ever get that creepy feeling that an employee, coworker, or partner is not dealing with a full deck? But it just doesn't rise to the level of making a formal complaint or notice?

For your own peace of mind, you may want to conduct your own quick background check. (If the matter, however, rises to requiring an in depth, comprehensive background search, hire a professional investigator.)

Try the following steps to obtain a fuller picture of the individual:

- google them,

- check the white pages. Argali works best - it combines the major white page search engines into one. (Bonus: argali allows for reverse address or telephone searches.)

- check the major social networking sites: myspace, facebook, bebo, linkedin, twitter, flickr.

Of course, if one makes the leap, these social networks can also help form a good, day to day picture of a defendant. We showcase the hottest short-note social network, Twitter, in the below video. Big Brother arrived a decade ago; one just has to know how and when to use the tools.

- check any blogs they may have authored at the blog repository site, technorati.

Good luck.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

Emergency Info and the Hollaback Girls

2008-10-20T19:26:00.000-04:00

I couldn't settle on one topic this week, so I went with several info bytes:

International emergency numbers

We've become a global society, with many of us traveling overseas for business and vacationing. The international emergency number to dial from a cell phone is NOT 911. For all GSM cell phones, (82% of cell phones worldwide operate on the Global System for Mobile communications platform), the international emergency code is 112. This applies to all EU members, South Africa, many other African nations, India, Israel, Indonesia, Iran (not sure if dialing the gov't is a good idea here), Korea, Lebanon, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. For a complete listing, check wikipedia's emergency telephone numbers entry.

FLASHERS EXPOSED

Several fed-up NYC women, tired of the flashing phenomena, especially underground, set up a website to post pics of the offenders that have been taken with cell phones - HollaBackNYC. This site has now blown up to a HollaBack site for nearly every state. These photos are also being posted on Flickr and YouTube (if video captured). Well, the potential violator is now aware that the consequences of his actions rest firmly in his own hands. If you're of the inclination, help support the cause and buy a unique Hollaback product (like the above Hollaback Girl's Tee) or just donate. We generally don't plug causes but well, you know, someone's mother, sister, daughter...

NYPD ONLINE CRIME REPORTING UPDATE

The NYPD online site for submitting crime videos and pics is now open for business: www.nypdcrimestoppers.com. There are also instructions on how to text crime reports via mobile.

BNI Operatives: Street smart, Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

French Maids Teach Video Podcasting

2008-10-12T20:51:00.004-04:00

Video Podcasting made easy (and sweet) by our freinds over at French Maid TV. Our boss, Lina, is away at the moment, so while some of the shots may be gratuitous (note: may), this really has to be the easiest set of video podcasting instructions we've found short of hiring the Geek Squad to come to your home or office and hand lead you through it.

Enjoy.

Happy Columbus Finally Found America Day!

BNI Operatives; Street Smart: Web Savvy.

Jonathan
Writer, Beacon Bulletin

Ladies Nites In; Lawyer Hollander Out

2008-10-06T00:07:00.000-04:00

Common Sense Does Exist During This Election Year...

Judge Cedarbaum recently ruled that private clubs can charge patrons whatever they wish on Ladies Nites and that fee structure is not discrimination against men as claimed in the lawsuit brought by self-described "anti-feminist" lawyer Roy Hollander.

According to Hollander:

"This lawsuit would have put an end to guys financially subsidizing girls to party at nightclubs," he said.

We're curious as to Mr. Hollander's views on the current rash of women-centric parties, like SkIN , (warning: graphic site) held at clubs nationwide that don't allow single men in at all, unless accompanied by a woman. Further, should a man leave the club, he may not return unless he is with the same woman with which he originally gained entry. We're just asking...

Back to Judge Cedarbaum, perhaps she viewed the below TV interview before her ruling in this case:

With the resolution of the "Ladies Nite" suit, Mr. Hollander will now be able to focus on what are surely his next targets: restaurants that allow children under 5 free meals, celebrity swag bag sponsors and undoubtedly, public breast feeders.

We just want the surveillance jobs.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

Your Public Face

2008-09-29T18:19:00.000-04:00

(This week's Bulletin is an update from a previous issue, run last year, on this subject. The online world continues to, at exponential rate, change the rules.)

More frequently, BNI is requested to conduct public image profiling - searches to uncover one's personal information, that which is readily available online. Beyond verifying the usual identifiers (address, DOB, phone number...), given the proliferation of user-generated content and social and business networking sites, a potential employer or partner can often obtain an alarmingly unfiltered profile of their candidate. For obvious reasons, this information is invaluable to just about every public, private or governmental sector industry that relies on its public image to operate effectively.

We've developed several public image profiling site checklists (each containing from 45 - 102, and counting, sites) , dependent on the requestor's needs, all of which include the below basic searches:

General: Google.com, Yahoo.com(check subcategories: Web, Images, Video...)

Social Networks: .Bebo.com, Broadcaster.com, Classmates.com, Facebook.com, Friendster.com, Meetup.com, MySpace.com,Reunion.com, Tagged.com, Twitter.com, 360.yahoo.com.

Business Networks: LinkedIn.com, Plaxo.com, Spoke.com, Naymes.com.

Blogs: Technorati.com

Site Ranking: Aside from your Google PageRank, Alexa.com, is an excellent source of business information.

Tip: It is also possible to backtrace a person by simply Googling that person's email. The searcher can quickly become privy to one's opinion/poll responses, newsgroups memberships, political affiliations, donations and much more.

Again, these are the basic sites to search to form a public image profile - or research one's own Netface.

Public image profiling is the new credit report.

Stay safe,

Lina

Getting Your Email Through

2008-09-21T21:18:00.006-04:00

Too often, important, even intra-company, email, winds up in your trash folder. Resending, sending without a subject line, consulting your Magic-8 ball... are some solutions. The more scientific way to ensure your email gets through is follow the Can-Spam rules found at the government site: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/canspam.shtm.

Additionally, from the 60-Second Marketer we run a very brief, concise second video with 10 tips of words not to use in any subject line if you want your email to go through.

10 Words, Phrase or Actions To Avoid In Email Subject Lines:

1. Use of the word "free".

2. Excessive punctuation.

3. The phrase "please read".

See video for the rest.

PI Tip Of The Week: Pending the financially parameters of your case, when required to prove a long-time, pre-existing premises defects/dangerous conditions, have an address history run of the property in question to obtain previous tenant information. Follow up with subject locates and interview previous residents.

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Web savvy.

As Always, Stay Safe,

Lina

A New Avenue to Prior Notice To The City?

2008-09-15T18:52:00.000-04:00

A month ago, the Bulletin first brought our readers the news that the NYPD was developing a technique for crime video and picture submission directly to the police. The delivery system is now fully operational, per the below 9/10/2008 NY Daily News article. However, these report hotlines and avenues are not for criminal activity alone. Quality of life issues can also be reported (potholes, poor parks conditions....) At the end of the News article, however, we ask questions regarding how this information can then be used in the private sector.

DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU

Wednesday, September 10th 2008, 1:17 AM

Now you can send images and videos from your phone to cops regarding crimes, and to 311 regarding quality of life issues. Picture this: You e-mail a photo of a fleeing crook that you took with your cell phone to cops, who use it to bust the bad guy in a flash.

Now it can happen.

Callers to 911 can send photos and videos to NYPD's Real Time Crime Center, where images are used to crack crimes or respond to emergencies, Mayor Bloomberg said Tuesday.

"This technology should scare every would-be criminal because the chance of getting caught in the act is now better than ever," said Bloomberg.

All callers have to do is tell the dispatcher that they have a picture that could be useful in the emergency. The information is provided to cops, who contact the callers and give them an e-mail address to send the photo to.

Bloomberg, however, warned aspiring crime stoppers to exercise common sense when taking pictures. "As helpful as your photo or video image is, do not put yourself in harm's way to obtain them," he said. "Your safety is paramount."

When callers say they have a crime photo, the 911 dispatcher enters a special code in the NYPD's internal system that provides cops with the good Samaritan's phone number.

"It's another building block in our partnership with the public," said Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, noting that last month, the NYPD started accepting text-message tips.

But photos aren't just for combatting crime.

New Yorkers can also send photos and videos - to 311 or www.nyc.gov - concerning quality-of-life issues like potholes, dirty parks or broken pay phones.

As with the protocol for 911, callers to 311 have to alert operators that they have a photo of the offense. Callers are directed to www.nyc.gov, where they can directly send up to three photos.

"All of these things add to the quality of life in this city," said Bloomberg.

Bloomberg said he wasn't worried about the system being flooded with photos, but urged the public not to "cry wolf". I think the problem is reverse," he said. "That people don't call us enough."

End of article.

Of course, from our perspective, the quality of life reports (potholes, dangerous intersections, cracked sidewalks...) raises all sorts of issues re: notice to the City. And, will these reports, if founded be channeled to say private organizations such as Big Apple? Do these reports fall under FOIL? It'll be interesting to see how this all unfolds in the civil end of matters.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Net savvy.

As always, be safe,

Lina

Hiring An Expert Witness Re: Whistling At Work

2008-09-08T14:10:00.000-04:00

Okay so we got a bit carried away with this week's title, but I'll prove my point below: that you can find an expert witness on any topic, and then we'll get into the reality of the necessity of expert witnesses.

The judge's decision: Posted On: March 31, 2007 by Jim Robinson, Esq.
Gang Expert Allowed to Testify in Illegal Immigration Trial

As reported in Pennsylvania's Times Leader, U.S. District Judge James Munley allowed gang expert witness Jared Lewis to testify as an expert witness at a Pennsylvania trial regarding the Illegal Immigration Relief Act. Lewis testified that the gang named "MS-13" had a presence in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, and was one of the most dangerous gangs in the world.

Lewis was allowed to testify even though he had minimal law enforcement experience, did not include any published authoritative works in his resume, and his expert report did not include any information based on gang statistics specific to the area. The court found that his area of expertise is not an area about which many authoritative books have been written.

This week's Bulletin covers the topic of Expert Witnesses; definition; why it is better to hire one sooner than later and selecting expert witnesses. Following the Bulletin text is the video pertaining to the above article on Mr. Robertson's excellent and concisely named blog: Expert Witness Blog.

Definition: From Wikipedia:

An expert witness is a witness, who by virtue of education, training, skill, or experience, is believed to have knowledge in a particular subject beyond that of the average person, sufficient that others may officially (and legally) rely upon the witness's specialized (scientific, technical or other) opinion about an evidence or fact issue within the scope of their expertise, referred to as the expert opinion, as an assistance to the fact-finder.

History of Expert Witnesses: The earliest known use of an expert witness in English law came in 1782, when a court that was hearing litigation relating to the silting-up of Wells harbour in Norfolk accepted evidence from a leading civil engineer, John Smeaton. This decision by the court to accept Smeaton's evidence is widely cited as the root of modern rules on expert evidence.

Why it's better to hire an expert witness sooner rather than later:

1. The cost of finding out later that your client has a much weaker case than originally assessed will be far greater than the expert's fee.

2. As much as one or one's staff can conduct comprehensive research, an expert will have the real life experience of not only the subject matter, but unenvisioned or rebuttal scenarios and that can translate to a substantial difference in case settlement amount.

3. A well-qualified and respected expert lends significant credence to a trial case.

4. With expert discloser and pleading rules...its best to know your theories early.

Selecting an expert witness:

1. Ask colleagues who've experienced similar cases,

2. Review the expert's testimony in a similar case.

3. Ask for recommendations from the expert witness. He or she should not have any issue providing you with references. Then follow through. Interview the references. Professional courtesy is usually extended and professionals speak the same language, so an assessment can quickly and accurately be made.

4. Some organization (ATLA??) should start a opt-in expert witness rated directory.

Note: The above recommendations should apply to both nontestifying and testifying witnesses.

And now the gang expert video (which proves you can find an expert on anything):

Good luck and successful results,

As always, stay safe,

Lina

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy.

Your Firm's Bottom Line: Increasing Advertising ROI

2008-09-01T05:42:00.003-04:00

Happy Labor Day! - the one day most of us will take off from figuring out how to increase productivity and related earnings. But come tomorrow...

This week's topic is all about your firm's bottom line.

We're increasingly approached about the legal marketing services we offer here at BNI and, an often cited question is - how does our primary line of work relate to marketing? At first glance, an odd combination - investigative work and marketing. Pondering it further, an investigator is trained to think analytically and to also be quite creative. We never have 100% foreknowledge of the result of any phone call, info inquiry or face to face situation. So why are some investigators more successful in their field than others? Curiosity is certainly a reason but the main factor for success is that we instinctively understand our audience. We have to. It is that simple. We often have less than a few seconds to give an impression and gain a person's confidence.

So, who better to have on your marketing team than someone who has the ability to quickly assess a successful strategy?

Today, I'd like to offer some tips in selecting a good marketing strategy: (There are 3 ground rules)

1. If you see a wildly successful advertising campaign in a field different from yours, observe it closely. The ideas that can really boost your bottom line ALWAYS come from outside the box.

2. There is only one reason to spend money on marketing - revenue. (Creating a good public image comes from the quality representation your firm gives its clients.)

3. Look at your competitors' marketing and advertising activity - and do the opposite. You have to stand out or you will pump in an endless stream of money into the tried but usually not necessarily true. (If your competitor has a big ad campaign - he/she a- started out with a smaller, unusual strategy and grew to that point or b- they are simply throwing away a lot of money very quickly or c- are unknowningly spending too much for what appears to be a great return.)

For an example of what not to do, (a real tv ad from March, 2008), view below. I'm sure this firm's lawyers are sincere and deliver quality services to their clients, but the oral message and visual delivery do not match. If this ad is working for them, great - but it can be even more successul with a few of the above mentioned tweaks (and some technical ones - i.e., make sure the firm's name is legible against the backdrop, scroll - as opposed to fix - your message continuously along the bottom, and, if you are going to show sample case clips - repeat only one or two scenes; four or five scenarios do not allow the viewer to internalize the critical message point.)

And on a final note, join LinkedIn, the world's largest and growing social/business network. Feel welcome to request the previous Bulletin we ran on LinkedIn, as they have partnered in with LexNex to become the highest-rated online networking tool for lawyers in the world.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy.

As always, stay safe,

Lina

Accessing Potentially Helpful Video For Your Case

2008-08-24T12:56:00.006-04:00

With 72 hours of the above video's YouTube posting, the vicious assailant on the video was identified and is now being actively sought for the horrific assault he perpetrated on his helpless, elderly female victim. Now, these types of videos can be submitted directly to the City's police. Coming to you soon, the NYPD's video submission network: BlueTube.

Blue Tube

Scenario: Average Joe/Jane is minding his/her own business (or not), filming around town and captures potentially criminal activity on video. He or she may be aware of the video's contents at the time or connect it with a news report.

Quandary: What to do with the video??

Solution(s): a)Delete it, b) show it to the retired cop neighbor, and follow his/her advice, c) wait and see if a reward is mentioned or d)submit it to the NYPD and let them determine the vid's use and viability.

We're hoping most people will go with at least response (d). The NYPD is putting the technology in place to receive the public's videos as noted in this recent NY Post article.

Until the official NYPD site is up and running, we suggest dropping off videos of potential criminal activity (with relative information, i.e., time, location, focus of video) to: NYPD, One Police Plaza, New York, NY 10038. Mark the package "Video Evidence".

When the official site does become available, we will bring you that information. It is our hope that this information will be available for the public under FOIL. Perhaps that activism should begin now through local bar and community board associations.

BNI Operatives: Street Smart; Web savvy.

As always, stay safe,

Lina

Please visit our new, proprietary information company: www.geopointdata.com, where we specialize in the toughest locates, searches and other must-have case information.

Calling it Quits: When to Terminate an Employee

2008-08-17T23:27:00.002-04:00

(This week we're bringing you a "Classic" Beacon Bulletin, worth a second look...)

In the news recently, there has been a lot of talk of employees' right to sue "bad bosses". The "bad boss" until now, has generally referred to management bullies whose goal has been to publicly humiliate the employee (e.g., having other employees, en masse during meetings, ridicule the substandard performance of the targeted employee, or taking that up a few notches to ordering the sub-achiever wear a clown hat or nose or some other such ridiculous gear). Obviously, the examples cited are not tolerated by a well run organization. But the lines of acceptable reprimands are seen to be fading as employee-rights organizations are now eyeing conditions such as stress-related health issues and coping malbehavior as a result of malicious management practices that are tolerated in the workplace. It is the responsibility of senior management to ensure proper intra-company management methods are in place but it is also prudent to proactively protect the company should it find just cause for an employee's termination.

BNI investigators have worked on numerous cases in which we were assigned to covertly observe employee and management workplace behavior. The eyes of an impartial party often register situations differently from those with a stake involved. This experience has allowed us to formulate the below checklist for deciding if it is time to terminate and if so, how to proceed.

Is It Time To Terminate?

1. Investigate.
If you are considering firing a worker for misconduct, your first step is to investigate the incident. There is always the possibility, no matter how slim, that things are not as they appear to be. And the worker might have an explanation or reason for the misconduct that is not immediately apparent.

2. Check the files.
Never proceed without reading the worker's personnel file. What you find -- and what you don't find -- can have important repercussions. For example, if you are trying to figure out whether to fire someone for persistent problems (poor attendance or performance, for example), you should find some indication in the file that the employee was informed of these issues and given an opportunity to improve. And you should look carefully for any evidence of an employment contract limiting your right to fire the worker at will.

3. Review your written policies.
Read through your employee handbook, personnel manual, and/or any other written policies that have been in effect during the worker's tenure. Do they give the worker sufficient notice that his or her conduct could result in getting fired? If you have a progressive discipline policy, have you followed it? Do your policies place any limitations on your right to fire workers at will?

4. Consider what the worker has been told.
What you say to a employee can be just as important as your written communications and policies. Have you -- or anyone in authority at your company -- said anything that contradicts your written policies and the documents in the personnel file? For example, have you led the worker to believe that he or she would not be fired despite performance or other problems? Has anyone made statements to the employee that could come back to haunt you in a lawsuit -- for example, statements that could be construed as discriminatory or harassing?

5. Compare how you've treated others.
A fired employee's most effective argument to a jury is that you've acted unfairly, by treating the employee differently from others who have been in the same position. If you have always treated your employees by the same rules, you don't have to worry. However, if you've been inconsistent, you should have a valid reason for treating workers differently -- for example, one worker's performance problems lasted longer than another's, or one worker's misconduct was more serious.

6. Consider context.
Even if you have followed your policies, protected your right to fire at will, and been consistent with your workers, one shouldn't ignore the surrounding circumstances. Consider the timing of your firing decision -- for example, if you terminate an employee who recently complained of sexual harassment, can that be perceived as retaliatory? Also look at how this termination will look in light of your other firing decisions. If you see a pattern -- for example, that only women or older workers are being fired, that may allow for a claim.

7. Look at options.
If you're considering firing a worker for persistent problems, you've probably already tried disciplinary measures short of termination. Even so, now is a good time to revisit the issue. Do you think that the employee will be able and willing to improve? If so, a lesser disciplinary measure might be effective -- particularly if you have made some managerial missteps in your dealings with the worker. However, will making an exception or bending the rules for this worker will seem unfair to others? The full picture needs to be taken into consideration. Also, if there has been a management lapse of careful notation in the employee's employment file, correct it immediately. (We are not suggesting suddenly noting past incidents, that will only work in the terminated employee's favor. Just be, or have your managers become, more diligent in record keeping.)

8. Get a second opinion.
If possible, have another person from within your company review your decision to terminate. This will help you make sure that your decision is reasonable, legitimate, and well-supported by the evidence. If the reviewer finds that your decision could be challenged, use his or her comments to help you figure out how you can either salvage the employment relationship or properly document and support your decision.

9. Bring in legal counsel, if necessary.
If you are faced with a close call of any kind -- or if you are unsure whether your decision will hold up in court -- talk to an employment lawyer before you take action. An outside review by an experienced employment-issues lawyer can save considerable time and money in the long run.

10. Document your decision.
If you decide to fire a worker after considering all the angles, you should document your decision in an internal memorandum to the worker's file. Keep it short and sweet -- describe the reasons why you decided to fire the worker, any previous efforts to help the worker improve, and the dates of any previous disciplinary meetings and warnings.

While conscious of the whistle blower laws and or discriminatory hiring practices, an employer may consider an online search for prior lawsuits at appropriate recording sites (e.g. e-law.com).

BNI Investigators: Street smart: Web savvy.

Your Fake International Driver's Permit

2008-08-10T18:07:00.008-04:00

(We don't suggest employing the driving techniques depicted in the above video, but it does serve as a tongue in cheek reminder that driving practices certainly can differ from country to country. There are so many things wrong in this video re: the driving that it feels like you're viewing a live action picture puzzle!)

Many of our readers may recall that several months ago, our newest partner, Richard J. Henderson, Sr. (ret., NPYD, Detective) joined BNI. Shortly thereafter, we were discussing overseas travel (sorting out our summer schedules) and Rich mentioned this week's subject matter: online businesses selling International Driver's Permits (IDPs). Rich informed me that there were actually only two organizations, authorized by the US State Department, to sell IDPs.

With many people still looking forward to vacation and college students interning abroad, we feel it timely to focus this week's Bulletin on the secure way to obtain your IDP.

Below is a very recent article from AAA; one of the two federally authorized IDP issuers:

AAA Warns Motorists Traveling Abroad to Avoid Online Driver License Scams

WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AAA is urging U.S. residents who plan to drive while traveling abroad to avoid purchasing fraudulent International Driving Permits (IDP), especially over the Internet.

Authentic IDPs and Inter-American Driving Permits (IADPs) are official translations of a motorist's driver's license for use when driving in another country. AAA is one of just two organizations authorized by the U.S. State Department to sell the documents to valid U.S. driver's license holders (the American Automobile Touring Alliance is the other). An IDP costs $15 from AAA and can be purchased by anyone 18 years or older who presents a valid U.S. driver's license at any of the more than 1,100 AAA offices around the country, or by mail following instructions at www.AAA.com/vacation/idpc.html.

"A fraudulent IDP or IADP could result in legal problems or travel delays if a person is detained while using it to drive in a foreign country," said Doug Bower, vice president of Travel for AAA. "People who buy them from fraudulent online brokers and spam e-mailers are wasting their money."

The Federal Trade Commission has previously alerted consumers to these scams, while putting the offending marketers on notice that this conduct won't be tolerated. According to AAA, these scams can lead innocent travelers to spend hundreds of dollars for false documents. The FTC's consumer alert on IDPs can be found on its web site at www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/idpalrt.shtm.

As North America's largest motoring and leisure travel organization, AAA provides more than 51 million members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services. Since its founding in 1902, the not-for-profit, fully tax-paying AAA has been a leader and advocate for the safety and security of all travelers. AAA clubs can be visited on the Internet at www.AAA.com

AAA

If you're traveling abroad; travel with peace of mind - visit the AAA site and order your IDP there.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Websavvy.

As always, stay safe,

Lina

SeeThruNY: Online NYS Gov't Employee Database

2008-08-03T00:01:00.002-04:00

Okay, we couldn't resist the above 40-second video, but this week (seriously), we bring you straight info:

Often we are asked to identify government employees, bids, contracts... This is the site and the info: As of May 08, 2008, the Empire Center for New York State Policy has introduced databases to make New York government more transparent. The Center’s project, SeeThruNY, unveiled a database of names and salaries for more than 263,000 employees of New York’s state government. (The Center also maintains other databases of New York government contracts and expenditures.)

BNI Operatives: Street smart; Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Jonathan Caspian
CIO, BNI, Investigations

LockPicking Courses OnLine - From Your House to the White House

2008-07-28T06:52:00.004-04:00

As the above video clearly displays, opening any locked door, is very easy - even for a non-professional lock picker. The Slate article in this Bulletin reports how popular lockpicking (known as locksport) has now become - with training videos and clubs - springing up all over the nation.

Pick a Lock, Any Lock
YouTube makes it easy to learn the finer points of breaking and entering—and locksmiths aren't happy.
Slate
Posted Wednesday, July 23, 2008, at 3:39 PM ET

Locksmiths and lock manufactures have found themselves in a jam. The skills of their trade, passed down through generations under conditions of occult secrecy, have been jimmied open online (subscription required). The professionals are crying foul over enthusiasts of "locksport"—amateur lock pickers who congregate on the Web to discuss how to pick locks. The amateurs do this for fun, not mischief, they say; there's a sublime thrill in charming a deadbolt to turn your way. And they argue that by finding and publishing flaws in some of the most popular locks on the market—from the locks you've got on your front door to those the president has on his—they're forcing improvements in security. Lock professionals say the opposite is true: that in showing people how to pick locks, hobbyists are swinging your doors wide open to criminals.

This is a familiar tale. Its plot points echo those of many recent computer-security debates. An entrenched community that's used to working in secret suddenly sees its entire business upended by the secrecy-busting ways of the Internet. It's a fate suffered by voting machine firms, software companies, and ATM manufacturers. Now it's happening to locksmiths and lockmakers, too.

But there are a few interesting wrinkles to the skirmish between amateur and professional lock wranglers. For one thing, unlike security-services company Diebold, the locksmiths and lockmakers aren't just fighting a new crop of activists. They're fighting a new subculture—really, a new sport.

All of us are trying to stay one step ahead regarding especially our private security. No doubt, techonology is giving us a run, but it still ultimately comes down to the simple things: having a good alarm system in place, dead bolts and sharp-eyed neighbors.

For the full article, please continue on to Slate, Locksport.

BNI Investigators: Street sharp; Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Jon Caspian

Backyard Danger: New Pool Regs/NYS

2008-07-21T07:44:00.003-04:00

Given the recent record-breaking temperatures here in NY, we think it a timely entry to re-issue our pool safety Bulletin from last season, with several added updates.

According to data (compiled from various federal agencies and industry monitoring organizations), in a given year, there is one drowning of a child for every 11,000 residential pools in the United States. (In a country with 6 million pools, this means that roughly 550 children under the age of ten drown each year.)

Below please find the full NYDOS amended text (12/14/2006) version of NYCRR Title 19 re: pool alarms. Feel welcome to contact BNI for our post pool/water-event checklist. There are often many variables involved in pool-related incidents. Our checklist has been developed over more than a decade of conducting these types of investigations.

TITLE 19 (NYCRR)

CHAPTER XXXIII - STATE FIRE PREVENTION & BUILDING CODE COUNCIL

SUBCHAPTER A - UNIFORM FIRE PREVENTION & BUILDING CODE

1221.3. Swimming pool alarms. [amended text 12/14/2006]

(a) Purpose. Paragraph (b) of subdivision (14) of section 378 of the Executive Law, as added by Chapter 450 of the Laws of 2006, requires that the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code (the Uniform Code) provide that any “residential or commercial swimming pool constructed or substantially modified after the effective date of this paragraph (December 14, 2006) shall be equipped with an acceptable pool alarm capable of detecting a child entering the water and of giving an audible alarm.” The Introducer’s Memorandum in Support of Chapter 450 states, in pertinent part, that “drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related deaths in children between the ages of one and fourteen nation wide, and the third leading cause of injury-related deaths of children in New York. . . . (T)echnological advances have produced several different types of pool alarms designed to sound a warning if a child falls into the water. When used in conjunction with access barriers, these alarms provide greater protection against accidental pool drownings.” This section and section 1220.5 of Part 1220 of this Title are intended to implement the provisions of Executive Law section 378(14)(b).

(b) Definitions. The following terms shall, for the purposes of this section and for the purposes of section 1220.5 in Part 1220 of this Title, have the following meanings:

(1) Approved. Approved by the code enforcement official responsible for enforcement and administration of the Uniform Code as complying with and satisfying the purposes of this section and section 1220.5 in Part 1220 of this Title.

(2) Commercial swimming pool. Any swimming pool (as defined in paragraph (4) of this subdivision) that is not a residential swimming pool (as defined in paragraph (3) of this subdivision).

(3) Residential swimming pool. A swimming pool (as defined in paragraph (4) of this subdivision) which is situated on the premises of a detached one- or two-family dwelling; a multiple single-family dwelling (townhouse) not more than three stories in height; a one-family dwelling converted to a bed and breakfast; a community residence for 14 or fewer mentally disabled persons, operated by or subject to licensure by the Office of Mental Health or the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities; a one-or two-family dwelling operated for the purpose of providing care to more than two but not more than eight hospice patients, created pursuant to Article 40 of the Public Health Law, and defined as a hospice residence in §4002 of said Law; a manufactured home; a mobile home; or a factory manufactured dwelling unit.

(4) Swimming pool. Any structure intended for swimming, recreational bathing or wading which contains or which is designed to contain water over 24 inches (610 mm) deep. This includes in-ground, above-ground and on-ground pools; indoor pools; hot tubs; spas; and fixed-in-place wading pools.

(5) Substantial damage. Damage of any origin sustained by a swimming pool whereby the cost of restoring the swimming pool to its before damaged condition would equal or exceed 50 percent of the market value of the swimming pool before the damage occurred.

(6) Substantial modification. Any repair reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or improvement of a swimming pool, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the swimming pool before the repair, rehabilitation, addition, or improvement is started. If a swimming pool has sustained substantial damage, any repairs are considered to be a substantial modification regardless of the actual repair work performed.

(c) Pool alarms. Each residential swimming pool installed, constructed or substantially modified after December 14, 2006 and each commercial swimming pool installed, constructed or substantially modified after December 14, 2006 shall be equipped with an approved pool alarm which:

(1) is capable of detecting a child entering the water and giving an audible alarm when it detects a child entering the water;

(2) is audible poolside and at another location on the premises where the swimming pool is located;

(3) is installed, used and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions;

(4) is classified by Underwriter’s Laboratory, Inc. (or other approved independent testing laboratory) to reference standard ASTM F2208, entitled “Standard Specification for Pool Alarms,” as adopted in 2002 and editorially corrected in June 2005, published by ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428; and

(5) is not an alarm device which is located on person(s) or which is dependent on device(s) located on person(s) for its proper operation.

(d) Multiple pool alarms. A pool alarm installed pursuant to subdivision (c) of this section must be capable of detecting entry into the water at any point on the surface of the swimming pool. If necessary to provide detection capability at every point on the surface of the swimming pool, more than one pool alarm shall be installed.

As always, be safe,

Lina

In A Down Market; Increase Your Firm's Business, Part II/II

2008-07-13T06:00:00.004-04:00

In a recent Wall Street Journal article by Jamie Heller, law firms will experience a flat to 5-6% decline in business this year. Partners are being scrutinized more closely as is outside counsel. Our experience in the field indicates that firms are less inclined to take on personal injury cases unless there are obvious injuries (i.e., fractures). Soft tissue injury cases are becoming a matter of the past as are medical malpractice cases, which are often labor-intensive, with hard to prove relationships between malpractice and injury and prohibitively costly expenses (expert witnesses, reconstructions, research...). Larger firms are cutting "non-producers" within their ranks and solo and small- to medium sized firms are more tightly focusing their advertising budget.

Below are several zero-to-low cost marketing tips that can be implemented immediately and may help to maintain or increase your practice's income status/ client retention:

1. Stay in touch with your clients. Instead of frantic calls to or from your clients when case activity occurs, schedule set, periodic update calls or notices to your clients. If there is no activity, simply have your assistant (digital, human or combination) mail/email a contact information update request to your client. Otherwise, if you know there are upcoming events that will require your client's input, don't upset your entire schedule with 2 minute phone calls here and there. Schedule several hours biweekly with a set list of clients to discuss their matters.

2. Network. Great movie; invaluable concept. LinkedIn recently announced an agreement with the traditional online lawyer directory LexisNexis Martindale Hubbell. LinkedIn is quickly becoming the largest professional networking site in the world. LinkedIn has added a powerful social networking component onto the Martindale site. As of last week, 260,000 lawyers have LinkedIn accounts. Join today.

3. Blog. Use Blogger, Wordpress; any generic application will do but get your firm's business out there. Prospective clients, as the rest of the online world now, wants information. They actively seek it and you need to provide it. Remaining faceless in a society that increasingly demands transparency and data is suicidal for any business. And write your own blog, or assign to someone competent within your firm. There are businesses that will provide fee-based "blogs" but we would firmly advise not to waste your budget on this tactic. Your blog needs to reflect your firm's personality, even if you update it once every two weeks.

4. Identify and target your market. The most attuned attorneys are focusing on niche markets and sniper-shooting their advertising efforts.

We hope these tips help your business; it helps ours!

BNI Operatves: Street smart: Web savvy.

As always, be safe,

Lina

10 Marketing Don'ts For Your Practice - Part I/II

2008-07-06T13:17:00.005-04:00

(We thought we'd start the Monday after this holiday weekend with several good laughs with the above video of 4 brief but hilarious commericals to kick off our two-part marketing series.)

Part I of II/ Marketing Don'ts

Anyone who has been in business for a while has probably learned a few marketing don'ts but it doesn't hurt to repeat them as we all tend to stray from our original advertising goals. This week we'll go over these basic marketing don'ts with a follow up next week of proven advertising do's.

10 Marketing Assumptions That Are Wrong For Your Practice

1. Current and prospective clients know what services I provide; (Generally, clients are aware only of the services that they are seeking. Teach them.)

2. Referral services will send me all of the clients that I need or can service; (No comment necessary to point out the fallacy of this presumption.)

3. My marketing materials don't need my photograph; (Especially in this technological age, people want to place a face to the professional they will contact.)

4. Clients will remember what I tell them, so I don't need to send any follow up correspondence; (Wrong. Regardless of the sophistication level, people hear what they want to hear.)

5. Clients will understand legal jargon; (Wrong again. Read above.)

6. Certain marketing methods are obsolete. (All advertising avenues work; it's your budget and message strength that will determine ROI.)

7. Complicated messages will make clients feel that they need my services more; (KISS - no offense intended.)

8. Graphics are unimportant in visual media placements; generic photos can be used. (Keep it real. Real pics of yourself, your staff, discreet photos of your office...)

9. People expect lawyers to not return phone calls promptly; they know attorneys are busy. (No, they don't and they don't care about any other matter other than their own.)

10. Keeping in touch with clients on a reasonable basis is a waste of time. (It'll also be a waste of money when you have to re-locate your own clients or take an extraordinary block of time to bring them up to speed after months or years of non-contact.)

Basically, it's your firm, your business and as such, you never stop selling yourself.

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Web savvy.

As always, stay safe,

Lina

Anyone Can View Your Office, Your Home, Your Home Office:Google

2008-06-30T08:15:00.005-04:00

Our friend, Bill Myers (www.bmyers.com) publishes a weekly newsletter (marketing techniques, product development....) that is just invaluable for any business. Along with this service, Bill sends out a weekly tip email that we've always found helpful.

This week's Myers' tip hit the nail on the head regarding the topic matter we had in mind: the scope of Goggle's down-to-the-street maps of practically any address.

A must-read for any professional who maintains a home based office as well - as the majority do. It is easy for anyone to simply look up the professional's name (for e.g. on www.argali.com) and obtain a very close up view of that person's home.

From Bill's weekly tips:

Google Maps has just updated their street view system which
allows anyone to get a ground level 360 degree photo tour of a
growing number of addresses in the US and Europe.

To get a street view, you simply enter an address in the
http://maps.google.com search box and click 'search maps'.

Then click on the street view icon, and you can see what the
address looks like from the street level. You can even use your
arrow keys to move up and down the street to get a better view.

This can be very handy if you are considering buying or renting a
home - as you can use street view to check out the neighborhood
and in some cases see the neighbors.

For example, you might not want to live in the neighborhood where
this street view photo was snapped -
http://www.bmyers.com/snip/106.htm

Street view can also be used to check out a business address to
see exactly what kind of business you are ordering from.

For example, the street view image of a much advertised New York
based camera discounter should give you pause. See the photo at
http://www.bmyers.com/snip/107.htm to know what I mean.

Google street view doesn't cover the entire world - yet. But
they cover a surprising number of cities (large and small) in
many countries throughout the world, and each day they add
hundreds of miles of more images.

It's probably a good idea to check to see if Google has a street
view of your home or business to make sure it doesn't invade your
privacy or put your business in a bad light.

To view Google street view, visit http://maps.google.com and
search for any street address. Then click the 'street view' link
if it is shown.

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Web savvy.

As Always, Stay Safe,

Lina

You're On Vacation: The Burglars Aren't. Security Tips

2008-06-22T12:00:00.005-04:00

The school year is coming to a close next week here in the Northeast, and the hostage situation at the pumps aside, most families have planned vacations this summer. The etymology of the word vacation itself : from the Latin root vac, is to render something/someone "empty" (vacuum, vacate, vacuous...). Somewhat ironic in the case of a home burglary during a family's away time.

In today's Bulletin we are going to give you the standard "what to do to make your home look occupied while you are away" tips and a few more up-to-date security pointers: (Also, the above video, aside from being highly entertaining, likewise contains solid security tips re: burglary prevention during your vacation.)

Traditional Tips:

• Stop mail and newspapers, and ask a trusted neighbor to pick up any deliveries that might be made while you are gone.

• Place several lamps and radio/TV in various parts of your home to automatic timers, so they turn on and off at appropriate times (vary the timers also by the unit itself so that the living room light does not come on at exactly 7 p.m. every night...).

• Arrange to have your lawn mowed (or sidewalk shoveled) while you are away.

• Don't leave keys in obvious exterior places like in the mail box or under a flower pot or door mat. Leave your house key with a trusted neighbor.

• Instruct your trusted neighbor to report unusual activity to the police - and not to wait until they can contact you first. You may be holed up in a Carlsbad cavern for several nights or an in-house therapy clinic following a runn-in' with the bulls in Pamplona.

• Have a neighbor park their car in your driveway overnight (and move it around from day to day).

• Don't leave notes indicating your absence.

• Many security experts advise unplugging the electric garage door opener while you are away. We don't. A burglar's scanner can easily detect whether the device is activated. Simply place it too on a variable timer.

• Make sure all your door and window locks are working and in use.

• Turn off or turn down your telephone ringer. A phone ringing endlessly is a clue to a would-be burglar that no one is home. This is especially important if you are living in an apartment building where burglars may be more likely to hear your phone ringing. Call forward your incoming calls in your absence.

• Unless you have reason to believe your piping system is in bad shape and may burst in inclement weather, do not turn off your main water valve before you leave. Fortunately, technological advances in utility services now offer scanning options that don't require exterior meters on houses - an inactive one a sure clue to a burglar that the home residents may be away.

Contemporary Tips:
• Do not activate automatic "away" responses from your email - business and personal - addresses. And especially ones with specific dates of your absence. You might as well inquire into ad rates in the NYT.

• Further on the preceding tip, activate a disposal WiFi card from your vacation spot. Repeatedly answering your emails from your iPhone, Wing or Blackberry, by definition, signifies that you are away from your normal communication access points. (Yesterday's sad-sack street burglars have been replaced by snipers - they target specific homes, can obtain email addresses easily.. e.g. most business emails are comprised of the person's first initial and full last name@theirlawfirm, Email read times can easily be tracked - yes, including "Internet" ones. A cleverly written subject line can pique someone's curiosity enough into opening a "pigeon" email. Today's smart burglar considers this time in tracking you a lucrative investment.)

• Have your email/snail mail forwarded to a virtual post office. They can hold, forward, scan or even read your email/mail to you. Big advantage: the forwarding is discreet and undetectable.

Generally, we tend to believe and trust in the good of the vast majority of people; being smart and proactive with your home and valuables while you are away helps to maintain that attitude.

BNI Operatives: Street Smart: Web Savvy.

As always, be safe,

Lina

MedMal Research - It wasn't the Right Leg??

2008-06-15T20:47:00.000-04:00

This Week; Focus On: It Wasn't the Right Leg?? MedMal Research

Recently, BNI was asked to research the existence of directed protocol for the use of catgut v. synthetic sutures in the case of a surgical stapler misfire in a colectomy operation gone seriously wrong. Of course, all of the law professionals recognize the implied question in that case description.

The reason it was stated that way is that the surgeon involved insisted that no protocol existed and that procedure in a surgical stapler misfire is at the surgeon's discretion. Well, not so, according to the Food and Drug Administration; the governing authority regarding medical instrumentation regulation. The FDA is notified by the surgical instrument manufacturer of all reported surgical stapler misfires. The surgeon in question apparently believed that the operative word in this directive is "reported". He stated he had not reported the misfire. Contact with the manufacturer indicated that, in that they train the surgeons in the use of the instruments, there is indeed a procedure established and that must be adhered to for a surgeon to be qualified to use the specific instrument. Misfires were specifically addressed and sensibly so, from a liability standpoint.

Unfortunately, that is not the most significant aspect of this case. Said surgeon then proceeded to use catgut sutures which are specifically contraindicated for the procedure performed, due to the infection development and proliferation potential with natural materials. His defense argument on that point was that choice of suture material, again, as the misfire reporting, was at the surgeon's discretion.

Perhaps for the plaintiff counsel's own knowledge, while not admissible, research for previous malpractice filings and settlements (positive) for this surgeon was also conducted. Not surprisingly, "surgeon's discretion" was cited for similar prior situations.

There is now a 45 year old man tied to a colostomy bag because of said "discretion". But at least there is now the certain knowledge that protocol does exist and, hopefully, will be fully enforced to prevent these unnecessary and horrific injuries.

In past editions, the physical aspects of investigative work has often been addressed (i.e. field investigation, site survey procedure, evidence collection...). Today's investigator must also be very skilled at uncovering electronically stored information.

BNI investigators: Street smart; net savvy.

I look forward to any comments you may have or and questions I can answer for you.

Sincerely,

Lina M. Maini
Editor, The Beacon Bulletin
CEO, Beacon Network Investigations, Inc.

911 Transcripts Decoded - What Is a 10-86 or 10-100??

2008-06-09T00:01:00.001-04:00

Occasionally a trial lawyer will have the need to read 911 transcripts. Certain information, such as caller's identity, addresss and reason for the emergency call, may come across clearly but other embedded code correspondence may not. This week, we provide you with a list of ten codes - cop lingo for their field activity.

A brief history of ten codes: Ten-codes, properly known as ten signals, are code words used to represent common phrases in voice communication, particularly by law enforcement and in Citizen's Band (CB) radio transmissions. Ten-codes were developed in the 1940s at a time when police radio channels were limited, to reduce use of speech on the radio. Credit to the originator goes to Charles "Charlie" Hopper. He was the Communications Director at the Illinois State Police, District 10, located in Urbana, Illinois. Hopper was involved in radio for many years and saw a need to abbreviate radio transmissions on State Police bands. The codes were expanded in 1974by the Association of Public Safety Communication Officials (APCO. They have historically been widely used by law enforcement officers in North America.(www.wikipedia.com)

10-Codes:

* 10-1 poor reception
* 10-2 good reception
* 10-3 stop transmitting
* 10-4 message received, affirmative, ok
* 10-5 relay this information to ___.
* 10-6 busy
* 10-7 out of service
* 10-8 in service
* 10-9 please repeat your message
* 10-10 negative
* 10-12 standby
* 10-13 civilians present and listening
* 10-15 en route to station with suspect
* 10-18 urgent
* 10-19 return to station
* 10-20 specify location/my location is ___.
* 10-21 place a phone call to ___.
* 10-22 disregard
* 10-23 stand by on this frequency (also "On scene" in some areas)
* 10-27 vehicle registration request
* 10-28 arrests/warrants on driver's license
* 10-29 arrests/ warrants on the vehicle
* 10-32 gun
* 10-33 emergency traffic follows, hold routine messages
* 10-34 frequency open (cancels 10-33)
* 10-36 what is the correct time of day?
* 10-39 false alarm, premises was occupied
* 10-40 false alarm, no activity, premises appears secure
* 10-41 begin watch
* 10-42 end watch
* 10-45 fueling vehicle
* 10-49 en route to assignment
* 10-50 accident
* 10-51 tow truck needed
* 10-52 ambulance needed
* 10-53 road blocked at ___.
* 10-54 animals on highway
* 10-55 security check
* 10-57 hit-and-run accident
* 10-58 direct traffic
* 10-59 escort
* 10-60 squad in vicinity, lock-out
* 10-61 personnel in area
* 10-62 reply to message
* 10-63 clear to copy info?
* 10-64 message for delivery
* 10-65 net message assignment
* 10-66 net message cancellation
* 10-67 person calling for help
* 10-68 dispatch message
* 10-69 message received
* 10-70 prowler, fire alarm
* 10-71 gun involved, advise nature of fire
* 10-72 shooting, fire progress report
* 10-73 smoke report
* 10-74 negative
* 10-75 in contact with ___.
* 10-76 en route
* 10-77 ETA ___.
* 10-78 need assistance
* 10-79 bomb threat, coroner's case
* 10-80 bomb has exploded
* 10-81 breathalyzer report
* 10-82 reserve lodging
* 10-83 work school crossing at ___.
* 10-84 if meeting ___, advise ETA
* 10-85 delay due to ___.
* 10-86 officer on-duty
* 10-87 pickup
* 10-88 present phone number of ___.
* 10-89 bomb threat
* 10-90 bank alarm at ___.
* 10-91 pick up prisoner
* 10-92 improperly parked vehicle
* 10-93 blockage
* 10-94 drag racing
* 10-95 prisoner/subject in custody
* 10-96 psych patient
* 10-97 check signal ("On Scene" in CA and other areas)
* 10-98 prison/jail break
* 10-99 wanted/stolen record
* 10-100 dead body
* 10-200 alarm

Bulletin's site of the week: gizmodo.com. Best tech site online.

BNI Investigators: Street smart; Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

Finding the Unfindable - Transient Subject Locates

2008-06-01T11:52:00.010-04:00

The task most often assigned to investigators is tracking down subjects. The proverbial papertrail: telephone records, address histories, voter registrations, professional licenses, , civil and criminal court filings, Motor Vehicle Department records, credit card records, Social Security data..., will, in a majority of circumstances, return with the subject's current and valid contact information. But what do you do if the subject is simply not in the mainstream - for whatever reason: joblessness, homeless, mental illness, "on the run".... What then?

The success of such a search depends on several factors including the information provided to the investigator and the investigator's own skills and tenacity.

We've put together a checklist for locating transient witnesses that has generally worked:

1. Interview family and friends. (Request last known contact, any indication of location...)

2. Upon developing location leads, check with local and adjoining police departments.

3. Check with area hospitals and morgues.

4. Call the local Salvation Army center.

5. Contact the YMCA, YWCA.

6. Call privately funded charity organizations in the area.

7. Reach out to local plasma centers (many transient subjects give blood for money)

8. Identify local day worker locations.

9. Recon area bus and train stations.

and finally, you can go digital:

10. YouTube a video, or Flickr a picture of the subject, if family and or friends can provide such.

Most importantly, though, when a case first enters a law firm, as much personal information. contact and emergency contact info should be obtained as possible. Our experience has borne out that someone always knows something.

Be safe,

Lina

When The Cops Get It Wrong; Investigating Your Client's Case

2008-05-18T16:09:00.007-04:00

The above video is somewhat tangential to this week's Bulletin topic but it does describe a trend that will certainly be used and useful in future vehicular accidents - the car black box. For our below article, however, we stick to old fashioned ground pounding to uncover the true facts of a real accident puzzler.

Generally, most private investigators enjoy and prefer to maintain, good relationships with law enforcement; especially considering that the majority of us come from an l.e. background. Regardless of current or past affiliations, however, a good investigator is a fact-finder first.

We recently ran into a quirky situation involving the police with a hit and run of a pedestrian in mid Manhattan. The actions of law enforcement from the date and time of the accident to this day are puzzling.

A male pedestrian was struck, while crossing the roadway, traveling with the light and within the crosswalk, by first a bus and then a Jeep. A large crowd gathered. The pedestrian suffered severely crushed legs - injuries consistent with being struck by two vehicles back to back. The bus took off (hence the hit and run designation) but the Jeep and its driver remained on scene - for a while. The Jeep driver was questioned by police and told to leave the scene as there was no eyewitness to the Jeep having struck the pedestrian. And no note of the plate number was made by police on the scene.

The first place to start is the precinct of jurisdiction. Pick up the Police Accident Report (the PAR). A PAR is sequentially numbered so its number should fall into place around the date of accident. The PAR should contain def. vehicle, driver and witness information. This PAR contained none of those and the matter was simply designated a "Hit and Run".

Our investigators felt there had to be more to the story than a simple leaving the scene. This is a residential area of Manhattan, with all of those people moving about their daily lives, someone had to have seen something.

We decided to make a flyer of the victim's case (the victim and attorney's permission of course). We Photoshopped the victim's photo into a flyer we distributed liberally throughout the neighborhood. Literally, within 18 hours, we had a video of the victim being struck by a bus and email giving us the Jeep's plate number. The victim's attorneys are now processing the claim with this information.

I guess it all comes down to something I have said to each BNI investigator, regardless of experience - know the rules but always trust your gut instinct. It will lead you to where you need to go. The function of a good investigator is to find the facts that will help with victim, even if the odds are stacked against recovering this information.

BNI Investigators: Street Smart: Web Savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

Is Your Client Meeting Secretly Being Taped?

2008-05-12T00:10:00.005-04:00

Particularly disturbing to a law firm these days is the potential that client meetings, conferences... can be secretly monitored via the attorney's own cell phone. Remotely accessing the phone's "firmware" (hard drive), a would-be audio (and with smart phones, video) thief simply needs to scan for your phone's frequency signature and bounce back an electronic tracer signal. In less than a nanosecond, the attorney/client confidentiality is breached.

The tech and investigation experts in the above video show and tell you how to detect a tapped cellphone... give it a view. (And remember, your cell can be remote tapped - no need to have physical possession of the phone.)

Spoiler: the three main clues that your cellphone is tapped are:

1. It feels unusually warm.
2. The battery drains more quickly.
3. You get static feedback from speakers on other electronic equipment within range of your cell.

Be safe,

Lina

Ripped Off Online? 10 Steps That'll Get You Results

2008-05-04T16:12:00.007-04:00

Let me preface this week's Bulletin by saying that most online businesses are honest and strive hard to provide the goods and or services that the electronic buying public requests and pays for. This self-regulation occurs for two reasons: a) most people/businesses are honest to begin with and b)word of mouth online occurs at lightning speed. Unfortunately, there is always someone out there with a scam and sooner or later, most people purchasing online will run into one of these shady businesses.

Our experience in investigating online fraud has led us to prepare the below checklist of 10 step to take if you are a victim of an online scam:

1. Gather as much information (name, address, phone numbers, domain names..) about the dishonest party as you can.

2. Put your complaint in writing. Be accurate and concise. Also, think of possible excuses the offending business may try to counter with and be prepared to argue these truth revisionisms.

3. Put the dishonest party on notice that you intend to take action against them if they do not resolve the problem fairly and to your satisfaction. It may take several rounds of talks before they come around to understanding that it might be better to simply solve the issue with you and avoid more intense scrutiny. If that fails, we go to the next very nasty steps.

4. File an online compliant with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3): www.ic3.gov. and click on the "File a Complaint" link to fill out an online form. IC3 was formed, in partnership with the FBI, specifically to combat internet fraud.

5. File a complaint with the Internet Fraud Watch on their website www.fraud.org. The Internet Fraud Watch was created by the National Consumers League, the oldest nonprofit consumer organization in the United States.

6. File you next complaint with the Better Business Bureau OnLine website: www.bbbonline.org . BBBOnLine specifically deals with web commerce complaints. The BBB contacts the business involved in the dispute to determine if the dispute can be amicably resolved. A huge file of complaints with the BBB will cut into the business' profits.

7. Google the Attorney General's Office of the state in which the dishonest party operates. File a complaint. Criminal charges may be brought against the business if fraud is involved.

8. On the Allwhois website: www.allwhois.com and look up the dishonest party's domain name and web host. Inform the web host of your issue with the dishonest business and advise them that if they continue to provide hosting services to this party, they themselves can be named as an accomplice to criminal activity.

9. If the shady company has their own servers and do not use a web hosting service, contact the Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) website: www.icann.org. ICANN is the organization that has responsibility for Internet address space allocation. Inquire as to how to remove the dishonest business from the web.

10. If the dishonest party is still operating, contact their advertisers. Advertisers are not given to spending their marketing budget to receive complaints from disgruntled, ripped-off customers. If the advertiser takes an aggressive posture against your complaint, advise them also that if they continue to do business with the scamming party, they too can be charged as accomplices in a criminal action.

(This week's sixty-second text video lists additional potentially helpful government fraud watch agencies.)

The above steps are tough measures, but they should get your internet fraud situation resolved and hopefully, it'll be a one-time occurrence.

BNI Investigators: Street smart: Web savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

Secure Internet Access On The Road

2008-04-21T10:28:00.003-04:00

We're a mobile society. We travel, for business or pleasure (usually a combination) and we take our communication and information needs with us.

The biggest concern then becomes, "How do I take the security bubble created around my equipment at my home or office on the road with me?" Until fairly recently, if you were away from your own secure network, you were at the mercy of whatever open (unencrypted) wireless network you could tap into, leaving a huge window for information loss or even worse, data capture by intruders.

We're not going to go tech-heavy. This week we'll offer our suggestion re: a wireless travel router and the SecureEasySetUp-enabled wireless device, working in conjunction, to bring you peace of mind via a secure, encrypted connection, on the road.

From Linksys:
The Wireless-G Travel Router with SuperBooster.

Use the Router in conjunction with Linksys's SecureEasySetup-enabler.

The router and security device are simple plug-ins. There is literally nothing else to do. (The above video gives a quick run down on router series - B, G and N. For on-the-road purposes, we are recommending the G series; the video tech can explain why much more succintly than I can!)

It doesn't get any easier than this - (although we predict these router and secure access device features will be built-in components as our mobile equipment continues to evolve at an incredible rate). But for now and the foreseeable future (which in tech terms, is, at max, 12 months), try these inexpensive Linksys products for keeping your info with you, and safe, when you travel.

NEWS: We are presenting a new segment in each week's Bulletin, Beacon's Best Site of the Week. The site may be innovative, clever, helpful or just quirky enough to capture our attention and hopefully, yours.

This week's Beacon's Best SOTW: www.woot.com. They offer only one product for sale each day. At midnight, the product changes. It could be an HP laptop at an insane price like $499 (I landed on it that day. My new HP l-top runs wonderfully.) or it could be a top of the line Bluetooth for $9.99. Warning: www.wooot.com may become addictive.

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Net savvy.

As Always, Stay Safe,

Lina

Are You Helping Identity Thieves?

2008-04-14T11:38:00.005-04:00

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has set a compliance date later in the year for an additional rule (the Red Flag Rule) to its already existing FACT Act (FACTA), that will broadly affect all business that maintain personal information on individuals – from banking institutions to nanny hiring services. So what does this mean to you, the lawyer or the firm?

Well, that’s the exact focus of this article. We will dissect how the FACTA Red Flag Rule can potentially affect your business by giving you clear cut definitions of the Act, the new rule, what it means to your business and how to achieve and maintain compliance so that you may ensure the growth of your business by protecting it’s most valuable asset – that of its client and employee information.

Q.1: What is the FACTA?
FACTA stands for Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act. FACTA is the 2003 law designed to reduce risks of consumer fraud and identity theft opportunities that may be created by improper storage and disposal of client information. This includes any storage method that contains personal information, whether it’s on paper, CDs, DVDs, discs, or hard drives. Client information can be any combination of personal data such as names, dates of birth, addresses, driver licenses and Social Security numbers.

Initially meant to protect consumers, FACTA was extended to provide protection for employees. On June 1, 2005, a new portion of the FACTA law went into effect. It states that you, the employer (even if you have only one employee, and it is your mother-in-law’s cousin by marriage, and you only have his or her personal information so that you can pay social security taxes,) can be fined by federal and state government, and even sued in civil court if any of this information is somehow released and used in an identity theft scam.

So, we’ve arrived at you, the employer, are now legally responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of any and all client and employee information that can be used in any identify theft/fraud situation.

Q. 2 What is the FACTA Red Flag Rule?
The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) review of the FACTA law led to the FTC’s decision to specify the type of suspicious activity that business owners should be aware of, that should send up a “red flag”, alerting them to identity theft attempts by potential clients or employees. This led to the FACTA Red Flag rule that went into effect on January 1, 2008.

Basically, the final Red Flag rules and guidelines implemented call out 5 categories of Red Flags which illustrate the types of activities that need to be identified:

- alerts, notifications or warnings from a Consumer Reporting Agency (such as Equifax, Experian or TransUnion)

- suspicious documents (e.g. photocopies of driver’s licenses instead of the originals)

- suspicious personal identifying information (misspelled names, differing birth dates, p.o. boxes… )

- unusual use of, or suspicious activity related to, the covered account (heavy usage or repeated process denial)

- notice from other clients, victims of identity theft, law enforcement authorities, or other persons regarding possible identity theft in connection with covered accounts held by the financial institution or creditor. (This is the ultimate red flag. If you are contacted by anyone claiming to be a victim of identity theft, immediately contact your local law enforcement department and turn the matter over to them.)

Q. 3 Okay, I understand the new FACTA Red Flag rules. What does that mean to mean to my firm?
The new FACTA Red Flag Rules mean you need to make sure your client and employee personal identifying information is a) accurate (to the best of your knowledge) and we will broaden that definition in Q. 4 below) and b) secure (answered in Q.5).

Q. 4 How do I ensure that my client and employee information is as accurate as needed for me to be in compliance with FACTA’s Red Flag rules?
(This needs to be prefaced with the advisory that we are not lawyers, nor do we play any on T.V. If you have legal questions regarding this subject matter, please contact a knowledgeable attorney in your area.)

But in an effort to be helpful, we offer some common sense tips. To do so, we’re going to break this answer into two parts – ensuring your employee is who they say they are and then ensuring they understand and enforce the compliance procedure.

Employee Verification:
You need to designate trusted employees to obtain and maintain your clients’ personal information. Run a background check on all employees and make sure they have proper identification (such as a government issued photo i.d.) and check references. Always check references. Don’t just call phone numbers that are provided to you on the application form. Check that those businesses actually exist – are they listed in a directory?

New Client Registration:
Second, have a policy sheet (it can be a one pager) available to your staff regarding the types of identifications that are required and accepted for new clients. If there is any doubt about the i.d. being presented, err in favor of compliance and diplomatically advise the client that your business can only accept i.d. that complies with government regulations as this is, in essence, a financial transaction.

Q. 5 My employee passed her background check with flying colors and all of my clients have verified identification. How do I secure all of this information?
Okay, now that your trusted employee is collecting personal information from your clients, have them follow strict procedures for obtaining and securing the information. Several suggestions:

To secure employee information:
- Assign access to personal employee data to specific management members.

- Issue unique user names and passwords to these managers.

- Scan all paper documents and store the paper documents in break-in proof containers/file cabinets or offsite.

- Maintain a secure and separate office area (or at least a large and heavy safe) in the case of a break-in.

To secure client information:
1. Have a separate interview area where a potential client can fill out formsor answer questions in private.

2. When your designated staff member is inputting this data into your business’ database, have the monitors positioned so that they are not viewable by anyone aside from your employee. (Preferably, this should be done in a separate Employees Only area.)

3. Deposit all checks and credit/debit/check card receipts into a safe several times a day if necessary.

4. Limit access to the safe.

5. Apply the same access limits as you do for employee information.

6. Be aware of the length of time you must maintain old employee or client files securely. Beyond that point, shred old information files; delete old pc files. The employee or client may be gone from your establishment but they are probably still around somewhere. You don’t need to inadvertently let others have their information even if it is no longer of any use to your business.

Q. 6 When do the FACTA Red Flag Rules go into effect? And when is the compliance date?
FACTA Red Flag rules went into effect January 1, 2008 and compliance must be met by November 1, 2008.

On a final note, establishing written personal information storage policies for employee and client data is the first step in secure data management. Should a personal information breach then occur, it would be recognized that considerable aforethought was given to data security. Then follow through with tightening the physical security of your client and employee information. Identity theft has by far replaced any outright robbery crimes in this nation. Be careful, be alert, be aware. It is, literally, your business.

Resources:

http://www.ftc.gov/os/comments/redflags/523455-00017.pdf

http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fcrajump.shtm

www.spiritedlaw.com

BNI Investigators: Street smart: Net savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

Taped Recordings (Video) Part II/II: Dos & Don'ts

2008-04-07T12:47:00.004-04:00

(For a variety of reasons, video recording becomes necessary at times. This week's video displays a new "stealth cam" that is often used in businesses or as a nanny cam. We do, however, caution people to become familiar with the laws in their state regarding such video taping.)

Last week, in Part 1 of our series on tape-recording rules and regs., we specifically covered audio taped conversations. This week, in the second and final part of Tape-Recordings, Dos and Don'ts, we focus on video taped recordings.

Generally, one may record, film, broadcast or amplify any conversation with all of the parties' consent. It is always legal to tape or film a face-to-face interview when your camera is in plain view. The consent of all parties is presumed in these instances.

The use of hidden cameras is covered only by the wiretap and eavesdropping laws if the camera also records an audio track.

The exceptions:

Expectation of privacy.
A number of states have adopted laws specifically banning the use of video and still cameras where the subject has an expectation of privacy. Maryland's law on this matter, for example, bans the use of hidden cameras in bathrooms and dressing rooms.

Criminal purposes.
Federal law explicitly does not protect the taping if it is done for a criminal or tortious purpose. Many states have similar exceptions. Case: Employees of a "psychic hotline" who were secretly recorded by an undercover "Primetime" reporter sued ABC for violation of the federal wiretapping statute, arguing that the taping was done for the illegal purposes of invading the employees privacy. (Sussman v. American Broadcasting Co.)

Trespass.
A party whose conversation is recorded, with consent, may raise a claim of trespass and intrusion, if he or she was unaware of the true intent of the recording. For example, an undercover reporter, posing as a patient, leaves a reocrder in plain sight, during a medical visit. The doctor examining the "patient' is aware of the recording but is told it is for personal use (to better enable explanation of the "illness or medical findings" to family...). Had the doctor known the true intent of the reporter, to broadcast this recording, it may have casued him to revoke his consent.

Other consent issues.
Whether a recording device is in plain view may be an issue. A small camera protruding from a briefcase may not be enough to validate presumed consent by the party being taped.

It is always advisable for the investigative specialist to ensure his/her awareness of taping permissions in the state of operation.

BNI Investigators: Street Smart; Web Savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

Wiretapping: Part I

2008-03-31T14:22:00.004-04:00

Many of you may wince when you hear the above audio tape by Alec Baldwin. As you can imagine, this taped rant had a huge impact on the ongoing child custody battle with Baldwin's former wife. Kim Bassinger.

Influenced perhaps by entertainment gossip powerhouse TMZ’s seemingly endless source of private phone call recordings, emotional conversations (such as Alec's) we perhaps should have held back from and simply one James Bond movie too many, at some point, we have probably all wondered if our conversations via phone were being taped.

There are federal and state (all 50 and DC) statutes governing the use of electronic recording equipment. The unlawful use of recording equipment may not only give authority for civil proceedings against the perpetrator of illegal taping, but may also give rise to criminal charges.

Today’s Bulletin gets right into the meat of how and where the taping of private telephone conversations is allowed.

(It is important however, to first understand the difference between one party consent and two party or all party consent. One party consent requires that one party to the conversation have knowledge and give consent to the recording. Two party or all party consent means that every party to the conversation has knowledge and has given consent to the recording.)

States Allowing One Party Consent Recordings:

Alaska , Arkansas, Colorado, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming

States Requiring All Party Consent Recordings:
California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Washington

As with every rule, there is always an exception; in this case, two. In California, generally an all party consent state, one party alone can record if criminal activity (e.g. extortion) is anticipated or involved. In Arizona, the subscriber to a telephone service can record telephone conversations with no party consent when criminal activity is involved.

In Part II of this series, next week, we will cover business phone conversation, meetings and cell/wireless taps.

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Web savvy.

Be safe, be smart, be aware,

Lina

Bulletin Goes Technorati

2008-03-25T20:49:00.001-04:00

Technorati Profile

Free Services, For Real

2008-03-24T08:22:00.004-04:00

Below are our real - and free - recommendations:

Free translation site: http://www.freetranslation.com/. No downloading; no waiting. Conversely: written text only. (A premium "human translation" service is offered as well - but for a quick memo or if you're in a rush to get a handle on an uncomplicated foreign-language doc - this site is worth the fingertaps.

Free telephone, address and reverse searches: http://www.argali.com/. You'll need to download the program but that's a good thing. It means it updates every time you sign on to it. And no complicated sign-ins or passwords... You simply d/l the program, a yellow ram (mountain goat?) icon lands on your desktop and you just click that when you are in search mode.

Free homeowners search: http://www.propertysharks.com/ These guys have a fairly extensive and updated archive. Lots of info aside from homeowner identification (date of sale, amount, pictures, land use...)

Free sound-editing: http://audacity.sourceforge.net// Removes background noise from an audio recording quickly and easily - it's that simple. And it's cross-platform - Mac/Windows supported.

Free BNI tip:Old Style: To obtain a forwarding address for a reluctant subject, simply write "Return Address Requested" on the lower left front of your envelope to the last known address for this person. The USPO will not forward your correspondence but rather return you new address information if available.New: To determine the identity of a domain owner, go to http://www.whois.com/. Scroll down to WhoIs LookUp and enter the domain name. If it is not privately registered, the owner's name, address and ownership/availability dates will pop.

Free all in one scanner, copier and fax, from your camera phone: http://www.scanr.com/.
BNI Investigators: Street smart: Web savvy.

Stay safe, Lina

CyberLaw Issued a Copyright?

2008-03-17T09:04:00.003-04:00

This week's guest columnist is Anthony M. Verna, Esq. from the Law Firm of Anthony Verna.

Posted By Anthony Verna to Trademark, Copyright, and Entertainment Law Forum.

The College Board is suing a company called Karen Dillard's College Prep that has its own review courses for the SAT and PSAT, claiming that some of the questions in the review course are active questions on the SAT and PSAT. Those claims would mean that KDCP is infringing the College Board's copyright on those questions.

This reminded me of PMBR (now partnered with Kaplan), one of the companies that has a review course for the bar exam. PMBR's specialty is aiding in getting a better score on the Multistate Bar Exam, the multiple choice test that is a part of most states' bar exams. PMBR finally lost a case in 2006 in which copyright infringement was alleged by the National Conference of Bar Examiners, who writes the Multistate Bar Exam. PMBR was fined almost $12 million. Wow.

The standardized-review-test industry is in a difficult position. If a company exists, it has to have a mix of its own questions (which may or may not be good enough) and questions that have been used on exams (they're good enough because they were on exams). If I remember correctly - and I can find no outside source to confirm this - one of the founders of PMBR claimed to have a photographic memory (do any lawyers who took this course remember those claims) and that PMBR had been sued before for copyright infringement (but no success were in those suits). It's a tough balance, having to rely upon a template in an industry that comes from another.

****

An attorney is trying to register a trademark. That's not unusual. His mark? "Cyberlaw." Seriously.

I find this to be rather egregious. After all, I took a class in law school called Cyberlaw that was a mix of law and technology. It's easy to find a Wikipedia page on the topic. Even though the word was registered as a trademark in 1995, it expired in 2000 and today it must be considered a generic term that's not right for a trademark registration in legal services.

****

I look forward to reading more about the case a man filed in Maryland, claiming that the Baltimore Ravens used the logo he created. The Ravens have claimed that they never saw the logo and then changed their logo when they were made aware of the possibly infringing logo.

--

Freebie Marketing Tip For Your Firm

2008-03-10T14:10:00.003-04:00

Luckily, our marketing strategy doesn’t need to be used in the above video but sometimes it’s the simple things that elude us in coming up with an effective yet cost-efficient marketing plan for our business. If you practice personal injury law, we recommend the following visibility heightener to increase word-of-mouth regarding your firm.

Instead of standard business cards, distribute postcards to potential clients (with the suggestion to give them out liberally to friends and family as well) and arrange to have them prominently displayed in participating doctors’ offices, physical therapy and rehab centers.

Not just your typical postcard. This post card should have the firm’s information (of course) but also a To do List in case of an accident. We’ve prepared copy for you:

If you are involved in an accident:

Call 911.
Take pictures immediately.
Do not admit liability.

Fill out the below at the scene of your accident:

Date of Accident: __________________________________
Location of Accident:________________________________
Other Driver’s Name: _______________________________
His/Her Phone Number: _____________________________
His/HerAddress: __________________________________
His/Her License Plate #: __________________ State:______
Insurance Company: ________________________________
Policy Number: ____________________________________
Police Expiration Date: _______________________________
Witnesses: _Name_________________Phone Number____
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
Precinct: _____________ Accident Report No.____________

BNI Operatives: Street Smart; Web Savvy.

Be safe,

Lina Maini

Hi. Rob My House In Three Easy Steps

2008-03-03T08:09:00.012-05:00

1. Plan a vacation or event that requires you to be away from your practice and/or home

2. Be courteous to your clients, friends and family (and ANYONE ELSE who might send you an email and/or ping you via IM) by enabling your "Out of Office" and/or "Away Message".

3. Create a specifically worded auto-reply: "Hi - I am out of town for several days/weeks. If your message is urgent please contact my assistant, ________ @........"

Every day, professionals, in a courteous effort, inadvertently advertise their mobility (read: away-ness), giving advance notice to friends, family, clients and criminals that they will not be protecting their fortresses. Usually by giving an exact address in the signature line of their email.

We suggest a less overly informative away message:

"Due to work responsibilities, my email is being filtered until March 23rd Please forward any email to Jane Smiley@myfirm.com" or "Due to work responsibilities, my email is being forwarded until March 23. Your email is being forwarded to my assistant, Jane Smiley and you will be contacted shortly."

It's a hard bit of reality to accept, but the very technologies we employ to make our personal and professional lives more efficient and convenient, also enable lapses in security we might not immediately realize.

BNI Operatives - Street Smart, Web Savvy.

Stay Safe,

Jonathan Caspian

Why Proper Slip/Trip & Fall Intake Surveys can Make or Break You...

2008-02-25T08:55:00.000-05:00

The above video gives us pause to reconsider a previous Beacon Bulletin and proper interviewing/surveying in order to waste less time with time wasters...

BNI Operatives - Street Smart, Web Savvy.

Stay Safe,

Jonathan Caspian
-----------------------------

This week, we focus on the primary information required in the event of a slip/trip and fall situation involving your client.

1. CLIENT PEDIGREE (to include name, address, phone #, DOB, SSN,employment/scholastic and licensed driver info and emergency contacts)

2. WEATHER CONDITIONS (including for interior falls in that proper matting may not be present at the location of occurrence)

3. LIGHTING CONDITIONS

4. SURFACE DESCRIPTION (sidewalk, hallway, stairs...)

5. DEBRIS/DISREPAIR/CONSTRUCTION PRESENT

6. DESCRIPTION OF SURFACE (concrete, torn matting, tile...)

7. PRESENCE OF ANY WARNING SIGNS (e.g. wet floor cones), TAPE, HANDRAILS

8. DIRECTION OF TRAVEL OF PARTICIPANTS (northbound, descending steps...)

9. DESCRIPTION OF ACCIDENT (detailed)

10. ALCOHOL/DRUG INVOLVEMENT

11. WHERE WAS THE CLIENT GOING?

12. RATE OF WALK (normal gait, walking briskly... )

13. TYPE OF SHOES WORN

14. CONDITION OF SHOES (new, good, worn.. )

15. DOES THE CLIENT STILL HAVE THE SHOES?

16. OBSERVABLE INJURIES SUSTAINED (detailed)

17. MEDICAL ATTENTION RECEIVED AT SCENE

18. EMERGENCY/OFFICIAL VEHICLE AND PERSONNEL RESPONSE

19. STATEMENT(S) MADE AT SCENE

20. ADDITIONAL WITNESSES

21. DOES THE CLIENT KNOW OF ANY OTHER SIMILAR PRIOR INCIDENTS AT SAID LOCATION?

22. HAD THE CLIENT COMPLAINED TO MANAGEMENT OF EXISTING RELATED CONDITIONS?

23. DOES THE CLIENT KNOW OF ANYONE ELSE WHO MAY HAVE MADE SIMILAR PRIOR COMPLAINTS TO MANAGEMENT?

24. COPY OF CLIENT'S LEASE.

25. MANAGEMENT INFORMATION, IF KNOWN.

26. MUNICIPALITY INVOLVED?

With regard to the last checklist item, your investigator can then run an online real property check. City owned property information is immediately accessible. In many cases, private property information is also available online and may also yield homeowners insurance information.

BNI investigators: Street smart; Net savvy.

I look forward to any comments you may have or and questions I can answer for you.

Lina M. Maini
Editor, The Beacon Bulletin
CEO, Beacon Network Investigations, Inc.

Identity Theft: Non-Internet related....

2008-02-18T07:00:00.001-05:00

In a follow-up to our previous identity theft articles, we found examples outside the scope of the most common, internet-based scams... in particular, the little-known "Medical Identity Theft", highlighted in the above video.

Traditional tactics, coupled with BNI's own I.D. theft simulation-exercise (reposted below), show how easily I.D. thieves can go well beyond the internet and the more common methodology associated to fraud.

BNI Operatives - Street Smart, Web Savvy.

Stay Safe,

Jonathan Caspian

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The fastest growing crime in the world today is identity theft. This is a familiar statistic but very few people truly grasp their vulnerability to this crime. Victims of identity theft can lose job or business opportunities, be refused loans for education, housing, or cars, and even get arrested for crimes they didn't commit.

After initial trepidation and a general principles discourse with our staff, I decided to print a basically uncensored version of an identity theft exercise BNI conducted recently in a Midtown client's offices. It is my opinion that, at times, stark reality, rather than nuanced language, better conveys the urgency of potential injury that a crime may have on one.

The very real and live in-house demonstration illustrated the relative ease with which identity thieves can operate today. The objective was to obtain a credit card in the client-volunteered control "victim's" name within two weeks - without the victim's (even passive) participation or awareness. The audience present during this exercise followed its progress to its conclusion.

The general population's perception is that an identity thief's M.O. is to simply obtain a victim's information, apply and receive credit cards in the victim's name. Today's i.d. thieves are much more subtlety proactive. They understand that if the credit card offers come to them, that, in a sense, they have been pre-qualified and the process is exponentially easier and quicker than the conventional apply and wait approach.

The first step in our live exercise was to obtain a bill or invoice in the victim's name. We opted to go for new cell phone service.

The subject provided BNI operatives with no information. (Well, we knew his name.) While I obviously will not go into exact detail, we were able to easily obtain his driver's license and Social Security numbers (outlined in previous Bulletins). Heads-Up Tips: 1. The DMV only truncates the final digit of a driver's license number and a "1" is not used. 2. By law, information providers must truncate the last 4 SSN digits - on the primary subject. A background check report will generally yield the subject's relatives and their full SSNs. 3. Many information brokers are based out of country and are not subject (nor do they lend themselves) to US federal privacy and communications rules and regulations.

Armed with the victim's personal information, our next step was to locate a cell phone service provider online.

The majority of identity theft criminals are very astute observers of human nature. They realize that a popular consumer offer will drive site and caller traffic and potentially overwhelm sales staff. While as state, next step would have been to locate a current offer on cell service provider sites, even that became unnecessary as, upon sign-on, we were greeted by a pop-up ad for cell service and a free phone!

We called the advertising cell service provider.

The sales agent was friendly but as anticipated, quite busy, clipping through the application process.

We provided the subject’s name, driver's license and Social Security numbers and home address home but directed a different billing address. All information provided was verified, cross-referenced and given the green light by the agent. She only questioned our female investigator re: her gender as the Social Security number related to a male. Advised that it was for a relative with a language barrier issue, the sales agent stated she needed to speak with the "customer" just to get a "yes" from him. She advised that that was the sole requirement. The agent directed our investigator, still under guise of course, to initiate a three-way call (a standard cell phone feature today) and all that would literally be necessary was the word "yes" from the "customer". Our investigator placed the sales agent on hold, called her partner across the room and connected the calls.

Agent: "Mr. X, do you authorize ABC Co. to provide you with a free Razr phone with a two-year commitment to our service?"

"New Customer": "Yes".

A cell phone number was issued within the hour; the Razr phone received and put into use the next day and the following week, credit card offers began pouring in - to the billing address. In most instances, a successful transaction was merely a matter of remitting a 60-second online acceptance form.

So the bottom line is, everyone and anyone can become an identity theft victim. Current federal regulation requires the three major consumer agencies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion to provide only one free annual credit report per person, upon consumer request. Perhaps providing real time instant online access to one's credit report is a concept whose time has arrived.

In the meantime, we need to maintain personal vigilance of our credit standing. BNI provides the below contact information regarding identity theft prevention, maintenance and resolution:

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374- 0241

Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); http://www.experian.com/; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013

TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; http://www.transunion.com/; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

Lina M. Maini
Editor, The Beacon Bulletin
CEO, Beacon Network Investigations, Inc.

Building Higher - Better, But More Dangerous?

2008-02-11T17:03:00.000-05:00

(Albeit through the device of humor, the above video truly projects the seriousness with which we all view of construction site injuries.)

From the horrible spate of construction site accidents in New York City in the past year, it would seem that building higher may be better but it is definitely more dangerous. According to New York City Buildings Department records: the accident rate at high-rise sites – buildings 15 stories or higher - has more than doubled. 2007 closed out with 52 serious injuries (up from a total of 32 in 2006) and 5 deaths of construction workers – compared to one fatality in 2006. This upward trend of construction site accidents continues statewide but for the sake of brevity, we will use NYC stats.)

The cross- and sideways finger-pointing by the politicians, buildings inspectors and general contractors aside, one clear fact rises from all of these tragedies: the jobs are being rushed. With everyone from Louis J. Coletti (president of the Building Trades Employers Association) to various BID representatives to such construction company heavies as Bovis, weighing in, the excuses offered for expedited construction are many and varied:

- Developers often offer attractive incentives for rush service
- Employers and neighbors are construction noise weary
- The rising cost of materials and labor
- A shortage of crane operators forcing the hiring of those operators not fully licensed

An example of this rabid push for expedited construction by developers, at the risk of life and limb, is what is commonly known in the New York construction scene as the “two-day cycle” in which contractors routinely pour a concrete floor every two days at a site, as opposed to the standard four or five day cycle elsewhere. Concrete-related accidents account for the vast majority of construction site incidents.

Under the current New York State Labor Law, the owner and general contractor are strictly responsible for injury to a worker on the job site and that from an elevation risk (e.g. - a scaffold collapse, a faulty ladder, materials falling and striking the worker). Also, the injury must arise from ongoing construction, remodeling or demolition - as opposed to maintenance - work. An interesting proposal being floated about (and surely one that will generate curious if not surprising opposition) is to have both the general contractor and the concrete company maintain insurance for work at a construction site. (Currently, in NYS, only the GC is required to post such insurance bond.)

Investigators are now focusing not only on the deaths and the safety precautions issues in high-rise construction site accidents but also the hiring processes employed by the GCs. Several officials (and the Manhattan DA’s office) have questioned why certain GCs repeatedly employ the same subcontractors, especially those with inferior hiring practices and horrendous safety records. As professional investigators in the field, we have to make thorough use of our ability to detect these hiring and subcontracting trends. (Generally, state, city and local filing repositories are good places to dig but also keep an eye on user generated original content sites such as workinglife.org and gangbox.wordpress.com.)

Let’s hope 2008 is a much better year for safety and life for the construction industry but now is the time to proactively demand better oversight and more stringent safety protocols at all New York State job sites.

BNI Operatives: Street smart; web savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

Free GPS (KInda.. But It's Still Free & Works!)

2008-02-04T16:12:00.000-05:00

The ubiquitous cell phone now allows for a new Google feature (available in Windows and Mac platforms) that bodes the obsolescence of a current "must-have" device - the GPS unit - at least in its ordinary sense of getting us from x to y in our daily lives. (GPS will still be the location determination standard in law enforcement, military and other complex-needs organizations). But, in yet another example of the growing capabilities of our mobile lifeline, our cell phone can now tell us where we are or how to get to where we need (and sometimes, want) to go.

Unlike GPS (global positioning system), which relies on Earth orbiting-satellites to transmit microwave signals to determine location, speed, direction and time, Google's "My Location" function operates by triangulating these factors using your cell phone's tower transmissions.

With My Location, you can:

view real time traffic
obtain detailed directions (whether you are walking or driving...)
integrate local information (businesses and contacts in the area) and
view aerial images of the desired location(s)

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Web savvy.

As always - stay safe,

Lina

When You Absolutely, Positively Need to Be Online...

2008-01-28T13:45:00.000-05:00

A question we are often asked by our trial law clients is, "How are you guys always connected/online?". In the past, as WiFi technology trudged along (often mired in red tape over the telecom industry's desire for dictatorial control over consumer usage), BNI operatives in the field have had to resort to, at best, spotty connections to quickly research or transmit documents. Our attorney clients have contacted us from, literally, the courthouse steps requesting last minute information that had to be accessed fully and immediately.

In the past, we've recommended free WiFi enablers, such as WiFi Radar and, while Wi-Fi Radar will do in a pinch, every investigator (and trial lawyer) should be prepared for the unexpected need for field connectivity with a practical, small-sized, hi performance WiFi connector such as the Alltel UTStarcom UM150AL. You don't even need a wireless card or a cumbersome external device. Alltel's UTStarcom UM150AL connects to current USB ports and can support Windows or Mac platforms.

We've tested this model while traveling (at the posted speed limits, of course) in various vehicle models, inside buildings (particularly those with no cell phone or laptop allowed signs) and in congested urban areas as well as on McDonald's Farm (Athens, NY). Alltel's UTStarcom UM150AL has effectively come through in each setting.

For $49.99 it's also cost convenient to have online connection security in your pocket.

BNI Operatives: Street Smart, Net Savvy.

Be Safe,

Lina

Lights, Camera... NYC Traffic Camera Locations

2008-01-21T09:21:00.000-05:00

In the next several weeks, our faithful readers will begin to notice major updates to this site. We will be posting proprietary content, allow for interactive sections and be covering user-determined topics. As we continue with these upgrades, from time to time, we will republish a particularly popular Bulletin. This week, we've checked with the NYC DOT and updated the camera (still and video) locations throughout the 5 boroughs of New York City.

Manhattan

Streaming Video Camera Locations

2 Ave @ 36 St-Midtown Tunnel
2 Ave @ QBB (btwn 59 & 60 Street)
5 Ave @ 42 Street
6 Ave @ 34 Street
8 Ave @ Columbus Cr
Amsterdam Ave @ 178 Street
Bowery @ Canal Street
Broadway @ 46 Street
Brooklyn Bridge @ Centre Street
FDR DR @ Catherine St

Still Image Camera Locations

2 Ave @ 125 St
5 Ave @ 23 Street
5 Ave @ 49 Street
6 Ave @ 42 Street
6 Ave @ 49 Street
6 Ave @ Canal Street
7 Ave @ 125 Street
7 Ave @ 145 Street
8 Ave @ 34 Street
8 Ave @ 42 Street
8 Ave @ 110 Street
9 Ave @ 34 Street
11 Ave @ 42 Street
Amsterdam Ave @ 181 St
Broadway @ 169 St
Central Park S @ Columbus Cr
Central Park W @ 96 St
Church Street @ Vesey
E 57 Street @ QBB (btwn 1 & 2 Ave)
E 63 Street @ QBB (btwn 1 & 2 Ave)
FDR Dr @ 36 Street
FDR Dr @ 78 Street
FDR Dr @ 96 Street
FDR @ 135 St
FDR @ 155 St
FDR Dr @ Old Slip
Henry Hudson Pkwy @ 72 St
The Holland Tunnel
The Lincoln Tunnel
Riverside Dr @ 135 St-H Hudson Pkwy
Riverside Dr @ 153 St-H Hudson Pkwy
Trinity @ Brooklyn Battery Tunnel
West St @ Canal St
West St @ The Intrepid
West St @ Murray St

For other boroughs, please visit: http://nyctmc.org

How Safe is Your Money? If You're Banking Online...

2008-01-13T20:07:00.000-05:00

This week's focus on online banking came about as an article topic via a close BNI friend, Dan Tuczinski, of Tuczinski, Cavalier, Gilchrist & Collura (www.tcgclegal.com).

Online banking is fantastic for those pressed for time, which would be every attorney client we know. The common features that every online banking institution offers are:

* Transactional
- Electronic bill presentment and payment
- Funds transfer between a customer's accounts
- Investment purchase or sale
- Loan applications and transactions, such as repayments

* Non-transactional
- Bank statements
- Site browsing (e.g.: locate branches, services explanations...)

Features commonly unique to business banking include

* Support of multiple users having varying levels of authority
* Transaction approval process
* Wire transfer

Most Internet-based banking sitesoffer personal financial management support, such as importing data into accoumting programs Quicken, Microsoft Money or TurboTax.

Our experiences with online banking security varied as we tested numerous banking sites. Regarding account access security, authorized HSBC account holders must utilize a single password issuing device. Occasionally, it became mildly annoying to locate the device (meant to be attached to a keychain) but otherwise, this small device delivers powerfully as it randomly issued six-digit passwords at each click. Bank of America offers a completely Internet-based two step login which requires the viewer to select, and then identify at each access attempt, a security image. If the correct selected image is viewed, then the user can proceed to the next step - the actual password log in. (Mozilla's Firefox browser can be somewhat taxing if you've opted for cache-clearance at the end of each session. The B of A login then requires, as it's first step, prior to image identification and password submission, the user to select the State in which the account was opened. Several smaller banks (such as Trustco) require the standard account user name and password but we preferred the extra security layer offered by the larger institutions as mentioned above.

And, although all online banking transaction information, including the password, is encrypted, encryption alone does not guarantee that hackers won't access a customer's PC. The favored tool of many hackers is intercepting the keyword as it is typed in (keylogging). To help dissuade hackers from attacking your account, we suggest that our clients use password manager Roboform (www.Roboform.com) when participating in online banking. Roboform memorizes your passwords and can be set to randomly change them at intervals on your choice. The program is intuitive, easy to use and does not contain any hidden spyware.

Finally, elect the same time each day to access your account(s) as transaction posting varies from bank to bank and by transaction type.

Stay safe,

Lina

Viral Marketing

2008-01-07T00:17:00.000-05:00

The planned topic for this week’s Bulletin, sidewalk (snow/ice) rules and regulations, has instead resulted in an unintended and appreciative nod to Al Gore’s awareness campaign regarding global warming.

Given the editorial opening and our association with our good friend, we introduce our first guest writer ever: Anthony M. Verna, III, Esq. and his concise and insightful explanation of viral marketing. (Our readers may have noticed articles in the past regarding BNI’s marketing tips for the trial law community. Mr. Verna is our expert in patent, copyright, trademark and entertainment law.)

From www.tmcentlawforum.com:

What is a Viral Marketing campaign? Simple, it is a campaign where someone's work is allowed to spread as much as possible (like a virus) so that people become interested in the work and then follow the work to the source. It is, basically, a free sample. It can be listening to 30 seconds of a song and telling friends to go hear the song. It can be one video being passed along so that people then go to the source of the video (a website that hosts that video and others or, for example, a TV show).

In a Viral Marketing campaign, the owner of the copyright in the work(s) has allowed some rights in the copyright(s) to be let go. Generally, it is allowing copies of the work to exist elsewhere and allowing others to distribute the work. All of this is done for no compensation, only to hope that compensation comes down the road in another form.

We all have blogs. Isn't the next step to own your own channel? Done. We recommend the great guys over at magnify.net. Broadcast at will.

Stay safe,

Lina

Vehicle Accident Checklist

2007-12-31T17:03:00.000-05:00

We'll say up front and repeat it the end of this Bulletin. Be careful driving - particularly on New Year's Eve when the roads are crowded with people driving too and from parties. (To lighten up the mood of this message, and since we've all viewed real accident videos, the above clip is of a Hollywood staged accident. Short but with some interesting mini-scenes.)

If the unfortunate occurs and you are involved in a vehicular accident, remember to take the below steps:

Medical care:

First, check yourself for injuries. Then, if you are CPR certified, attempt to determine if any other vehicle occupants, involved pedestrians... need your help.

Once everyone wellbeing has been accounted for;

Get information (especially important for a potential insurance claim).

The other driver's name, address, driver's license number, insurance information, and license plate number (check the plate's issuing state too).

If there are witnesses, get their names, addresses, and telephone numbers. (Make sure this information. E.g. not just a first name. Cases take time to resolve, people move...

Ask for a business card from the police officer who investigated the traffic scene. Also get the "incident number" so that you can obtain an accident report. Most officers will provide you with the information even if you don't ask.

Take note of the location—the road conditions, speed limits, traffic control devices, any ongoing construction or large debris, the weather, and the lighting. (Try to remember to always keep a disposable camera in the glove compartment. Nothing conveys the accident scene as well as an immediate on-site photographs).

Take note of how the accident happened.

It is important to note the direction and rate of travel of the vehicles involved, and what the cars are doing at the time of the accident.

Never admit liability.

Even if you believe you are at fault, do not admit liability. There may be other factors which you don't know that may turn the fault to the other driver. Do not make statements, on print or tape, to anybody at the accident scene, except for the police. Nevertheless, when speaking to the police, tell them only the facts of what happened. Let them make their own conclusion from the facts.

Seek medical care.

See a doctor. This is to eliminate the probability of the inability to obtain "no fault" benefits for your injuries. There are statutes in every state pertaining to what the insurance can cover. If you do not see a doctor, you might find later on that the insurance company or the other driver involved in the accident argue that your injuries were not related to the accident. In addition, the "adrenaline rush" from the accident can mask symptoms, which a physical examination can otherwise reveal.

Tell the doctor your symptoms--- any loss of memory, headache, blood or fluid in the ear, dizziness, disorientation, ringing in the ears, nausea, confusion, or any other unusual physical or mental feeling.

Above and beyond all, we wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year - just remember to take extra care while driving the next several days.

Stay safe,

Lina

Gaining/Boosting Your WiFi Signal While Traveling

2007-12-24T18:55:00.000-05:00

One of the toughest issues facing travelers during the holiday season is WiFi signal access. We Americans tend to ignore the "vacate" part of vacation and, to the delight of middle managers and mother-in-laws everwhere, try to remain just as digitally connected while away as we do sitting in our living rooms or offices during our routine days.

Here at BNI, we've thrown in the towel on advocating for total relaxation (read: disconnecting from the Net) and joined management's side. This week's video will show you how to obtain and boost your WiFi signal so you can log on from anywhere in the world you decide to (allegedly) vacation.

A continued healthy, happy and sane holiday season to our readers and a Happy New Year to all.

Warmest regards,

Lina

How To Tell If Your Phone Is Bugged

2007-12-17T12:02:00.000-05:00

At one point or other, we have all experienced "breakthrough" conversation on our cell phones and perhaps fleetingly pondered the ease of bugging a mobile phone device. The primary reasons hackers tap into unsuspecting victims' phones are simply to not have to pay for the service or to transmit data that will not be traceable to the hacker.

There are basic events that occur if your cell phone is bugged:

1. When the phone is operating as a bug, regular calls can't be taking place in almost all cases. (With very few exceptions: i.e. military, governmental or research devices.)

2. Your phone seems to be running out of power too quickly.

3. Your phone feels unusually warm.

4. You are not on a call yet your phone emits a "buzz" when it nears speakers.

Please take a moment to view the above video on this topic. The video contains a more comprehensive review of cell phone bugging that you may find interesting and helpful.

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Net Savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

Lina M. Maini
Editor, The Beacon Bulletin
Owner, Beacon Network Investigations, Inc.

Hidden Cell Phone Features & Free 411

2007-12-10T12:49:00.000-05:00

For this week's Bulletin, we've located hidden features and free access information for you regarding cell phone use.

The 4 questions answered in today's video are:

1. What is the worldwide emergency number from a cell? (Clue: Not 911.)
2. Can you use your cell phone to unlock a locked car door?
3. How do you permanently disable your stolen or lost cell phone?
4. How can you get free 411 info?

(The video also addresses accessing more emergency power from your phone's battery but we were not able to vet this method ourselves. It may work on your cell.)

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Net Savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

Lina M. Maini
Editor, The Beacon Bulletin

Public Image Profiling: How Others Find What About You

2007-12-03T13:07:00.000-05:00

More frequently, BNI is being requested to conduct public image profiling - searches to uncover a subject's (or one's) personal information, that which is readily available online. Beyond verifying the usual identifiers (address, DOB, phone number...), given the proliferation of user-generated content and social and business networking sites, a potential employer or partner can often obtain an alarmingly unfiltered profile of their candidate. For obvious reasons, this information is invaluable to just about every public, private or governmental sector industry that relies on its public image to operate effectively.

We've developed several public image profiling site checklists (each containing from 45 - 102, and counting, sites) , dependent on the requestor's needs, all of which include the below basic searches:

General: Google.com, Yahoo.com(check subcategories: Web, Images, Video...)

Social Networks: .Bebo.com, Broadcaster.com, Classmates.com, Facebook.com, Friendster.com, Meetup.com, MySpace.com,Reunion.com, Tagged.com, Twitter.com, 360.yahoo.com.

Business Networks: LinkedIn.com, Plaxo.com, Spoke.com, Naymes.com.

Blogs: Technorati.com

Site Ranking: Aside from your Google PageRank, Alexa.com, is an excellent source of business information.

Again, these are the basic sites to search to form a public image profile - or research one's own Netface.

Public image profiling is the new credit report.

Stay safe,

Lina

Recover Lost or Deleted Files - FREE & ASAP

2007-11-26T15:27:00.000-05:00

We recently experienced the necessity to recover tons of lost, deleted, virused-out and buggy data. Backstep: Allow me to preface today's Bulletin with "I'm writing this issue instead of our resident IT expert, Jonathan Caspian." (When IT guys insist on NO COMMUNICATION WITH THE OUTSIDE breaks, perhaps it should give us all a heads up to disconnect from our tech-driven world every so often.) Nonetheless, my writing this tech-specific issue should boost the credit given to this week's recommended product.

RECUVA. (Pronounced recover. We're not certain but that name smacks of having come from east of Mineola.) Recuva.com is a fanastic little find. This FREE Windows-based application restores files that have been accidently deleted or lost due to a virus or whacky bug. (And, while I'm sure the telecoms will disagree, be very careful with DSL installations. This type of broadband connection seems to inherently come with weird glitches that are responsible for destabilizing Windows OSs and wiping out key data. )

The audio on the vid clip may be somewhat difficult to follow, but it is accompanied by tight visual instructions.

Recuva.com. It works and it's free.

BNI Operatives: Street Smart: Web Savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

No Ground Markings; No Witnesses - Impact Speed Determination

2007-11-19T13:19:00.000-05:00

The subject of impact speeds is often one of the most important issues to investigators of pedestrian collisions, particularly if there appears to be a violation of the law. Estimating vehicle speeds, is also crucial in civil cases, as it relates to negligence and liability. The various available techniques in descending order of accuracy, (although this can certainly be subject to interpretation) are:

1. Skid Marks

2. Pedestrian Throw Distance

3. Vehicle Damage

4. Pedestrian Injury

5. Witness/Driver Statements.

In many instances, an accident investigation is not requested for months or years after the incident. Crash investigators have had to reconstruct MVAs where

1. no verifiable skid mark information exists,

2. the pedestrian throw distance is at best a highly subjective calculation and

3. there are vastly different speed estimates from the drivers of the involved singly-occupied accident vehicles.

These factors can make an accident investigation interesting, but not unsolvable for the seasoned reconstructionist. Investigators can resort to calculating impact speeds by vehicle damage - almost always available via repair records and or photographs. Below is a graphic representing vehicle damage relative to impact speed.

From Vehicle Damage (if you cannot view the below image, simply click once in the image box)

BNI Operatives: Street Smart; Net Savvy

As Always, stay safe,

Lina

Witness Statement Checklist (for MVAs)

2007-11-12T15:25:00.000-05:00

Witness Statement Checklist (Updated each winter)

Witness statements; seem simple enough. The attorney needs the incident/accident details; recorded in an accurate and concise manner. Often, however, it is the experience of both the seasoned accident investigator and the harried trial lawyer to have obtained a witness statement (usually out in the field) only to realize later that it is not as comprehensive as he or she would have liked. Especially in multi-vehicle accidents with serious/fatal injuries (as in the above vid), the investigator needs to be extremely thorough.

BNI's founders sought to alleviate this concern for attorneys and conducted an in-depth review of witness statements obtained over the course of its decade in the private investigation field. After a careful study, we've created incident-appropriate Witness Statement Checklists for the investigative and trial law professional. This week, we've attached a Witness Statement Checklist relating to motor vehicle accidents.

WITNESS STATEMENT CHECKLIST (MVA)
This checklist contains items that must be addressed for a witness statement to be considered complete. One checklist per involved vehicle.

1. WITNESS PEDIGREE (to include name, address, phone # (home, cell, work,) DOB, SSN,employment/scholastic and licensed driver info, and email addresses.

2. WEATHER CONDITIONS (including possible glare)

3. LIGHTING CONDITIONS

4. SURFACE CONDITIONS (roadways, shoulders...)

5. DEBRIS/CONSTRUCTION PRESENT

6. DESCRIPTION OF ROADWAY (# of lanes, travel direction, divider present...)

7. SIGN DEVICES/PRESENCE OF TRAFFIC AGENT

8. DIRECTION OF TRAVEL OF PARTICIPANTS (drivers/pedestrians...)

9. DESCRIPTION OF ACCIDENT (detailed)

10. ALCOHOL/DRUG INVOLVEMENT

11. WHERE WAS THE DRIVER GOING?

12. RATE OF SPEED

13. FORCE OF IMPACT

14. DAMAGE TO VEHICLE (detailed)

15. POSITION OF OCCUPANTS

16. OBSERVABLE INJURIES SUSTAINED (detailed)

17. MEDICAL ATTENTION RECEIVED AT SCENE

18. EMERGENCY/OFFICIAL VEHICLE AND PERSONNEL RESPONSE

19. POSITION OF VEHICLE AFTER IMPACT

20. SUMMONSES ISSUED

21. STATEMENT(S) MADE AT SCENE

22. ADDITIONAL WITNESSES

23. WAS THE VEHICLE TOWED?

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Net savvy.

To all who have, and those that continue to, serve, our thoughts are with you this Veteran's Day,

Stay Safe,

Lina

Kelly Chang, Esq.: Online Marketing Genius

2007-11-05T10:39:00.000-05:00

Kelly Chang, an LA-based family and divorce lawyer, our featured Clip of the Week focus, has figured out how to leverage YouTube to promote her practice. You Tube is free, easy and ultimately, the success of your marketing effort in this venue depends entirely on you - how you portray yourself and your skills and experience. You do not have this level of control utilizing traditional advertising avenues. Aside from the obvious costs involved, print, tv and radio advertising all require an ad designer; almost always not the client. YouTube allows for consumer-control and provides effective distribution with deep market penetration potential.

Quick ground rules for making a YouTube video:

1. Do NOT hire a film crew. Unnecessary. A good handheld digicam will do- especially one that is HD-enhanced. Canon and Sony are good choices.

2. Flesh out a brief script for yourself. Try not to be rigid; but stick to your main selling points - for your practice and even more importantly, your character.

3. Allow for viewer comments. (It's risky but not as much as looking overly controlling.)

The one thing we would have done differently would have been to insert a scrolling I.D. banner along the bottom of the video. There are tons of video editing apps (such as Video Edit Magic) that you can use: some free; most easy to use. Try cnet.com for well tested suggestions.

Turned into an office and/or family project, advertising your practice on YouTube or similar internet venue, can also be an empowering and loyalty-inspiring group project.

BNI Operatives: Street smart, Net Savvy.

As always, stay safe,

Lina

Diabetic Reaction or Drunk Driving?

2007-10-29T19:41:00.000-04:00

We found the original Star Wars drunk driving PSA. But no joke:

Good company: great product. TruTouchTechnologies, immediate dermal alcohol testing results.

In a previous Bulletin, we brought your attention to a great company with an important, life-saving message and product:

TruTouch Technologies has developed a device that measures blood chemistry in a driver by shining a light through skin on the forearm, then analyzes what bounces back... Previously used for diabetes testing, this type of technology is now advanced to measure alcohol through the skin's layers.

A New Strategy to Discourage Driving Drunk

Pay attention to yourselves, this great company and fantastic product and, above all, stay safe,

Lina

How Not To Commit A Misdemeanor While Process Serving

2007-10-22T10:54:00.000-04:00

Subsequent to conducting a locate (and they can be as easy as the one in the above vid!) and confirming the subject's address: the service of process begins.

Service of process is the procedure employed to give legal notice to a person (defendant etc.) of a court or administrative body's exercise of its jurisdiction over that person so as to enable that person to respond to the proceeding before the court, body or other tribunal. Usually, notice is furnished by delivering a set of court documents to the person to be served.

History: In past times in many countries, people didn't have the right to know that there were legal proceedings against them, and in some cases would only find out when magistrates showed up with the sheriff and seized their property, sometimes throwing them into debtor's prisons until their debts were paid. When the United States was founded, the Constitution said that everyone is entitled to due process of law, therefore the process server is "serving" the servee with their constitutional right to due process of the law.

In ancient times the service of a summons was considered a royal act that had serious consequences. It was a summons to come to the King's Court and to respond to the demand of a loyal subject. In ancient Persia, failure to respond to the King's summons meant a sentence of death. (There are many Judges in the USDC, Souythern District, NY, who believe that edict to still be in existence.) Realistically, today, the penalty for ignoring a summons is usually a default money judgment that must be subsequently enforced.

Service of Process: NY Facts:
Who can serve? Any legal U.S. resident at least 18 years of age at the time of service, who is not a party to the action requiring the service.

Is a license to process serve required? Generally, yes.

Can a private citizen, not licensed to serve process, do so? Any private citizen can serve process up to 4 times in one calendar year without requiring a specific license to do so (and who is, obviously, not a party to the action necessitating the service.)

Can one process serve on the weekend?

Sunday: Service of process, on Sunday, in NY (and several other states), is prohibited, except in criminal proceedings or where service is specially authorized by statute. Outside of those exceptions, service of process executed on a Sunday in NY is rendered absolutely void.

Saturday: Malicious service of process, on Saturday, in NY, upon any person who keeps this day as a holy day, and does not labor on that day, is prohibited. In fact, anyone maliciously serving process to a person who maintains Saturday as a holy time and does not labor on that day, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

So our general rules for process serving are: Serve from 8x8 M-F, be sure on Sat., and forget Sunday.

Stay safe,

Lina

Password Management for the Legal Office

2007-10-15T11:28:00.000-04:00

Our IT department was recently asked to recommend a password management program best suited for the legal office; a security-conscious environment with multiple users accessing dozens of internal and external password-protected sites on a daily basis.

Sure, an admin manager can assign one strong word per site, but that's not very secure. We've also heard of firms maintaining their passwords in employee-access-only Excel files. Timewise, that's not a good solution as one would have to refer to the Excel file for the password upon each site visit. Conceivably, the admin manager can set up a hash system, but as more and more site log-ins require boutique passwords (e.g., a password containing 6 - 14 characters, one of which must be a digit and one each upper and lower cases digit), this system quickly becomes unmanageable.

Roboform. It really works and works great. It is a program that remembers all of your passwords for each Web site. For instance, for Lexis, when you site-in, it asks for your ID and password, if you enter your information, RoboForm will pop up asking if you want to save this information. You click yes. The next time you go to Lexis, RoboForm automatically pops up asking if you want to fill in the information and it submits it for you. There is a free trial which allows you to keep up to 10 passwords. The program itself is $29.99/tracking an unlimited number of passwords. It will even generate a random password for you if you want.

RoboForm also keeps track of your personal information and credit card numbers, if you want it to. So should you decide to buy something on the Web, it will fill in all those forms for you.

You can secure RoboForm from anyone else using your computer as you can require a password for it to open and operate. This way, all you have to remember is that one RoboForm password and RF does the rest.

Stay safe,

Jonathan Caspian
Writer, Beacon Bulletin
CIO, Beacon Network Investigations, Inc.

Employee SSN Verifications and a Live Job Interview

2007-10-08T14:44:00.000-04:00

We hope you enjoy the above job interview vid. BNI investigators have conducted numerous pre-employment screenings, and although we've had our share of interesting interviews, we take our responsibilities seriously, knowing our findings will have a direct impact on a company's operations and finances. Our first responsibility is to ensure the identity of the prospective employee. We've observed a discernable pattern among the majority of non-verifiable candidates in these situations. Those applicants requested to provide additional identification information or that were eventually disqualified for employment were initially flagged due to an incompatibility between their stated and verified Social Security Number issuance dates (e.g. a candidate declared U.S. residency as of 1997; the SSN provided had been issued in 1985).

Background checks are generally conducted utilizing progressively aggressive (and costly) methods/sources as necessary; our usual first stop is a very simple and free SSN verification site:

www.ssnvalidator.com

Be safe - know who you are hiring!

Lina

What Happens In Your Office, Stays In Your Office: Wi-Fi Security

2007-10-01T22:06:00.000-04:00

Recently, BNI operatives met with a longstanding Midtown Manhattan client to discuss the firm's expansion to a wireless office. We've observed this trend among many law firms and have, and continue, to monitor our clients' Wi-Fi security needs.

Below are several quick tips that will hopefully address some of the initial concerns of going wireless:

1. Encrypt. If you are a small firm and doing this yourself, we suggest any of the CNET 3 stars+ rated programs at http://www.download.com/. If you are having someone else doing it: confirm that they have the ability to fully encrypt and that the management aspect is easily and quickly converted to your staff.

2. Select your IP address. Default IP address ranges are typically 192.168.x.x. Make sure your unique address is in the 10. or 172. ranges.

3. Add more firewall cover. Tie your wireless into something harder to punch a hole through like a domain controller with hardware firewall. That will be in front of your public facing IP address.

4. Restrict connections. Easily written but as you would not give just anyone your office keys; install a gatekeeper and keep tabs.

The above tips are probably overkill for a home connection, but a lawyer's office can be a goldmine for those seeking early retirement through others' efforts.

Good luck, and as always,

Stay safe,

Lina

Drawing A Line In The Cement: NYCRR: Sidewalks

2007-09-24T08:12:00.000-04:00

We're tackling the issue of NYC's sidewalk maintenance, use and liability, early this year, before any unscheduled skating events occur on any of the City's 12,750 miles of sidewalks.

The following information pertains to the sidewalk rules and regulations for the 5 boroughs of New York City.

Sidewalk Maintenance

The sidewalk in front of any building or lot must be maintained and repaired by the property owner. Any defects must be promptly repaired. The owner of all property with four or more families is responsible for any injury caused by the owner's failure to maintain the sidewalk in a reasonably safe condition. If the repair covers more than 25 square feet of the sidewalk, the owner or contractor must obtain a Sidewalk Replacement Permit from the Department of Transportation.

Sidewalk Use

All businesses intending to use a portion of the sidewalk for daily operation, or who wish to attach to or place upon the sidewalk any items such as canopies, bike racks, benches, planters, or who wish to use a basement vault, must obtain a renewable permit or a revocable consent from the Department of Transportation. The placement of any item on the sidewalk must not interfere with the use of the sidewalk by pedestrians. A minimum of 8 feet or half the sidewalk, whichever is greater, must be kept clear between the item and any obstacle on the curbside, such as hydrants and traffic control devices. No business may prevent parking or paint the curb, sidewalk, or roadway to advertise the business.

Sidewalk Obstruction

Businesses are responsible for keeping the adjacent section of sidewalk free from all obstructions such as refuse, refuse containers, and A-frame signs to allow the free flow of pedestrian traffic.Street ObstructionIt is illegal for anyone to place or leave any box, barrel, or other moveable property (regardless of ownership) upon any public street or public place. This law applies to construction or demolition containers, which may only be placed on the street with a permit from the Department of Transportation. In addition, restaurants may not place obstructions such as stanchions or cones in the street to prevent parking or to provide ingress/egress for customers.

Snow and Ice Removal

Snow and/or ice must be removed from the sidewalk within four hours after the snow has stopped falling, or by 11 AM if snow has stopped falling after 9 PM the previous evening. If the snow or ice becomes so frozen that it cannot be removed, the sidewalk may be strewn with ashes, sand, sawdust or similar suitable material within the same time limits. The sidewalk must be thoroughly cleared as soon as weather permits.

Stay safe,

Jonathan Caspian

P.S. As we stated in our previous email; our new digital format with live video begins in two weeks - we may preview Halloween costume safety... for adults.

Who Knows About You? Silvana Does! Yellow Pages v. Web Ads

2007-09-17T13:52:00.000-04:00

Of course, our newest teammember, Silvana Brucculleri, knows about our Beacon readers; their needs and concerns and the informationally-focused news that we try to provide for the trial law community. Silvana brings real-world investigative fieldwork and research, translated into a digital format, to our valued readers. A short while ago, we realized we needed to expand our staff. After reviewing tons of vid. CVs, conducting in person interviews and carefully sorting through unsolicited, albeit, some interesting, offers, we incidentally and accidently ran into Silvana during a work-related project. We saved the video resumes, letters and amusing Photoshopped headshots we'd amassed for our Best of... release and went gut instinct. Starting with next week's Bulletin, Silvana will be joining us via live video from the field. Welcome to Beacon, Silvana!

On to this week's topic: Yellow Pages v. Internet Ads

The knowledgeable weigh in:

The Yellow Pages
Regarding Lex-Nex' David Heardman's negative assessment of Yellow Pages advertising as a viable current marketing avenue, Josh Friedman, Esq, responds: "Although I hate to give away my "secret," I think prediction of the death of the yellow pages is a bit premature. First of all, it's simply not true. In my solo civil rights and employment law practice, and in those of many of my small firm colleagues, the yellow pages is far and away the biggest source of business. Most of my under 30 clients don't even have Internet access, and they are much more comfortable using the phone to identify, research and hire counsel...." davidheardman@lexisnexis.com

The Digital Divide
U.S. residential broadband penetration is expected to exceed 50 percent in 2007. By the end of 2007, more than 60 million U.S. households will be connected--around 55 percent--according to market researcher Parks Associates. During 2006, broadband subscriptions grew by more than 20 percent in the U.S. and by the end of the year around 50 million households had fat pipes. Source: CNet. (www.cnet.com)

Unless one has Legal Zoom's advertising budget, the decision between print and digital advertising is an angst-ridden one for most law firms. Much like iPhone's early purchasers, most business owners do not want to be caught out in the cold two months after spending their annual budget in the wrong marketing venue.

We have solid advertising advice for the legal practitioner:

By limiting to, or concentrating your advertising dollars to spend in, the Yellow Pages and other print-based mediums, you are likely to also limit the audience to one that is typically less able to pay your fees.

Certainly one should keep a presence in the print media but the market-saavy recommend that you decrease the print and increase a digital presence as well. That way you stand a better chance of getting a few of the many folks who are increasingly using this medium for their legal resource finding.

You will definitely miss the group from another city who need the services of a local provider. They will use an online resource almost 100% of the time. That is inevitable.

Bottom line: Our experts suggest a 30% print and 70% digital advertising campaign.

Remember to help us usher in Silvana next week as she reports live!

BNI Operatives: Street smart; web saavy.

Be careful,

Jonathan Caspian

How To Tell If You Are Being Tracked

2007-09-10T12:58:00.000-04:00

This week we cover ground and electronic tracking.

Ground tracking may involve placing a tracking device - either tonal or GPS system - on a vehicle or object and monitoring its movement in real time. Our guest video this week explains the differences between tonal and GPS tracking. Good information to store on a back burner should you encounter a client matter requiring such services. The info contained in the video helps one determine which type of tracking is the most viable and cost-effective for a specific situation.

How To Tell If You Are Being Ground Tracked:

1. Check your tires for chalk marks. (Easy, inexpensive and foolproof method for someone to check if you are moving your vehicle.)

2. Check under the middle areas of both sides of the vehicle. Tracking devices are generally placed under the middle pillar of a car - not on the rear of the Ferrari as seen in every Magnum P.I. episode.

3. If you think you are being followed, first consider your safety. If you believe you are in danger, call 911 or stop at a local police station. If it's for fun and giggles, stop at an offbeat place - like a monument store next to a cemetery. See who stops too. Wave.

For electronic tracking - Aliases, serious background checks, locating the unlocatable..., we go to our good friends at www.geopointdata.com . Not your daddy's information service. GeoPoint's records are not available to the general public, the nosy media or bored former classmate seekers. (In fact, you can't even get in to see the meat of what they do unless you have been approved.) If you are looking to fill a family reunion venue - head to USSearch. If you have a wrongful death with disappearing witnesses; see the guys at GeoPointData. Everyone leaves a byte trail.

How To Tell If You Are Being Electronically Tracked:

1. Check your credit report. (Everyone is entitled to a free annual credit report. There are three main consumer credit reporting agencies. You can get a free report then every four months.) Check the very bottom of the report. All inquirants must be posted by name and phone number.

2. Note unusual junk mail. Especially free offers that require simply returning a mailer, postage paid.

3. Be wary of "utility" or "directory company" calls requesting contact info updates. The real companies will send ground mail requests.

4. Online. Information requests from your friends at PayPal addressed from (e.g.) paypal@neopost.com is neither from a friend or Paypal. PayPal, Ebay, Lexis... require on-site updates and will send mail to you on their sites.

5. Banking. Check for small deposits to your account. The teller may have been asked for an account balance on the deposit receipt. Most tellers will provide that info to anyone making a deposit into an account. Have your accounts specifically tagged for information release authorization. The bank can also require the depositor's I.D. Be interesting to check bank video if someone tries to deposit into your account and refuses to do so after an I.D. has been requested. (In general, banks allow deposits to be made by anyone. They can, however, be held accountable for releasing information other than to authorized account signatories.)

As always...

Be safe,

Lina

Free, Easy & It Works! WiFi Connection Anywhere

2007-09-03T06:36:00.000-04:00

On the run professionals often do not have the capability to immediately access WiFi connections. Simple tasks such as checking email, viewing your daily schedule, performing quick online research for a matter at hand... are made difficult when one is not in his/her own static environment. Trying to manually access a laptop or handheld's connections manager while out of the office becomes a complicated and very slow process.

Recently, we found ourselves in a crunch situation wherein we had to access email that contained important background information for a case, while already in the field and out of contact with the client. We ran across one of the best tools out there for fast and easy WiFi access with, literally, one mouse click. Easy WiFiRadar. Here's the best part - no credit cards. It's totally FREE - and it works!! We've used it for months now.

Check out the Easy WiFiRadar (www.makayama.com/easywifiradar.html), video above. The instructor delivers a quick tutorial that will have you accessing free WiFi in less than two minutes, in one click, guaranteed.

Enjoy a safe Labor Day holiday,

Lina

French Maids Make Photo Sharing Simple

2007-08-27T08:20:00.000-04:00

One thing every experienced investigator and seasoned trial lawyer recognizes is the truth in the old saying, "A picture is worth a thousand words." (And in many cases, tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars...)

But, as many of you know, we've been swamped the past few weeks tweaking our new product line for release (this Wednesday!). So for this week's Bulletin topic - photo sharing - we've asked for help from our delightful, insightful and totally knowledgeable friends over at French Maid TV.

They explain it all in their above clip so we won't go over it again but as we cautioned in our July 2, 2007 Bulletin, be sure to remove all metadata (hidden data such as reversible authoring notes, embedded dates...) from your files - including photos and vids - before sharing them with others for whatever necessary reasons. (You can retrieve the 7/2/07 Metadata Bulletin in the right column on this page our just drop us a line at bulletin@beaconbulletin.com. Note "Metadata" in the subject line.)

Please enjoy the French Maids as they, in their inimitable style, explain the ins and outs of sharing that most powerful of negotiating tools - photographs. (Pillow fight notwithstanding...)

BNI Investigators: Street smart; Web savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

He Said; She Said; We Should: Interview Intake Form

2007-08-20T03:59:00.000-04:00

As we are all well aware, federal and state laws prohibit prospective employers from asking certain questions that are not related to the job they are hiring for. Questions should not be used to find out personal information. In a nutshell, employers should not be asking about your race, gender, religion, marital status, age, disabilities, ethnic background, country of origin, sexual preferences or age.

During the witness statement interview, however, investigators are not looking to hire the witness but rather to find out just as much personal information as possible. As we mentioned in a recent Bulletin, witnesses can make, break or mitigate a trial lawyer's case. It can take several years for a case to reach the point of serious negotiation or trial. The issue may then be finding a relocated witness. For that reason, the investigative specialist needs to gather as much personal information from the witness as possible during the initial interview. (We do caution the interviewer to employ a bit of tact as most of the fields on the Interview Intake Form can be filled in without direct questioning of the witness.)

BNI Investigators: Street smart; Web savvy.

The Dog Ate My Files: Electronic Data Recovery

2007-08-13T09:04:00.000-04:00

The new federal rule 26(a)(1)(B), effective Dec.1, 2006, requires parties to provide, without discovery request, "a copy of, or a description by category and location of, all documents, electronically stored information, and tangible things that are in the possession custody, and control of the party and that the disclosing party may use to support its claims or defenses, unless solely for impeachment."

That sounds straightforward enough; the issue may be that ESI (Electronically Shared Information) can come from many different sources and can even appear to have been lost! This can occur for several reasons:

1. Computers come from the manufacturer with a Hardware Protected Area (HPA), which is generally used to store vendor, diagnostic and recovery utilities. This area will not show up in a normal search.

2. Hard drives can come with a Device Configuration Overlay (DCO) which is similar to an HPA. Hard drives commonly flag areas which have bad clusters, or spots on the drive which are corrupted. An area with important data can inadvertently be manually flagged as being "bad" and the operating system will ignore that area. These files will not show up during a normal search.

Solutions:

Easiest:

1. Click on your Start button on your pc.
2. Then on Search.
3. Click on searching "all files and folders".
4. Next, click on "Advanced Options"
5. Finally, ensure "Check Hidden Files" is optioned.

More Complicated:

1. Go To:
www.octanesoft.com/data_recovery_free_edition.html
2. Follow instructions.

3. It's FREE!!

Worst Case Scenario

1. Call us for the contact info of a really good geek.

BNI Investigators: Street smart: Web savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

CamStat - Public & Private Cameras in NYC

2007-08-06T07:58:00.000-04:00

A fixed outdoor camera in New York City capturing the big steam explosion of several weeks ago.

Sometimes you just want to know what is around you and feel a sense of security... especially if it is an area of Manhattan you don't often frequent. It's easy to find the official NYC DOT camera locations online; not so the private cameras - online or on site. Over the past several years, our BNI researchers have developed an exclusive compilation "CamStat/NYC" which identifies - by map and by text - all DOT, public and private camera locations in each of Manhattan's Community Boards. Over the course of the next few days, we will direct you to a site containing this information and we will have other borough and city maps available shortly. Representative of CamStat is the below camera listings for

Community Board 1, Manhattan.

364 Total Cameras

Robert F. Wagner, Jr. Park:
4 globe cameras

South Street and FDR:
1 stationary camera, NW corner

State and Bridge Streets:
2 globe cameras, NE corner

Pearl Street between State and Whitehall Streets:
5 stationary cameras on lamposts, south side

Bridge Street between State and Whitehall Streets:
3 globe cameras, 1 stationary camera, north side

South and Whitehall Streets:
1 stationary camera, SE corner

Pearl and Whitehall Streets:
2 stationary cameras, north and south side

Whitehall and Bridge Streets:
2 globe cameras, NW corner

South Street and Broad Street:
1 stationary camera, NW corner

Water and Broad Streets:
6 stationary cameras, 3 NW corner, 3 NE corner

Bridge and Broad Streets: 2 stationary cameras

Broad Street between Bridge and Pearl Streets:
7 stationary cameras, north side

Pearl and Broad Streets:
2 stationary cameras, NW corner

South Street and Vietnam Veterans Plaza:
1 stationary camera, NW corner

Water Street and Coenties Alley:
1 stationary camera, SE corner

Pearl Street and Coenties Slip:
1 stationary camera, NE corner

Pearl and Hanover Streets:
3 stationary cameras, NE corner

Broadway and Beaver Street:
1 globe camera, SE corner

Broadway and Battery Place:
4 globe cameras, SW corner

Greenwich Street between Battery Place and Morris Street:
1 stationary camera, east side

?Washington Street and Battery Place:
1 rotational camera
Stone Street and Mill Lane:
2 stationary cameras, 1 NW corner, 1 SW corner

South William Street and Mill Lane:
1 stationary camera, SE corner

Water and Old Slip: 1 stationary camera

South Street and Gouverneur Lane:
6 stationary cameras, 5 NW corner, 1 SW corner

Water Street and Gouveneur Lane:
1 stationary camera, NW corner

New Street between Beaver Street and Exchange Place:
7 stationary cameras, 4 east side, 3 west side

Trinity Place between Exchange Alley and Morris Street:
3 stationary cameras

Exchange Place between Broad and William Streets:
2 globe cameras, 2 stationary cameras, north side

Exchange Place and New Street:
5 stationary cameras

Broadway and Exchange Place:
2 stationary cameras, 1 NE corner, 1 NW corner

Trinity Place and Exchange Alley:
2 stationary cameras, 1 NE corner, 1 NW corner

Washington and Joseph P. Ward Streets:
2 stationary cameras, NW corner

West Street between Joseph P. Ward and Rector Street:
1 stationary camera, east side

South End Avenue and West Thames Street:
1 stationary camera

W Thames Street:
5 stationary cameras at Battery Park City Authority building

Trinity Place between Thames and Rector Streets:
1 globe camera, west side

Broad Street between Exchange Place and Wall Street:
2 stationary cameras, west side, 1 globe camera, east side

New Street between Wall Street and Exchange Place:
3 stationary cameras, 2 east side, 1 west side

Rector Street between Trinity Place and Greenwich Street:
3 stationary cameras, north side

Rector Place:
1 stationary camera

Wall Street between Hanover and Pearl Streets:
3 stationary cameras, north side

Hanover Square:
2 stationary cameras

Wall and Pearl Streets:
3 stationary cameras, NW corner

Wall Street between Nassau and William Streets:
1 globe camera

Nassau and Wall Streets:
3 stationary cameras

Wall Street between New and Nassau Streets:
1 stationary camera, south side

Pine Street between William and Pearl Streets:
2 stationary cameras, south side

Pine Street between Nassau and William Streets:
2 stationary cameras, north side

Broadway and Thames Street:
1 stationary camera, NW corner

Thames Street between Broadway and Trinity Place:
2 stationary cameras, south side

Greenwich and Thames Streets:
1 globe camera, NE corner

Greenwich and Albany Streets:
3 stationary cameras

Albany and Washington Streets:
2 stationary cameras

Albany Street between Washington and West Streets:
1 stationary camera, south side

William Street between Cedar and Pine Streets:
1 stationary camera, east side

Washington Street between Albany and Cedar Streets:
3 stationary cameras, east side

Cedar Street between Broadway and Trinity Place:
2 stationary cameras

Cedar Street between Trinity Place and Greenwich Street:
1 stationary camera, south side

Cedar Street between Washington and West Streets:
1 stationary camera

Washington Street between Liberty and Cedar Streets:
1 rotational camera

William and Liberty Streets:
2 stationary cameras, 1 NE corner, 1 SE corner

Liberty Street between William and Nassau Streets:
6 stationary cameras, north side, 1 globe camera, 1 rotational camera, 1 stationary camera, south side

Liberty and Nassau Streets:
2 stationary cameras, SW corner

Liberty Street between Nassau Street and Broadway:
2 stationary cameras, south side

Broadway and Liberty Street:
1 stationary camera, SE corner

Liberty and Trinity Streets:
1 stationary camera

Liberty and Greenwich Streets:
2 stationary cameras, SW corner

Washington and Liberty Streets:
2 stationary cameras

West and Liberty Streets:
1 globe camera

Chase Manhattan Plaza, between Pine and Liberty Streets, and William and Nassau Streets:
4 stationary cameras

William Street between Liberty Street and Maiden Lane:
2 stationary cameras, east side

Nassau Street between Maiden Lane and Liberty Street:
2 stationary cameras, east side

Liberty Place between Maiden Lane and Liberty Street:
1 stationary camera

Pearl Street and Maiden Lane:
2 stationary cameras, NE corner

Maiden Lane between Nassau and William Streets:
10 stationary cameras

Maiden and Nassau Streets:
2 globe cameras, SE corner, 1 stationary camera, NE corner

Fletcher and Water Streets:
2 stationary cameras

Fletcher and Front Streets:
1 rotational camera

Fletcher Street between Water and Front Streets:
1 stationary camera, north side

Fletcher Street between Water and Pearl Streets:
2 stationary cameras, south side

Platt Street between Pearl and Gold Streets:
2 stationary cameras, north side

Gold and Platt Streets:
2 stationary cameras, SW corner

Platt Street between Gold and William Streets:
1 stationary camera

Pearl Street between John and Platt Streets:
2 stationary cameras, west side

William Street between John and Platt Streets:
1 stationary camera

John Street between Cliff and Pearl Streets:
1 stationary camera, north side

John Street between Gold and William Streets:
2 stationary cameras, south side

John and William Streets:
2 stationary cameras, NE corner

John Street between William and Nassau Streets:
4 stationary cameras, south side

John and Nassau Streets:
1 stationary camera, NW corner

Dey Street between Church Street and Broadway:
1 rotational camera, north side

Pearl Street between John and Fulton Streets:
1 stationary camera

Fulton and Nassau Streets:
2 stationary cameras, NW corner

Fulton Street between Broadway and Nassau Street:
1 stationary camera

Fulton Street between Broadway and Church Street:
3 stationary cameras, 2 north side, 1 south side

Nassau Street between Ann and Fulton Streets:
1 stationary camera, east side

Ann and Nassau Streets:
2 stationary cameras, SE corner

Ann Street between Nassau Street and Theatre Alley:
1 stationary camera, south side

Ann Street between Park Row and Theater Alley:
3 stationary cameras, 1 north side, 2 south side

Vesey Street between Church Street and West Broadway:
3 stationary cameras, 1 south side, 2 north side

?Vesey Street and West Broadway:
2 stationary cameras

Vesey Street between West Street and W Broadway:
2 stationary cameras, north side

(7 World Trade Center):
3 stationary cameras, south side

West and Vesey Streets:
4 stationary cameras, SE corner

William Street between Ann and Beekman Streets:
1 stationary camera, west side

Nassau Street between Ann and Beekman Streets:
2 stationary camera, east side

Theater Alley between Beekman and Ann Streets:
3 stationary cameras: 1 west side, 2 east side

Beekman Street between Gold and William Street:
1 stationary camera, south side

Beekman and Nassau Streets:
1 stationary camera

Beekman Street and Park Row:
1 stationary camera

Barclay and Church Streets:
2 stationary cameras, 1 NE corner, 1 SW corner

Barclay Street and W Broadway:
2 stationary cameras, SE corner

Barclay and Washington Streets:
3 stationary cameras, SE corner

Barclay Street between Washington and West Streets:
2 stationary cameras in alley, north side

Park Place between Church Street and Broadway:
1 stationary camera, south side

Park Place between W Broadway and Church Street:
3 stationary cameras, 2 north side, 1 south side

Park Place between Greenwich Street and West Broadway:
3 stationary cameras, north side

Greenwich Street between Park Place and Murray Street:
1 rotational camera, east side

Spruce Street and Park Row:
1 stationary camera, SE corner

Front and Dover Streets:
1 globe camera, 1 stationary camera

Gold and Frankfurt Streets:
1 rotational camera

Murray Street between W Broadway and Greenwich Street:
1 stationary camera, south side

Murray Street between Greenwich and West Streets:
1 rotational camera

Warren and Church Streets:
1 stationary camera

Warren Street between W Broadway and Church Street:
3 stationary, north side

Warren Street between Greenwich Street and W Broadway:
2 stationary cameras, 1 north side, 1 south side

Pearl and Madison Streets:
1 stationary camera, 4 rotational cameras

Pearl Street between Madison Street and Park Row:
5 stationary cameras

Joseph Doherty Court between Park Row and Pearl Street:
6 stationary cameras

Chambers Street between West and Greenwich Streets:
1 rotational camera

Reade Street between Hudson and Greenwich Streets:
2 stationary cameras, north side

Broadway between Reade and Duane Streets:
2 stationary cameras, east side

Duane Street and Cardinal Hayes Place:
16 cameras

Duane Street between Broadway and Elk Street:
1 stationary camera, south side

Duane Street between Hudson Street and W Broadway:
1 stationary camera, north side

Staple Street between Jay and Harrison Streets:
1 stationary camera, west side

Hudson Street between Jay and Harrison Streets:
1 stationary camera

Worth Street between Broadway and Park Row:
1 stationary camera, south side

Lafayette between Franklin and Leonard:
1 stationary camera

W Broadway between Leonard and Franklin:
1 stationary camera

N Moore Street between West and Greenwich Streets:
3 rotational cameras, 1 north side, 2 south side

Harrison and West Streets:
2 stationary cameras

Sixth Avenue and W Broadway:
1 stationary camera

Greenwich Street between N Moore and Beach Streets:
1 rotational camera, west side

West Street between Hubert and N Moore Streets:
3 rotational cameras, east side

York Street between Sixth Avenue and St John's Lane:
1 stationary camera, south side

Ericsson Place and Varick Street: 1 stationary camera

St John's Lane between Ericsson Place and York Street:
2 stationary cameras, east side

Greenwich Street between Hubert and Beach Streets:
2 stationary cameras, 1 east side, 1 west side, 1 rotational camera, west side

Hubert Street between Collister and Greenwich Streets:
2 stationary cameras, 1 north side, 1 south side

Hubert Street between West and Greenwich Streets:
4 rotational cameras, south side, 1 stationary camera, north side

Varick and Laight Street:
2 rotational cameras

Greenwich and Laight Streets:
1 stationary camera

Laight Street between Greenwich and Washington Streets:
1 stationary camera, south side

Vestry and Canal Streets:
3 rotational cameras

Vestry Street between Varick and Hudson Streets:
2 stationary cameras, south side

Washington Street between Vestry and Desbrosses Streets:
1 stationary camera, west side

Watts Street between Greenwich and Canal Streets:
1 stationary camera

Canal Street and Cortlandt Alley:
2 stationary cameras

Canal Street between Washington and Greenwich Streets:
1 stationary camera

Police Plaza:
2 stationary cameras, 1 rotational camera

Chambers Street between Greenwich and Hudson Streets:
1 stationary camera, north side

Pearl Street between Peck Slip and Dover Street:
2 stationary cameras, east side

BNI Investigators: Street smart; Web savvy.

Keep checking this site and www.beaconinfopro.com for the release of CamStat/NYC.

To Go Or Not To Go: Conferencing From Your Desk

2007-07-30T06:07:00.000-04:00

Ok, so the clip may be funny but this will NOT happen with GoToMeetings - this week's recommended onlne feature.

Problem: Nine people in three offices in two states need to conference. Documents will need to be displayed and there is a PowerPoint presentation that may include an Excel spreadsheet.

Solutions:
Old:

1. FedEx copies of all documents and other presentation materials to all parties.

2. Arrange meeting date and time.

3. Determine speakers and attendees.

4. Have Michael in NY Office #1 contact Jenn in NY Office #2 and have her conference in Bill in Boston. Corral the other 6 attendees into Michael, Jenn and Bill's offices accordingly.

Older:
1. Fly to meeting destination and repeat above Steps 1 - 4 until the remaining attendees are all available.

Best:
1. Arrange meeting date and time.

2. Use GoToMeeting.

3. Meet, discuss, display, conclude.

4. Go to lunch.

Top Five Reasons To Use GoToMeetings.com
1. Real time voice, IM and display capability.

2. Can display in multiple formats including Word, Wordperfect, Powerpoint and Excel.

3. Can hand over keyboard and mouse control to other attendees (without compromising security. Other users can only view the displayed document... not rumage through your PC).

4. One license can accomodate 25 conferenced-in people and if you want to host a seminar, up to 1,000 attendees. (Attendee sign in and departure can be monitored.)

5. Displayed documents are not stored on attendees pcs. You can determine which, if any, documents you choose for others to have as permanent copies.

BNI Investigators: Street smart; Web savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

Pinging: Tracking A Cell Phone

2007-07-23T08:57:00.000-04:00

A popular term heard lately in reference to cell phone tracking is pinging. Cell Phone Tracking or Pinging as it is commonly referred to is the technology which is used to track the current position of a cell phone. It is helpful technology when trying to locate criminals or missing persons.

Your cell's position is determined by the cell phone tower which is nearest to your phone's signals location. Some phones with built in GPS receivers have a higher accuracy rate. Many newer phones do not even need to be powered on in order to receive the signal. Also, newer phones have a second battery source so if the primary battery is damaged or removed, the cell can still be tracked.

Now I am sure you are thinking, between the GPS equipment, the feed cost, monthly plan.... you may just want to stay under the radar. But, you can't remain hidden regardless as the above CNN clip clearly shows and, think of the fun you will be denying yourself by knowing where your teenager really went Friday night or keeping an eye on the employee who thinks she has unlimited use/mileage of the company vehicle. Well, we dug a bit deeper and found a free tracking solution for you from our friends at www.mologogo.com.

If you need to locate a subject or client for real, however, visit our sister site: www.beaconinfopro.com.

BNI Investigators: Street smart, Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

Services That Won't Cost Your Firm A Penny

2007-07-16T06:00:00.000-04:00

(Excuse the above shout out to Berlitz but we thought the 40-second clip was worth it!). Below are our real - and free - recommendations:

Free translation site: www.freetranslation.com. No downloading; no waiting. Conversely: written text only. (A premium "human translation" service is offered as well - but for a quick memo or if you're in a rush to get a handle on an uncomplicated foreign-language doc - this site is worth the fingertaps.

Free telephone, address and reverse searches: www.argali.com. You'll need to download the program but that's a good thing. It means it updates every time you sign on to it. And no complicated sign-ins or passwords... You simply d/l the program, a yellow ram (mountain goat?) icon lands on your desktop and you just click that when you are in search mode.

Free homeowners search: www.propertysharks.com These guys have a fairly extensive and updated archive. Lots of info aside from homeowner identification (date of sale, amount, pictures, land use...)

Free sound-editing: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ Removes background noise from an audio recording quickly and easily - it's that simple. And it's cross-platform - Mac/Windows supported.

Free BNI tip:

Old Style: To obtain a forwarding address for a reluctant subject, simply write "Return Address Requested" on the lower left front of your envelope to the last known address for this person. The USPO will not forward your correspondence but rather return you new address information if available.

New: To determine the identity of a domain owner, go to www.WhoIs.com. Scroll down to WhoIs LookUp and enter the domain name. If it is not privately registered, the owner's name, address and ownership/availability dates will pop.

Also, you might recall from last week's Bulletin - www.scanr.com. scanr turns your camera phone into a scanner, copier or fax.

BNI Investigators: Street smart: Web savvy.

Stay safe,

Lina

2007-07-08T18:23:00.000-04:00

MacGyver-ing Your Camera Phone Into A Scanner, Copier and Fax

In June 2006, the verb "Google" was officially entered into the OED. Prior to that, and without the academic and historical fanfare, many of us learned what it meant to "MacGyver" a situation. Facing a near-impossible situation, with only the materials at hand (read: absolutely no tech gear or 24-like outside CSU-support) the eponymous TV character would jerry-rig everything from stray twigs to shards of shiny glass to pre-owned dental floss to work his way out of the situation, save the day and issue a pithy lesson-learned wrap-up, all in 60 minutes (minus commercials, in-law phone calls and finishing ).

Fast forward to tomorrow, a week from now, next year... You find yourself in a situation where you need to make a copy of a document and have only your cell phone, or just a digital camera. How would you MacGyver this situation?

scanR is a system of applications and services that enable you to copy and fax documents using just a camera phone or a digital camera. With scanR, you'll be capturing and sending the information you need. The above left picture is the original scanned photo; the right jpeg is the scanR processed document. That about says it all.

scanR is a Web-based service. You create a user account. When you want to scan a document, you simply take a picture of the document. You can take pictures of documents, white boards, and even business cards. You can easily scan and store business cards or save what you've written on whiteboards before they get erased.

You then send your image to scanR from a camera phone using the MMS protocol or send JPEG photo images. You'll then receive in your email digital copies of your image in PDF format for you to use and print. You can send up to 15 pictures in one batch.scanR supports sending faxes to most phone numbers in North America, Western Europe, and East Asia. scanR is currently a free service. Learn more about scanR.

Feel welcome to view our official private investigation business site: http://www.beaconinfopro.com/.

BNI Investigators: Street smart: Web savvy.

Be safe,

Lina

Why Give Your Adversaries A Heads Up? Metadata

2007-07-02T11:52:00.000-04:00

He with the best information wins. So why are you handing over free data to your adversary? You may unknowingly be doing just that - in the form of METADATA - every time you email a document to a client or opposing counsel.

WHAT IS METADATA?

Metadata is best described as embedded information in a computer file. For example, metadata includes, but is not limited to, the name of the person who created the document, text from earlier drafts since removed, the creation date, the date last printed, and much more.Metadata is a fact of life and often helpful. But when you share documents, it's best to remove or at least minimize it because your adversaries and even your clients may also find it "helpful" to your detriment.

OKAY, SO HOW DO I MINIMIZE METADATA IN MY WORD DOCUMENTS?

Take author information for example. Microsoft Word stores it in no fewer than four locations — User Information Properties, Document Properties, Manager Document Properties, and Last Saved By Author Properties.You can change the first two of these properties to a meaningless generic name, which will also take care of Last Saved By Author. Unless you use document automation software or macros, you can safely ignore Manager Document Properties. Otherwise, you should check there as well.That's one tip. We have nine more to share. To remove metadata (hidden information) from legal documents, follow the instructions posted here:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word/HA011400341033.aspx?pid=CH010918561033

Every so often, when we experience really good results, BNI will make a product or service recommendation. For metadata management, you can, of course, clean up your own documents to be emailed. For the busy professional law office, we've found one product that excels in database management iScrub - (http://www.esqinc.com/) Due to its central administration, you and your firm's team need not change the way you work with documents — iScrub automatically scrubs every document the same way when emailed.

BNI Investigators: Street smart, Web savvy.

Lina

Finders Keepers: Securing Witness Contact Information

2007-06-24T13:12:00.000-04:00

From an investigator's perspective, few things can be as frustrating as trying to locate a witness a year or more post-accident.

Having conducted innumerable first contact/initial intake surveys, it is our experience that it is critical to obtain as much information on potential witnesses as early on as possible. And. to then immediately reach out to those witnesses and obtain additional contact information. Often, the starting point of any file (once the retainer is secured) is the police accident report - PAR. (For the purpose of maintaining a tight focus, and as the information is applicable to other agencies and incident types as well, we will concentrate on police department PARs) A PAR's witness information content varies from agency to agency, county to county and even intra-department. An NYPD officer may be thorough and include the witness' name and address in the PAR's witness information section. A Yonkers cop may simply jot down the witness' name and address or phone number in the body of the accident description. Outside of the occasional NYPD officer or State Trooper, there is usually no witness identification verification conducted on scene.

In any case, your firm initially has only the PAR or any info that your client may provide regarding the witness(es). A simple phone call or contact letter within a week or so of accepting a case may not only secure contact information, it begins to establish an association between the witness and your client and can facilitate cooperation down the line.

Understandably, until the issues of accident/incident circumstances, injuries, liability and potential defendants are developed, a law firm may not wish to expend additional energy or monies on non-critical activity. Our experience, however, leans us towards an ounce of prevention when it comes to securing witness information. In an increasingly mobile/transient world, more information is not only better, but necessary. A phone call or contact letter requesting additional info (such as an emergency contact, email, employer info...) can often make the difference later on in obtaining a witness statement... or not. Done correctly, this witness outreach may a) induce the witness to become a more cooperative part of the process, b) begin to imprint a more solid recall of events should testimony become necessary and c) provide additional future contact avenues.

BackYard Danger: New NYS Pool Alarm Regs

2007-06-18T11:00:00.000-04:00

Given the record-breaking Father's Day temperatures here in NY, we think it's fairly safe to officially declare pool season open.

And generally, pool season is a good thing.

Over the course of years of investigative experience, we've noticed that tempers tend to flare less, or at least not as quickly or as brightly, when people are wearing less clothing. We've noticed a direct correlation between the puffed chest response by men and their ability to hook their thumbs into a belt loop - no pants; no problem. Women are always afraid something will untie, fall too low or off completely and are noticeably much slower to anger in June, July and August (Western/Northern Hemisphere). And children, well, they've always understood the less clothing, less violence corollary - hence, the popularity of venting through snowball fights in the winter when they are suited up head to toe. The above text and video are simply introductory light-asides to a very serious subject. The real issue is promoting and ensuring pool safety.

According to data (compiled from various federal agencies and industry monitoring organizations), in a given year, there is one drowning of a child for every 11,000 residential pools in the United States. (In a country with 6 million pools, this means that roughly 550 children under the age of ten drown each year.)

Below please find the full NYDOS amended text (12/14/2006) version of NYCRR Title 19 re: pool alarms. Feel welcome to contact BNI for our post pool/water-event checklist. There are often many variables involved in pool-related incidents. Our checklist has been developed over more than a decade of conducting these types of investigations.

TITLE 19 (NYCRR)

CHAPTER XXXIII - STATE FIRE PREVENTION & BUILDING CODE COUNCIL

SUBCHAPTER A - UNIFORM FIRE PREVENTION & BUILDING CODE

1221.3. Swimming pool alarms. [amended text 12/14/2006]

(a) Purpose. Paragraph (b) of subdivision (14) of section 378 of the Executive Law, as added by Chapter 450 of the Laws of 2006, requires that the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code (the Uniform Code) provide that any “residential or commercial swimming pool constructed or substantially modified after the effective date of this paragraph (December 14, 2006) shall be equipped with an acceptable pool alarm capable of detecting a child entering the water and of giving an audible alarm.” The Introducer’s Memorandum in Support of Chapter 450 states, in pertinent part, that “drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related deaths in children between the ages of one and fourteen nation wide, and the third leading cause of injury-related deaths of children in New York. . . . (T)echnological advances have produced several different types of pool alarms designed to sound a warning if a child falls into the water. When used in conjunction with access barriers, these alarms provide greater protection against accidental pool drownings.” This section and section 1220.5 of Part 1220 of this Title are intended to implement the provisions of Executive Law section 378(14)(b).

(b) Definitions. The following terms shall, for the purposes of this section and for the purposes of section 1220.5 in Part 1220 of this Title, have the following meanings:

(1) Approved. Approved by the code enforcement official responsible for enforcement and administration of the Uniform Code as complying with and satisfying the purposes of this section and section 1220.5 in Part 1220 of this Title.

(2) Commercial swimming pool. Any swimming pool (as defined in paragraph (4) of this subdivision) that is not a residential swimming pool (as defined in paragraph (3) of this subdivision).

(3) Residential swimming pool. A swimming pool (as defined in paragraph (4) of this subdivision) which is situated on the premises of a detached one- or two-family dwelling; a multiple single-family dwelling (townhouse) not more than three stories in height; a one-family dwelling converted to a bed and breakfast; a community residence for 14 or fewer mentally disabled persons, operated by or subject to licensure by the Office of Mental Health or the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities; a one-or two-family dwelling operated for the purpose of providing care to more than two but not more than eight hospice patients, created pursuant to Article 40 of the Public Health Law, and defined as a hospice residence in §4002 of said Law; a manufactured home; a mobile home; or a factory manufactured dwelling unit.

(4) Swimming pool. Any structure intended for swimming, recreational bathing or wading which contains or which is designed to contain water over 24 inches (610 mm) deep. This includes in-ground, above-ground and on-ground pools; indoor pools; hot tubs; spas; and fixed-in-place wading pools.

(5) Substantial damage. Damage of any origin sustained by a swimming pool whereby the cost of restoring the swimming pool to its before damaged condition would equal or exceed 50 percent of the market value of the swimming pool before the damage occurred.

(6) Substantial modification. Any repair reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or improvement of a swimming pool, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the swimming pool before the repair, rehabilitation, addition, or improvement is started. If a swimming pool has sustained substantial damage, any repairs are considered to be a substantial modification regardless of the actual repair work performed.

(c) Pool alarms. Each residential swimming pool installed, constructed or substantially modified after December 14, 2006 and each commercial swimming pool installed, constructed or substantially modified after December 14, 2006 shall be equipped with an approved pool alarm which:

(1) is capable of detecting a child entering the water and giving an audible alarm when it detects a child entering the water;

(2) is audible poolside and at another location on the premises where the swimming pool is located;

(3) is installed, used and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions;

(4) is classified by Underwriter’s Laboratory, Inc. (or other approved independent testing laboratory) to reference standard ASTM F2208, entitled “Standard Specification for Pool Alarms,” as adopted in 2002 and editorially corrected in June 2005, published by ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428; and

(5) is not an alarm device which is located on person(s) or which is dependent on device(s) located on person(s) for its proper operation.

(d) Multiple pool alarms. A pool alarm installed pursuant to subdivision (c) of this section must be capable of detecting entry into the water at any point on the surface of the swimming pool. If necessary to provide detection capability at every point on the surface of the swimming pool, more than one pool alarm shall be installed.

Talking To The Most Important Cop At The Precinct - The TSO

2007-06-11T14:30:00.000-04:00

For personal injury attorneys, generally, the most important cop at any precinct is the TSO - the Traffic Safety Officer.

Data for New York City indicates that 26.7 percent of total statewide annual traffic fatalities, and 43 percent of total statewide crash injuries occurred within city limits.
In an effort to reduce fatalities, injuries, property damage and overall costs associated with motor vehicle crashes in New York City, the New York Police Department (NYPD) developed TrafficStat in 1998. Modeled after the highly successful crime-reducing system, CompStat, the objectives of the NYPD's TrafficStat program are to:

A - Identify locations throughout the city where crashes are most likely to occur

B - Design an effective crash analysis program to determine the primary factors that contribute to traffic crashes at these locations

C - Develop effective countermeasures to correct hazardous conditions

D - Implement a public information and education campaign, to help the public avoid traffic dangers and crash risks.

The first step though, in any accident investigation, especially one suspected of having occurred in an accident -prone location is to talk to the local precinct's Traffic Safety Officer (TSO). The TSO generally has more direct knowledge and information regarding the precinct's traffic "hot spots" than any other officer assigned to that specific house. We also suggest calling before 2 p.m., weekdays, regardless of the PD or precinct involved.

Below please find the direct phone numbers to the Queens NYPD TSOs (except where so noted, wherein the main precinct number is then provided). (For Albany PD, the main TSO's number is 518/458-5676.) (Also let us know if you would like TSO info from other boroughs.)

NYPD

PCT TSO
100 718/318-4230
101 718/868-3422
102 718/805-3246
103 718/657-8806
104 718/386-3004
105 718/776-9160
106 718/845-2211*
107 718/969-5771
108 718/784-5405
109 718/321-2273
110 718/476-9311*
111 718/279-5200*
112 718/520-9311*
113 718/712-5299
114 718/626-9300*
115 718/533-2018

* Direct precinct #

Being Number One: Your Firm on Page 1 of Google - Part II

2007-06-03T18:56:00.000-04:00

In this week's final segment of our two-part series on SEO - Search Engine Optimization, we'll continue by concentrating on the advice that...

Less is More

Although the temptation is great - to a large degree we've all been taught that more is often better - DO NOT repeat your keywords (the words potential clients input into search engines to find an attorney) too often in your visible text. The formula is simple - your keywords should account for no more than 3 - 7% of the total word count for the entire displayed page.

For more to specifics on site-pushing tools - such as anchoring text and numerous "under-the-hood" methods, there are numerous online tutorials. Have your IT guys go to our personal favorite: http://www.seo-guy.com/seo-tutorial/seopreparation.html.

The Most Important Part of Getting on Page 1

To understand this you first must understand something called "PageRank" ...PageRank is a slick term Google came up with that is exactly as it implies: a system of ranking page popularity on a 1 - 10 scale. For example - Google's Home page is a PageRank (or "PR") 10. EBay home page is a PR 9. Amazon is PR 10. MySpace home page (on the surface this is surprising, but read below) is a PR 7.

By way of brief explanation, PageRank is not a ranking of the entire SITE. It's a literal ranking of the PAGE you're looking at (That MySpace is PR 7 should make more sense now. The majority of MySpace viewers don't go to MySpace's home page when they sign in, but rather, to their own home pages).

Okay - so this page ranking tells us who's hot and who's not. Obviously you want to your site to be on the "hotter" end of things - so what's the single most important thing you can do to start that process rolling? In a word - Backlinks.

For Google to determine and set the importance of your site, it must first find it It does this search with little bots called "Spiders". Spiders find sites through "backlinks" and backlinks, simply defined provide "links" from one page to another. When you've received a link from another site or page to your site or page - be sure that the link being proposed has a PageRanking (PR) of 5 or more. They higher the ranking, the more affluent the link and it raises your site's profile. Google's spiders will have already indexed the high-ranking link and thereby raise your site's visibility.

The solution is simple but it takes a bit of doing... Get as many sites to link to your site as possible - and put 80% of your efforts into the few % that have PR rankings of 5 or higher. (Note: STAY AWAY from "Link Farms". These are companies that have a high ranking page and will try to sell their backlink to you. Google is way ahead of the game on this little number. Save your money and reputation - paid links are as valuable as fools' gold.)

Google Changing the Rules again...Black Hat/White Hat and Al Gore Rhythms

Now just when we had page ranking somewhat understood, Google has just changed the rules again. In an effort to remain number one, Google has to contend with Black Hat SEO sites. In a nutshell, Black Hat normally refers to a type of hacker - but these days it's largely changed to anyone who sets up a website to exploit loopholes in Google's relevancy algorithm (the tracking methods used to determine which words traffic better and more often ). Google has made its search algorithm friendlier to sites that have question-answering headlines as opposed to just keywords. For example - if someone put in the search term "Where can I find an attorney skilled in representing one-eyed pirates in Freeport?" The pages (still taking pagerank into account) that will be shuffled to the top will be those that have a headline that answers that question ("...representing one-eyed pirates in Freeport since 1708"). This is probably one of the simplest things you can change to ramp up your site's ranking. Looking through the eyes of the people most likely to be searching for your services, simply pre-emptively answer the questions they might ask in a how-to answer at the beginning.

Hopefully you will have come away with understanding page ranking and backlinks, and at the very least how your headlines draw the potential client's eyes to your site. From a potential client's eyes, an attorney on Page 1 of Google must have gotten there by being number one!

Being Number One: Your Firm on Page 1 of Google

2007-05-28T09:49:00.000-04:00

Pop open your Internet Explorer, Firefox or the Google browser. Type in "ny personal injury attorney". Why do certain law firms seem to always come up on Page 1 of Google?

The answer is SEO - Search Engine Optimization.

In a nutshell, SEO is tweaking your website so that Google (and subsequently all other search engines) will recognize and note your site more immediately than those of your competitors. Today's Bulletin, the first in a two-part series, addresses maximizing your firm's online visibility - through the use of keywords, copy, and keyword placement.

Know Your Market

Be keenly aware of your strongest area(s) of practice: personal injury, medical malpractice, wrongful death... By concentrating on your expertise, you will draw the clients best suited to your practice.

What search words are potential clients using to find a law firm to represent them?

This is the most important question you need to ask yourself, preferably, before your site is built. The quickest way to get the answer to this question - and in a manner designed to NOT re-invent the wheel, is very simple:

1. In Google, type in the keywords you think your potential clients might use to search for a law firm. (This will bring up the first page of Google results.)

2. Click through to any of the top named law firms.

3. At the top of your browser click the drop-down box, "View". Next click "Source" (in other browsers like Firefox it might say "Page Source").

4. What initially appears as gibberish to most people with hectic schedules is actually called "basic tags". You'll note the more web savvy sites intentionally including misspellings (atorney, attorny, laywer...) to ensure they capture as wide a portion of the searching public as possible.

Now that you know what the competition is doing - you also want to know the actual search terms that potential clients input. There are two simple ways to do this:

1. Wordtracker. There's a free tool at wordtracker.com (register for free to access) that allows you to punch in specific words and get a run down of how many searches (in general terms) for these keywords have been performed in the prior 90 days. (IMPORTANT: Overture is a similar keyword tool owned by Yahoo. Overture has been disconnected and is no longer providing relevant info - but the site is still up and running. Overture may be on hiatus, nonetheless, its current functionality and information is out-dated.) This site also contains fee-based services/functions your firm may want to pursue.

2. Your Browser (equipped with Google Toolbar). Make sure your Google toolbar is installed on your Internet Explorer or Firefox Browser. When you type in different search terms it will offer suggestions (known as "Google Suggest) of what people are currently searching for. But even better, Firefox provides the number of searches performed in the last 90 days.

Adding Keywords to your Site

Now that you know the specific search criteria input by potential clients, DO NOT PUT THESE SAME WORDS ONTO THE CODE OF EVERY PAGE OF YOUR SITE. Make sure your web development department is aware of this. Google's response to repetitive keyword code on every page of your site is to place your website at the bottom of the pile.

Instead, have your IT person:

- Group your Keywords in 3s. 3 words, or phrases ("personal injury lawyer, accident lawyer, personal injury firm New York") ...then rearrange these words/phrases on each page of your site so that the phrases/key words do not appear in the same order.

- Ensure that your keywords are in similarly coded pages that have visible text containing that keyword(s). (I.e. If you enter "personal injury" as a keyword for a page on your site that only refers to medical malpractice and does not, in any instance, mention personal injury, your website will result in the bottom pages of a Google search, not the top, as is your goal.)

- Name each page after the relevant page keywords. (E.g. TrueLaw.com/personalinjury.html.) This allows one to instantly monitor the site for consistency.

These above directions relate to hidden code. Next, we approach maximizing your keyword results.

Best and Strongest Foot Forward

Your main keywords and phrases should be in the first paragraph of your text, preferably in the first sentence. The most effective boost to your firm's site regarding search rankings is to have your most important keyword in your main page's heading and two other keywords in the immediately following paragraph.

This concludes Part I of our two part series in "Being Number One". In the next Bulletin, we'll explore PageRank, Backlinks, "White-hat/Black-hat" and a number of other tips that will put you on top of the search engine game.

Calling It Quits: When To Terminate An Employee

2007-05-21T21:55:00.000-04:00

In the news recently, there has been a lot of talk of employees' right to sue "bad bosses". The "bad boss" until now, has generally referred to management bullies whose goal has been to publicly humiliate the employee (e.g., having other employees, en masse during meetings, ridicule the substandard performance of the targeted employee, or taking that up a few notches to ordering the sub-achiever wear a clown hat or nose or some other such ridiculous gear). Obviously, the examples cited are not tolerated by a well run organization. But the lines of acceptable reprimands are seen to be fading as employee-rights organizations are now eyeing conditions such as stress-related health issues and coping malbehavior as a result of malicious management practices that are tolerated in the workplace. It is the responsibility of senior management to ensure proper intra-company management methods are in place but it is also prudent to proactively protect the company should it find just cause for an employee's termination.

BNI investigators have worked on numerous cases in which we were assigned to covertly observe employee and management workplace behavior. The eyes of an impartial party often register situations differently from those with a stake involved. This experience has allowed us to formulate the below checklist for deciding if it is time to terminate and if so, how to proceed.

Is It Time To Terminate?

1. Investigate.
If you are considering firing a worker for misconduct, your first step is to investigate the incident. There is always the possibility, no matter how slim, that things are not as they appear to be. And the worker might have an explanation or reason for the misconduct that is not immediately apparent.

2. Check the files.
Never proceed without reading the worker's personnel file. What you find -- and what you don't find -- can have important repercussions. For example, if you are trying to figure out whether to fire someone for persistent problems (poor attendance or performance, for example), you should find some indication in the file that the employee was informed of these issues and given an opportunity to improve. And you should look carefully for any evidence of an employment contract limiting your right to fire the worker at will.

3. Review your written policies.
Read through your employee handbook, personnel manual, and/or any other written policies that have been in effect during the worker's tenure. Do they give the worker sufficient notice that his or her conduct could result in getting fired? If you have a progressive discipline policy, have you followed it? Do your policies place any limitations on your right to fire workers at will?

4. Consider what the worker has been told.
What you say to a employee can be just as important as your written communications and policies. Have you -- or anyone in authority at your company -- said anything that contradicts your written policies and the documents in the personnel file? For example, have you led the worker to believe that he or she would not be fired despite performance or other problems? Has anyone made statements to the employee that could come back to haunt you in a lawsuit -- for example, statements that could be construed as discriminatory or harassing?

5. Compare how you've treated others.
A fired employee's most effective argument to a jury is that you've acted unfairly, by treating the employee differently from others who have been in the same position. If you have always treated your employees by the same rules, you don't have to worry. However, if you've been inconsistent, you should have a valid reason for treating workers differently -- for example, one worker's performance problems lasted longer than another's, or one worker's misconduct was more serious.

6. Consider context.
Even if you have followed your policies, protected your right to fire at will, and been consistent with your workers, one shouldn't ignore the surrounding circumstances. Consider the timing of your firing decision -- for example, if you terminate an employee who recently complained of sexual harassment, can that be perceived as retaliatory? Also look at how this termination will look in light of your other firing decisions. If you see a pattern -- for example, that only women or older workers are being fired, that may allow for a claim.

7. Look at options.
If you're considering firing a worker for persistent problems, you've probably already tried disciplinary measures short of termination. Even so, now is a good time to revisit the issue. Do you think that the employee will be able and willing to improve? If so, a lesser disciplinary measure might be effective -- particularly if you have made some managerial missteps in your dealings with the worker. However, will making an exception or bending the rules for this worker will seem unfair to others? The full picture needs to be taken into consideration. Also, if there has been a management lapse of careful notation in the employee's employment file, correct it immediately. (We are not suggesting suddenly noting past incidents, that will only work in the terminated employee's favor. Just be, or have your managers become, more diligent in record keeping.)

8. Get a second opinion.
If possible, have another person from within your company review your decision to terminate. This will help you make sure that your decision is reasonable, legitimate, and well-supported by the evidence. If the reviewer finds that your decision could be challenged, use his or her comments to help you figure out how you can either salvage the employment relationship or properly document and support your decision.

9. Bring in legal counsel, if necessary.
If you are faced with a close call of any kind -- or if you are unsure whether your decision will hold up in court -- talk to an employment lawyer before you take action. An outside review by an experienced employment-issues lawyer can save considerable time and money in the long run.

10. Document your decision.
If you decide to fire a worker after considering all the angles, you should document your decision in an internal memorandum to the worker's file. Keep it short and sweet -- describe the reasons why you decided to fire the worker, any previous efforts to help the worker improve, and the dates of any previous disciplinary meetings and warnings.

While conscious of the whistle blower laws and or discriminatory hiring practices, an employer may consider an online search for prior lawsuits at appropriate recording sites (e.g. e-law.com).

BNI Investigators: Street smart: Web savvy.

Accident Report Cheat Sheet

2007-05-14T08:31:00.000-04:00

In any lawsuit involving an MVA, one of the the most important initial tools required is the accident report. A completed MV-104A New York State Department of Motor Vehicles POLICE ACCIDENT REPORT (PAR) establishes that a) an accident did in fact occur, b) your client was somehow involved in said accident and c) the factors involved in your client's MVA. It is important for the trial professional to also have the ability, via an "answer sheet", to decode the responding officer's notes on the PAR.

The police lingo for this answer sheet is "flysheet". One simply aligns the category numbers to the correspondingly numbered areas on the actual report and from there decodes the reporting officer' handwritten digits. In the bottom right of the attached flysheet, you will note the words "Cover Sheet" and a white space below that. Generally, that space contains a letter (NYS is currently up to the letter "O") which refers to the model number of the answer sheet. The flysheet is usually only upgraded if a substantial change or category addition is required to the accident report itself. The MV-104 form is used by all New York State agencies authorized to prepare an accident report.

#2/67 When A Slippery Slope is a Good Thing!

2007-05-10T21:02:00.000-04:00

In conducting on-location site surveys, the investigative professional should be aware of four baseline potential causal factors: (The first three are fairly straightforward; the fourth, ground slope, is the focus of this week's Bulletin.)

1. Broken/Damaged/In Disrepair conditions

2. Construction in the area/Construction debris

3. Lighting Factors

4. Ground slope in regard to the related defect, condition or structure.

By way of example and explanation: Without delving too deeply into calculus (it's spring...):

The relational depth of a 3-inch deep defect, radiated outwardly 6 feet therefrom, with a 30% slope within that rise, can dynamically equate to a more than 6-inch profundity at the defect core. With the additional slope factor, it is not as if the injured party was walking on level ground and simply encountered a 3" defect. A very normal and acceptable declination range of the surrounding 6 feet of the defect, with a sharp gradient, will offset body physics and can be equal to the person encountering a 6" defect.

CyberSleuthing 101

2007-04-09T09:04:00.000-04:00

The term cybersleuthing conjures images of 24's CTU (Counter Terrorism Unit) uber-geek cops, rapidly accessing everything from GPS coordinates to nuclear launch sequences. It all seems like "magic" that boils down to a final, tense 5 minutes of electronic search scrambling to save Jack Bauer's life. The truth of cybersleuthing is that there is no "magic". It's science. It is a matter of knowledge, skill and resources. Mostly resources. In this week's Bulletin, we want to give the reader the knowledge, the instruction to be able to practice the skill, and the resources to be able to perform basic cyber investigations without the aid of someone that may charge your firm a small fortune for what may only amount to thirty minutes of work at a computer. We hope that these links will provide you with just that information, skill practice and investigation capability:

Search Engines:

www.google.com - the web's most popular search engine

www.kartoo.com - great graphical interfaces

www.altavista.com - older, reliable all-purpose search tool

Next are the cyber investigation sites that will provide you with the instructions and resources to conduct your own email tracing, domain registration information, mail delivery routes...

Trace route: Did you know that there are differences in trace route on a Unix Machine and a Windows Machine?

Traceroute: http://beast.dreaming.org/traceroute.php

Whois: This invaluable tool is invaluable to the Cyber Investigators. Every Cyber Investigator should have at least a cursory knowledge of it. You can get that cursory knowledge here.

Whois: http://www.whois.us

DNS: Domain Name Servers, learn about BIND (Berkley Internet Name Domain), and how it has helped to make Internet Navigation easier.

DNS: http://www.nwc.com/netdesign/cook5.html

Packet Switching: It is key to understand how information travels from computer to computer on the Internet. Information travels in what is called “packets”.

Packet Switching: http://www2.rad.com/networks/1998/packet/ps.htm

More on Packet Switching: http://www.cciw.com/content/packet.html

IP Numbers: Every Cyber Investigator should know what an IP Number is. It stands for Internet Protocol Number. This number is unique to each machine logged onto the Internet. This number is key in performing an email trace.

IP Number: http://www.auditmypc.com/acronym/IP.asp

Header Information: The first step in tracing an email, KNOW YOUR HEADERS! Here you will learn how to expose an email header, how to read a header, and how to use the information in the header to gather information on the person that sent the email.

Displaying Email Headers: http://www.spamcop.net

Reading Email Headers: http://www.stopspam.org/email/headers.html

Interpreting Header Information: http://www.valinet.com/~coreya/antispam/asheadi.html

TOOLS FOR THE CYBER INVESTIGATOR

Every Cyber Investigator has a Cyber Investigations Tool Box. This tool box enables him or her to do different things on their computer to determine and gather certain information in their investigations. Here you will be able to make your own tool box so that you can too.

Complete Whois: http://www.completewhois.com/

Cool Whois: http://www.coolwhois.com/

DNS Stuff: http://www.dnsstuff.com/

Central Ops: http://centralops.net/co/

Sam Spade: http://www.samspade.org/

The Beacon Bulletin

And There Goes The Truth As An Absolute Defense

Acquire Abandoned Domains & Unusual Law Firm Names

Free Laptop Lojack

The Best Things In Life Are Free (Software)

Small Phones; Big Ears: Phone Security Breaches

Who's Your Daddy? Paternity Testing

Email - True Or Scam?

Finding Old Faces In The New Year

Happy Holidays & Some Snark!

SeeThruNY (not Illinois)

We Can't Let This Bank Fail

Locate Email Addresses In 8 Seconds

CarFax - Some, Not All, Of The Facts

One-Stop Legal Shop

Sex Sells; Lawyers Prove It

Drawing A Line In The Cement: NYCRR: Sidewalks

IP Theft - Not If but When

DIY Background Checks From Your Desk

Emergency Info and the Hollaback Girls

French Maids Teach Video Podcasting

Ladies Nites In; Lawyer Hollander Out

Your Public Face

Getting Your Email Through

A New Avenue to Prior Notice To The City?

Hiring An Expert Witness Re: Whistling At Work

Your Firm's Bottom Line: Increasing Advertising ROI

Accessing Potentially Helpful Video For Your Case

Calling it Quits: When to Terminate an Employee

Your Fake International Driver's Permit

SeeThruNY: Online NYS Gov't Employee Database

LockPicking Courses OnLine - From Your House to the White House

Backyard Danger: New Pool Regs/NYS

In A Down Market; Increase Your Firm's Business, Part II/II

10 Marketing Don'ts For Your Practice - Part I/II

Anyone Can View Your Office, Your Home, Your Home Office:Google

You're On Vacation: The Burglars Aren't. Security Tips

MedMal Research - It wasn't the Right Leg??

911 Transcripts Decoded - What Is a 10-86 or 10-100??

Finding the Unfindable - Transient Subject Locates

When The Cops Get It Wrong; Investigating Your Client's Case

Is Your Client Meeting Secretly Being Taped?

Ripped Off Online? 10 Steps That'll Get You Results

Secure Internet Access On The Road

Are You Helping Identity Thieves?

Taped Recordings (Video) Part II/II: Dos & Don'ts

Wiretapping: Part I

Bulletin Goes Technorati

Free Services, For Real

CyberLaw Issued a Copyright?

Freebie Marketing Tip For Your Firm

Hi. Rob My House In Three Easy Steps

Why Proper Slip/Trip & Fall Intake Surveys can Make or Break You...

Identity Theft: Non-Internet related....

Building Higher - Better, But More Dangerous?

Free GPS (KInda.. But It's Still Free & Works!)

Unlike GPS (global positioning system), which relies on Earth orbiting-satellites to transmit microwave signals to determine location, speed, direction and time, Google's "My Location" function operates by triangulating these factors using your cell phone's tower transmissions.

With My Location, you can:

view real time traffic

obtain detailed directions (whether you are walking or driving...)

integrate local information (businesses and contacts in the area) and

view aerial images of the desired location(s)

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Web savvy.As always - stay safe,Lina

When You Absolutely, Positively Need to Be Online...

Lights, Camera... NYC Traffic Camera Locations

How Safe is Your Money? If You're Banking Online...

Viral Marketing

Vehicle Accident Checklist

Gaining/Boosting Your WiFi Signal While Traveling

How To Tell If Your Phone Is Bugged

Hidden Cell Phone Features & Free 411

Public Image Profiling: How Others Find What About You

Recover Lost or Deleted Files - FREE & ASAP

No Ground Markings; No Witnesses - Impact Speed Determination

Witness Statement Checklist (for MVAs)

Kelly Chang, Esq.: Online Marketing Genius

Diabetic Reaction or Drunk Driving?

How Not To Commit A Misdemeanor While Process Serving

Password Management for the Legal Office

Employee SSN Verifications and a Live Job Interview

BNI Operatives: Street smart: Web savvy.

As always - stay safe,

Lina