DHS, FBI and DOJ Data Hacks Could Have Been Avoided, says Cybersecurity Expert and Consultant Edgar

NEW YORK - Feb. 13, 2016 - PRLog -- The recent hacker attack that compromised information from some 20,000 people employed by the Department of Justice, including Federal Bureau of Investigation officials, and another 9,000 from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) could have been prevented, said Edgar Perez, author of Knightmare on Wall Street and The Speed Traders, and presenter of the 3-Day Masterclass in Cybersecurity (http://www.terrapinntraining.com/training/3-Day-Masterclass-in-Cybersecurity/Hong%20Kong?E=8512).

According to technology news site Motherboard, the hacker had used spear phishing and simple human engineering to bypass one stage of the authorities' security systems. Motherboard quoted the hacker, who explained: "So I called up, told them I was new and I didn't understand how to get past [the portal]. They asked if I had a token code, I said no, they said that's fine - just use our one."

Mr. Perez, author, business consultant for private equity and hedge funds and Council Member at the Gerson Lehrman Group, took issue with the relatively ease with which hackers gained access to the organizations in charge of protecting the security of millions of Americans. "It is beyond my understanding how personnel of the Department of Homeland Security didn't take steps to verify an anonymous request from an alleged new employee. Furthermore, they provided the pseudo employee with a token code no questions asked. What this reveals is a dramatic lack of awareness of the very cyber risks the agency is tasked with fighting against."

This recent incident comes after a June data theft from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) that exposed the deeply researched security clearances of 21.5m current and former government employees and contractors, from phone numbers to fingerprints.

ABOUT 3-DAY MASTERCLASS IN CYBERSECURITY
As Internet usage becomes increasingly widespread and information technology ever more complex, cybersecurity is becoming an increasingly important and business-critical field. Are you and your organization effectively prepared to handle cybersecurity threats? Do you know how to identify threats and address challenges, and how to apply a cybersecurity framework?

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ABOUT KNIGHTMARE ON WALL STREET
Knightmare on Wall Street, The Rise and Fall of Knight Capital and the Biggest Risk for Financial Markets is a thrilling minute-by-minute account of the terrifying hours following Knight Capital's August 1, 2012 trading debacle, with news-breaking research regarding the firm's 17 years of tumultuous existence as an independent company. Knightmare on Wall Street is the definitive behind-the-scenes story of Knight Capital.

Knight Capital announced a staggering loss of $440 million. What followed after this shocking announcement were several rounds of desperate conversations with a number of vulture players who had smelled opportunity and were readying themselves to pick up bargain-priced pieces. On August 6, 2012, Joyce confirmed that Knight Capital had struck a deal with Jefferies, TD Ameritrade, Blackstone, GETCO, Stephens, and Stifel Financial, staving off collapse days after the trading mishap.

Knightmare on Wall Street provides a fascinating account of what it took to elevate the firm to the cusp of the retail investing revolution of the late 1990s, to struggle through booms and busts, and to bring the firm down, to end up ultimately being ignominiously bought up by a competitor.

ABOUT THE SPEED TRADERS
High-frequency traders have been called many things-from masters of the universe and market pioneers to exploiters, computer geeks, and even predators. Everyone in the business of investing has an opinion of speed traders, but how many really understand how they operate? The shadow people of the investing world, today's high-frequency traders have decidedly kept a low profile-until now. In this new title, The Speed Traders, Mr. Perez opens the door to the secretive world of high-frequency trading (HFT). Inside, prominent figures of HFT drop their guard and speak with unprecedented candidness about their trade.

Mr. Perez begins with an overview of computerized trading, which formally began on February 8, 1971, when NASDAQ launched the world's first electronic market with 2,500 over-the-counter stocks and which has evolved into the present-day practice of making multiple trades in a matter of microseconds. He then picks the brains of today's top players. Manoj Narang (Tradeworx), John Netto (M3 Capital), and Aaron Lebovitz (Infinium Capital Management) are just a few of the luminaries who decided to break their silence and speak openly to Mr. Perez. Virtually all of the expertise available from the world of speed trading is packed into these pages.

The Speed Traders, published by McGraw-Hill Inc., is the most comprehensive, revealing work available on the most important development in trading in generations. High-frequency trading will no doubt play an ever larger role as computer technology advances and the global exchanges embrace fast electronic access. The Speed Traders explains everything there is to know about how today's high-frequency traders make millions-one cent at a time.