Leave the coverage to us

Travelers heading for the sun or the slopes this winter will probably notice a jump in the price of getting away from it all. The culprits this time are not the airlines but the leading U.S. car-rental agencies, which are imposing their first significant price increases in several years. Last week Hertz increased its rates as much as 5%, and Avis said it plans to do likewise within the year. Other rental agencies are expected to follow the industry leaders before long.

The car rental companies are responding in part to a loss of revenue from one of their most expensive options: collision insurance. Until recently many car-rental customers paid as much as $ 13 a day for so-called collision-damage waivers to protect themselves against liability for any repair costs in case their vehicles were damaged. But many mat or credit-card companies now offer such coverage to their cardholders at no cost whenever they charge a rental. As a result, more and more consumers decline the pricey waivers. In the most sweeping move so far, American Express began offering the collision coverage last week to its more than 11 million green-card holders. The American Express action, says Joseph Russo, a Hertz-vice president, "begins the de facto elimination of the CDW by car-rental companies".

Rental-car firms have long maintained that CDW are reasonably priced, and that most of the revenues from them go toward repairing vehicles. But now at least, some car-rental executives consider that the CDW has been money-maker all along. The Hertz rate increase, says Russo, is "primarily, designed to take care of the revenue loss" that will follow American Express green-card coverage.

Task 22. Translate the text.

Taking a byte out of crime: some guidelines on computer theft prevention

BY SALLY J. BLANK

Business computers have lent a pernicious sophistication - even a glamor -to white-collar crime in its myriad forms. We hear awe-in spiting stories of slick data processing bandits who embezzle fortunes at the touch of a button, and then publish spectacular memoirs from their minimum-security cells - or then" Swiss retreats - to the shock of the business world.

But when you look at the hard figures of computer crime, they are anything but glamorous. The theft of information committed more often than not through a computer - costs us as much as $20 billion a year, reports the National Institute of Justice. And where the average bank robbery pulls in a mere $15,000, the average computer theft nets a neat $400,000, and can be committed in less than three milliseconds.

Such efficiency is enhanced by incredible post-crime odds. According to August Bequal, white-collar crime expert and author of How to Prevent Computer Crime (Wiley, 1983), the likelihood of a computer crime being discovered by the authorities is one in a hundred. Technological advances grow at a rate leaps and bounds ahead of law enforcement's ability to keep up, says Bequal. And hard evidence is a scarce commodity in computer capers, where a thief can cover his or her tracks with the touch of a button, making prosecution very difficult for victimized companies.

What, then can management do to protect itself against such costly ripoffs? Data security experts all cite four main activities for employers and managers: keep your eyes open and know the danger signals; install and maintain strict prevention measures; know how to effectively investigate possible crimes in-house; and know what laws might apply, if worse comes to worst and you must "sell" your case to government prosecutors.

Warning signals

Several red flags can signal alert managers that a fellow employee could be a "'wolf in sheep's clothing", says Louis Scoma, founder and CEO of Houston-based Data Processing Security, Inc., which has aided over 650 companies with their computer security systems since 1970. Consider the following:

Does one of your employees consistently come in early and stay after hours -with no visible results from the extra hours of work?

Have you recently fired an employee who had access to sensitive information? Do you have any such workers on staff who are disgruntled with the company for any reason?

Do any of your employees with access to sensitive data to the personal microcomputers to and from the office in order to do extra work?

Did an employee you transferred from headquarters to a branch office come back to "clean out his desk" or "visit old friends" even though he knew the security codes had been change?

Has your company experienced a recent increase in data processing needs, while you have not upgraded your security system to accommodate the change?

"If you have answered yes to two or more of these questions," says Scoma, "double-check your security system and the people responsible for keeping it intact. If you don't, you could be headed for high-tech trouble."

An ounce of prevention

According to the Better Business Bureau, the vast majority of computer crimes are preventable. Managers must be aware that technology creates myriad opportunities for crime, and that installation of computer equipment and installation of security measures should go hand in hand. Although the following measures may seem like common sense, consider them in light of your company's own practices. How many are fully followed?

Employee hiring. Conduct thorough background checks on all potential EDP employees. Check with former employers; get references - both professional and personal. Verify technical skills, and check credit histories.

Controlling access to facilities. Maintain a log book with times and names of all who have access to the computer facilities. Allow only employees who work with the computer to sign it. Confirm and verify any service calls, and have a company employee accompany any technician to the worksite.

Physical security. Separate computer facilities from other departments, in a secure, isolated area with few windows or doors, adequate lighting, secure locks, and, if possible, a security guard at each entrance. Provide the appropriate personnel with proper identification that can be verified at the entrance, such as photo or fingerprint IDs.