The New Forensics: Investigating Corporate Fraud and the Theft of Intellectual Property Review

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(More customer reviews)The New Forensics is a fascinating account of the ways in which some unlikely and unsung heroes of the digital age ' forensic accounting specialists ' ferret out evidence of crimes ranging from corporate fraud to homicide, from intellectual property piracy to secretion of assets from Holocaust victims in Swiss banks. This is no dry textbook: the author obviously has a deep passion for his subject matter and a natural gift for storytelling, both of which come across in an easily readable, almost breezy prose style. In an interwoven series of stories of greed, arrogance and shady dealings ' some well known, like Enron and WorldCom, others not so well known - the author gives even the novice a comprehensible education in computer forensics and accounting concepts without "dumbing down" or oversimplifying these topics. Though the techniques used by the investigators and described in this book reflect the state of the art at the time the investigations were conducted, the human weaknesses and strengths that underlie the use of technology both to perpetrate and uncover misconduct are timeless, and they are ultimately the real subject matter of this fine book. For what it has to say, and for way in which the author tells these stories, this book ought to be required introductory reading on college campuses and in business and law schools. In fact, anyone who is interested in real-life crime drama, in computer and software technology and high-tech sleuthing, or in the rise and fall of the "dot-com/dot-gone" economy, will enjoy this book. Highly recommended.

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An in-depth look at the tools, techniques, and tactics used in computer forensicsThe New Forensics introduces readers to the world of business forensics, using interesting vignettes, interviews, and actual crime reports. It examines recent cases in which the use of computer forensics led to evidence linking executives to fraud and covers issues such as the theft of trade secrets, the use of data mining, money laundering, and other types of theft and fraud. Author Joe Anastasi, a well-respected leader in computer and business forensics, leads the reader on a shadowy journey through top-secret government offices and real-life business investigations while covering the moral and legal issues surrounding corporate crime. Case studies, stories, and interviews help highlight important issues and move the book out of the theoretical into the realm of actual practice.Joe Anastasi (San Francisco, CA) serves as the Global Leader for Deloitte Forensics, which includes the operation of several Cybercrime Computer Forensics labs located around the world. He is a member of the High-Tech Crime Investigation Association and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

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Tactical Transparency: How Leaders Can Leverage Social Media to Maximize Value and Build their Brand (J-B International Association of Business Communicators) Review

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(More customer reviews)Holtz and Havens put together the business book I've been hoping for. The premise of this groundbreaking business-strategy book is that companies need to be more forthcoming with information about the internal workings of their business. There are three "publics" that a business deals with, according to this book: external (the public), internal (employees) and investors.
From Enron to AIG, opacity in how executives make decisions has cost investors, employees and investors dearly, and the government is stepping up regulations to force companies to be more transparent. Holtz and Havens show that companies that have been transparent all along--with liberal employee-blog policies, social marketing policies and releasing what was once sensitive information (financials, research, opinions, and the handling of corporate mistakes and blunders)--have always fared better and retained the loyalty of their publics even in bad times.
There are concerns to being transparent. Some information is not for competitors' eyes, and some information cannot be legally exposed, especially in publicly traded companies. But the argument for releasing as much information as possible is put forth quite admirably.
By being transparent, a company becomes motivated by honesty, not greed. The employees have a better understanding if the bottom line, and investors feel more confident about the management decisions. A two-way conversation with the public means that a company is better positioned to compete.
The most important points that Holtz and Havens make are that corporate transparency is a legal, moral and competitive requirement, and that transparency among businesses is inevitable, that opacity is not only futile, but self-destructive.
I strongly recommend this book, with a rating of A+. Not only was I inspired by what Holtz and Havens wrote, I am moved to incorporate their ideas into the Flying Pen Press way of business.


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While exposing the risks inherent in maintaining a nontransparent relationship with customers, Tactical Transparency provides a methodology that will help your organization create its unique plan to bring greater authenticity to your company and your brands. Drawn largely from interviews with leaders in companies that have achieved measurable success in this arena, authors Shel Holtz and John C. Havens provide step-by-step details on how executives and professional communicators can create a transparency strategy that will keep their organization competitive in the twenty-first century. The authors show how organizations can evaluate their readiness for transparency, what they need to do to get ready, and how to effectively communicate their transparency strategy to their customers and employees. They also identify aspects of blog/new media "netiquette" an important but often misunderstood part of engaging in transparency.

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Silver Bullets: How Interoperable Data Will Revolutionize Information Sharing and Transparency Review

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(More customer reviews)Pete O'Dell has really hit the mark with his new book. A day doesn't go past when an executive asks members of our team how they should think about their IT design and strategy with respect to data, information, and knowledge about their business, customers and suppliers. O'Dell's book provides an easy to read and understand analysis of why the next wave is data interoperability...everyone needs to understand what the concept is and how it will transform every industry... especially the industry they compete in. Bill Lang, Author "Scores on the Board - The 5 Part System for Building Skills, teams and Businesses" and CEO Bill Lang International - Business Improvement Solutions.Scores on the Board: The 5-Part System for Building Skills, Teams and Businesses (J-B Foreign Imprint Series - Australia)

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Silver Bullets isn't about understanding the technology of standard, interoperable data; it's about why the technology is important and how you can use it.If you care about effective operations, no matter your job title, this book is for you.Interoperable data is a major game changer for business and information technology, government and commercial, national and international organizations. This book will let you make it happen, versus wondering what happened and how you were left behind.As Frederick Brooks famously noted in The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering, there is no single-approach solution - no Silver Bullet - that delivers significant improvements in productivity, reliability, or simplicity. But in Silver Bullets, Pete O'Dell shows how a single concept - standardized data interoperability - yields improvements in any industry to which it is applied.O'Dell builds his case by reviewing the past. From the Great Wall of China to shipping containers, from punched cards to the VISA network, standardization has fueled enormous breakthroughs. O'Dell investigates current data standardization including XML and the Common Alerting Protocol, using case studies to illustrate success stories ranging from homeland defense to diabetes management.Finally, O'Dell offers practical suggestions on how to get started with interoperable data and points to emerging leaders in commercial, governmental and not-for-profit fields.This accessible, plain-spoken book is full of parables, anecdotes and stories, delivering humor as well as insight. Reading it enables you to make practical decisions about your organization's future and growth. Silver Bullets shines a clear light into your inoperable future.--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Open Government: Collaboration, Transparency, and Participation in Practice Review

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(More customer reviews)The most basic definition of open government is the idea that people have the right to access the documents and proceedings of government. Being able to closely examine decisions, policies, and procedures is foundational to having the ability to make intelligent and informed decisions as a citizen, especially in a democracy where an informed electorate is vital if good choices are to be made by voters when selecting leaders or holding them accountable.
The Open Government movement is not officially organized as a group or party, rather it is a growing collection of concerned citizens who want to help create better government by increasing citizens' access to information. It has been heavily influenced by the open source software movement and has similar aims: increased collaboration through making options available to any interested party willing to read and study, increased transparency by making source materials freely available for anyone to peruse and examine, and increased participation by eliminating closed systems wherever possible. While this idea was broadcast most widely in the campaign and early days of Barack Obama's presidency, this is not a one-sided political issue as much as it is an Enlightenment era system of belief, enshrined in the United States' Declaration of Independence and Constitution, now being updated for the digital era which is filled with technologies which could make those ideals more easily fulfilled.
Open Government: Collaboration, Transparency, and Participation in Practice is a collection of 34 essays written by a wide variety of people who are interested in both promoting the philosophy of open government and in suggesting practical ways to implement procedures that will assist in applying that philosophy. The range of topics covered is diverse and interesting. Included are thoughts about governmental uses of information technology that currently limit openness and specific recommendations for remedying the problems, creating a wider variety of methods for people to access government data and increasing access across society, enabling greater innovation among those not directly connected to government such as through the creation of specific APIs so that outside research may be more easily accomplished using government collected data (paid for with public funds via taxes and therefore publicly owned data). We have essays that consider new and effective ways for current government officials to communicate more easily and directly with the people who elected them, discussions of how increased openness in government could decrease the influence of monied interests in governmental policy and could replace that with a greater influence by and for the electorate. There are clear and logical presentations on topics like why using open standards for data storage matters, especially with regards to publicly owned data as collected and used by governments, as well as some great arguments for the use of open source software to make government more efficient, transparent, and flexible in a rapidly changing world.
I greatly appreciate that this book exists. I would love for a copy to end up in the hands of every member of the government as well as any interested person planning to run for an office. These are policies that would greatly benefit the original intent of the founders of the United States (of which I am a citizen and where the book was written) and would be useful in any nation willing to carefully read and consider the ideas being proffered.
If this topic is of any interest to you, and I argue that it should be, this book would benefit you in your thinking. Go find a copy and read it.

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In a world where web services can make real-time data accessible to anyone, how can the government leverage this openness to improve its operations and increase citizen participation and awareness? Through a collection of essays and case studies, leading visionaries and practitioners both inside and outside of government share their ideas on how to achieve and direct this emerging world of online collaboration, transparency, and participation.

Contributions and topics include:

Beth Simone Noveck, U.S. Deputy Chief Technology Officer for open government, "The Single Point of Failure"
Jerry Brito, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, "All Your Data Are Belong to Us: Liberating Government Data"
Aaron Swartz, cofounder of reddit.com, OpenLibrary.org, and BoldProgressives.org, "When Is Transparency Useful?"
Ellen S. Miller, executive director of the Sunlight Foundation, "Disrupting Washington's Golden Rule"
Carl Malamud, founder of Public.Resource.Org, "By the People"
Douglas Schuler, president of the Public Sphere Project, "Online Deliberation and Civic Intelligence"
Howard Dierking, program manager on Microsoft's MSDN and TechNet Web platform team, "Engineering Good Government"
Matthew Burton, Web entrepreneur and former intelligence analyst at the Defense Intelligence Agency, "A Peace Corps for Programmers"
Gary D. Bass and Sean Moulton, OMB Watch, "Bringing the Web 2.0 Revolution to Government"
Tim O'Reilly, founder and CEO of O'Reilly Media, "Defining Government 2.0: Lessons Learned from the Success of Computer Platforms"

Open Government editors:

Daniel Lathrop is a former investigative projects reporter with the Seattle Post Intelligencer who's covered politics in Washington state, Iowa, Florida, and Washington D.C. He's a specialist in campaign finance and "computer-assisted reporting" -- the practice of using data analysis to report the news. Laurel Ruma is the Gov 2.0 Evangelist at O'Reilly Media. She is also co-chair for the Gov 2.0 Expo.

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