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Sharing thoughts and ideas on business, security and photographyGuest lecture to UKZN 2014 MBA Class : Security & Ethics
Posted on August 24, 2014In this past week I once again had the pleasure of speaking with the UKZN MBA Class. It is always a pleasure to speak to a large group of some of the brightest minds in KZN. Unlike other presentations, these sessions are normally quite interactive and the class willing to share their ideas, experiences and questions.
What stands out for me in this set of discussions were three key diversions.
1. Bank fraud, and the divergence in opinions between the bank representatives and victims (customers)
There is always a lot of interest in, and debate over on-line frauds as they affect individuals. We all know someone, if not ourselves, who has been hit through some kind of bank fraud. In the class were a number of (un-named) employees of various (nameless) banks. They were adamant that the banks do their utmost to refund their customers in the event of frauds. The victims, however, had a polar opposite view and experience. They contended that the banks make it difficult to get your money back, denying, obstructing and delaying in the process while the victim suffers through no having access to the affected funds. For a bank dealing with hundreds of thousands of affected customers and millions in losses, a month may be a short period to resolve such an incident. For a victim needing access to their funds, a month is a payday away and that money could mean the difference between being able to pay your bills or defaulting.
2. Online identities (and password management)
Online identities are increasingly becoming integrated with your professional life. When being hired more and more organisations scan these to see whether they wish to employ you. Whether this is done as part of the background checks (for which prospective employees normally sign permission) or through other means varies. However, needing to take control of and responsibility for your on-line identity is important. Also don’t forget about your children. They may not yet comprehend the gravity of the situation, and could be creating a fun-filled but wholly undesirable persona that they come to regret later in life when they join the job market and are unable to control or erase their past sharings.
Related to this discussion was the age old one of passwords and password re-use. The dangers of password re-use were discussed in detail with some schemes for password protection. The example of people using the same password across all on-line services, and then having the local camera club hacked, with usernames and passwords being revealed and then those same passwords being used to log into gmail, a facebook “I lost my password” event resulting in the password being mailed to gmail, and very quickly the entire on-line identity can be stolen.
Some tips : Use different passwords on-line, and at very least don’t use your primary mail account password anywhere else. It is better to use a password manager on your mobile (LastPass, Blackberry password keeper etc) then to re-use passwords. Also don’t use your phone address book to store passwords or bank pins and account numbers. If you use an iPhone or Android phone then this information is generally synchronised to the cloud, so when that Gmail account is hacked they also have all of your phone book without you ever knowing.
3. Return to old school
There was a comment / view put forward that with all of the information security breaches and discoveries of organisations and nation states lying to citizens about what is happening in this space that it would be better to return to the (golden) “olden days” . While that may appear to be the case, memory can be a strange thing. We often remember the good and forget the bad. Not so many years ago when cheques were still in common use cheque fraud was rife. The banks didnt like to disclose information on fraud (and still don’t) but some of the stats I remember seeing flashed up at fraud conferences indicate that the fraud we are seeing now is just a fraction of what was experienced at the peak of cheque fraud. Social media and the online information era just increase the level and speed of information sharing. The fewer incidents that happen now are just more widely reported and shared then ever before. Instances of misrepresentation and abuse by companies(and countries) are now more widely shared and reported, what is not clear is whether the actual occurrences are on the rise or just more visible.
We cannot go back in time, we need to move with the times. That said a dose of healthy skepticism in all we are doing can only be a good thing. Ask questions until your are satisfied with the answers. You may choose to trust, but trust and verify, don’t trust blindly.
Finally
Embedded below is a link to download the slides. Thanks for attending the sessions and for participating. Feel free to drop me any questions you may have (or leave them here).
Information Security and Ethics 2014 August 2014
Thanks Andrew for the invitation and facilitating the discussion.
Finally tried Uber (X), great service!
Posted on August 23, 2014I finally got around to trying out Uber last night. I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the experience. Everything was just slick, pleasant and worked. I ordered the ride off my phone (using the App I had installed the week before), it gave me the estimated time of arrival of the driver, his name and the car registration and details of the vehicle. He arrived right on time and Mthokozisi was very pleasant. He had been working for Uber for 6 months and seemed quite happy with them as an employer.
I was delivered home 12 minutes later, right to the address I had entered when I ordered the car. In-between ordering my ride and arriving home my phone battery had gone flat, so I was concerned it may have been an issue but not to be. My credit card details were preloaded into the app so no issue with payment, and its all cashless. The trip cost is calculated based on a combination of time and distance. R7/km and 70 cents (or so) per minute. So my 12 minute 7.5km trip came to R65.59.
My trip was however free as there is an UberX launch campaign going on in Durban this weekend (See details below).
After the trip the driver “rated” me as a passenger and provided feedback on his Uber App. He asked me to do the same on mine (which I did a few minutes later). A short while after I also received a follow-up email from Uber summarising the journey, the costs, time, and showing the exact route. All super slick.
If you are interested, then download the app and sign up. It’s free. If you use promo code Uberjjza you can get R90 credited to your account (and I get R90 too). Furthermore, if you enter the second promo code UBERXDBN you can get six uberX rides in Durban, up to R250 in value each, until Sun 24 Aug 2014 at 11pm.
It is no wonder that Uber is changing the face of personalised public transport across the Globe. I don’t see myself using conventional Taxi services again. Install the App and give them a try, you will be pleasantly surprised. Whats really cool is you can use the App to get quotes of how much it would be for various trips, so you can already price the trip to and from the rugby / motor cycle event etc.
Share you experiences, good (or bad) once you have given it a go.
Below is a screenshot of the summary mail that arrived post trip (with address and credit card digits removed)
Summary mail
New location for Nespresso in Durban (updated with pics)
Posted on March 28, 2013I received an SMS from Nespresso the other day to say they are currently located at 254 Lilian Ngoyi Road (formerly Windermere road). Their new phone number is 031-303 3374.
Having struggled in the past to find them, and the fact the address and number is not listed on www.nespresso.co.za nor does it come up on a Google search, this may be useful to some of you looking for them.
Update : So as you drive up Windermere road, their shop is a converted house on the right hand side, you can see the palms outside. As you get closer you can see the sign on the road facing part of the building to the left of the palms. At this point you want to be slowing down already as they have off-street parking. and it is easy to miss. The parking is right up against the building, and the solid island does stop so you can turn right into the parking. The security guard will have to open the boom for you.
While you are here, if you are interested in some other Nespresso compatible pods (depending on your machine) take a look at this post.
The Nespresso experience
Posted on December 29, 2011A month and a half ago I had the privilege of visiting Valencia, Spain. During the time there we drank a lot of coffee, and everywhere we went, including the hotel breakfast area, the places served Nespresso. The coffee had a nice frothy head and was consistently enjoyable. Some places had self-service and the machine was quick and easy to use. I decided I would get one. Conveniently there was a Nespresso shop located just behind the hotel so I popped over and bought some of the required coffee capsules. At this point I discovered that the “home use” capsules were little cup-shaped ones and different from the flat industrial ones. The sales person assured me the taste would be the same as all Nespresso machines used the same high pressure 19-bar pressure pump to produce the required high quality coffee experience. I purchased my first 6 strips (of 10 capsules each) of Nespresso coffee – having now bought into the programme.
When I got back to SA I went to my local shopping centre (Pavilion) and checked out all the options. I found the same pricing across all the stores, and although I could have saved a few hundred rand having it shipped from Amazon (UK )I was too impatient to wait. After trawling the mall between the various stores trying to figure out which was the right one for me, I finally bought the CitiZ (with Milk) from a very helpful sales lady at Boardmans (the only shop with someone who knew their product).
With the machine came a R350 voucher to be used for the purchase of coffee pods. Marvelous, well, except that they had no vouchers, but confirmed a few days later per telephone that I just needed to take my till slip down to Springfield (no address provided) and they would give me the voucher and let me buy some coffee.
Since I had the coffee I bought in Spain and the machine came with a starter pack (one capsule each of the 16 flavours in the range) it wasn’t too much of a problem.
Early last week I was finally in Durban on a “working day” so I decided to try to find the Durban supplier. It wasn’t listed on the www.nespresso.co.za website at all, only addresses for Cape Town (at the Waterfront) and Johannesburg were supplied.
I tried calling them a few times (found the number on Google), only to get a recorded message suggesting I call Jhb. So I took a chance and headed down to what I thought was the address (Google again) :
7 Springfield Ind Pk, 7 Willowfield Cres, Springfield Park, Durban (wrong)
I got there, no luck and no sign of the place. The security guard at the gate didn’t have a clue who or what Nespresso was. I sat in the car in the visitors parking and googled again. A few more addresses came up but none turned out to be correct :
Unit 28 Springfield Ind Pk 7 Willowfield Cres Springfield Park Durban (wrong)
13 Springfield Industrial Park, 9 Mahoganyfield , Springfield Park, Durban (wrong)
Taking a chance I put Nespresso into the TomTom. Big thumbs up to TomTom, they got me to the place.
Real Address : Unit 28 Springfield Industrial Park, 9 Mahogany Way, Springfield Park, Durban
Update : They have moved again. Current address : 254 Lilian Ngoyi Road (Formerly Windermere Road). Phone : 031 303 3374 (link here)
When I eventually got there, the staff were friendly and helpful. I filled in two sets of forms, they then produced the magical voucher, took my order, which ended up being 10 strips at a total of R576 (Average of R5.76 per cup), less the R350 voucher for a pay in of R226. I was happy with my haul and we have been enjoying the coffee ever since.
By way of comparison, I bought my first 6 strips of capsules in Valencia, Spain, at 3.55 euros each. At an exchange rate of R11/Euro that works out at R39 a strip (R3.90 a cup), so we are paying a premium of 36% here in South Africa. Could be worse I guess, but makes me wish I had bought more over there.
The machine itself, I bought the CitiZ&Milk (the left one in the pictures above) which according to the detail on the European site seems to be made by DeLonghi (it has the pipe-like spout rather than the tear drop one). It works really well, the milk frother is great, though a bit of a pain to clean.
I am delighted with this coffee machine, the simplicity and consistency is just great, and each time I have a cup I am reminded of my time in Spain.
I know a lot of people have said that Nespresso is over priced, and that I could have bought a machine, which freshly grinds the coffee from the bean for each cup, for only a little more than the price of the Nespresso machine. Such a machine uses coffee beans which work out lass than half the price per cup. I looked (briefly) at that option. The machines had too many settings, buttons, nozzles etc (for me). The R5,70 odd per cup of Nespresso isn’t cheap but is a whole lot less than having coffee out at the local coffee shops, is just as nice, and I get to have it while waking up.
The Nespresso machine is great because it simply just works. You can’t really get it wrong and you consistently get that great cup of coffee. I am very happy with it and my guests have been too. It is really quick to make a cup of coffee, taking a minute or less to warm up from a cold start, and each cup you make thereafter takes only a few seconds. No mess, no fuss and easy to keep clean.
I am sold on the Nespresso experience and would recommend it to anyone.
Table of comparative pricing information (Europe to SA) below :
New Page : Things to do (and beers to try) in South Africa
Posted on June 30, 2011I have added a new page to the blog, Things to do (and beers to try).
From time to time (and not enough) I have posted about cool things to see and do, from riding Segway at Spier to driving the awesome Blokarts on the beach. So last night I added the page to start. Hopefully in time it acts as a useful resource to those looking for cool stuff to do, and as a reminder to me of the things I have done and wish to do. Got cool stuff to do, share it. Have a different view on something written, share that too.
Onto Beer
Over the years whenever I have been in the UK I have really enjoyed their beer. Not the bottled stuff available in the franchised bars, but the hand pumped “Real Ale” in the privately owned public house – Bitter beer. Thank’s to my mate Steve for the introduction.
The closest I have come to finding it in South Africa is “Kilkenny” available at most pubs that serve Guinness. It is a poor second cousin to some of the better English bitters but I still drink and enjoy it. I even had the privilege of drinking the “real” Kilkenny at a pub near the brewery in Ireland.
So now let us begin the quest to document “real” beer in South Africa. To visit, taste and enjoy as many of these local beers from the small guys as we can.
The page is always on the menu at the top of the page, so click through there, or here : Things to do (and beers to try)
ISACA SA Chapter meetings in October (Dbn, Jhb, Pta) #in
Posted on August 25, 2010Three of the ISACA chapters are having meetings in October. Details are below and will be updated as confirmation of speakers is obtained. Don’t forget the #isaca2010 conference in September.
KZN regional chapter meeting
- Date : 7 October 2010
- Venue : PKF Offices in Umhlanga
- Topic : To be confirmed
Pretoria regional chapter meeting
- Date : 14 October 2010
- Venue : To be confirmed
- Topic : To be confirmed
Johannesburg regional chapter meeting
- Date : 26 October 2010
- Venue : To be confirmed
- Topic : To be confirmed
Confirmation of attendance
As always, please confirm your attendance with Nadine on 011-803 0803 or admin@isaca.org.za a few days ahead of time.
ISACA KZN – A tale of two cities – and frameworks
Posted on July 27, 2010The topic and speaker for the next ISACA KZN Chapter meeting (Thu 5th August 2010 at EY’s offices on La Lucia Ridge) is now confirmed. After much deliberation and debate, the speaker is non other than yours truly.
Topic : ” A tale of two cities – and control frameworks”
Speaker : Justin Williams
This is the same presentation that I gave at the IT Web conference earlier in the year. If you caught the presentation there you are still welcome to come along and contribute to the discussion/debate on the topic.
The meeting will take place at Ernst & Young in the main Boardroom, 2pm start with the presentation kicking off at 2:30pm, we need to be out by 4:30pm.
Attendees please confirm with Nadine (for catering purposes) by no later than 12:00hrs Friday 30th July 2010. Contact: – 011 803 0803 – admin@isaca.org.za
ISACA KZN Chapter meeting, Thu 5th August 2010
Posted on July 23, 2010The next KZN ISACA Chapter meeting is scheduled to take place on Thursday 5 August 2010. This meeting was going to take place at Deloitte, however, there has now been a change in plans.
The meeting will take place at Ernst & Young in the main Boardroom, 2pm start with the presentation kicking off at 2:30pm, we need to be out by 4:30pm.
With the planned speaker having canceled on me I am still busy organising a replacement speaker. This will be confirmed early next week. Anybody wishing to speak at the event (or having any good ideas for a speaker/topic) is welcome to drop me a mail or tweet me.
Attendees please confirm with Nadine (for catering purposes) by no later than 12:00hrs Friday 30th July 2010. Contact: – 011 803 0803 – admin@isaca.org.za
ISG (Whitehat) Durban June meeting : Information Warfare
Posted on June 13, 2010The details for the next ISG Durban (White Hat) meeting :
Title: Information Warfare
Speaker: Brett van Niekerk
Date: 17 June 2010
Time: 18:30
Venue: Elephant Room, M Block, UKZN Westville Campus
If you have any problems or need help getting to the venue, email ralfepoisson@gmail.com or drop me a mail and I will provide you with whatever details you need.
To get to the Elephant Room, first follow the map to get to M block, then go through the door to the right, in front of you there will be the access the LANs (light blue turnstiles and a door), the door will be open, go through and listen for the voices 
ISACA SA KZN Regional Chapter Meeting – 17 June 2010
Posted on May 20, 2010Details for the next ISACA SA KZN Regional Chapter meeting.
Region: Durban, KZN
Date: 17 June 2010
Time: 2:30pm for 3pm
Venue: KPMG Services (Proprietary) Limited, 20 Kingsmead Boulevard, Kingsmead Office Park, Durban 4000
Farzana Badat – Compliance Services (Financial Risk Management) will be presenting: “Privacy – Protection of Personal Information”
Overview: Information protection principles. Understanding the practical implications of the PPI Bill for industry. What other organisations are doing to get ready for the PPI Bill. Critical success factors for privacy implementation along with examples of privacy breaches.
Members are encouraged to invite one non-Isaca member to attend the chapter meeting.
Please note:
· These meetings are free of charge to all members and their guests, there is no charge to attend.
· Remember that attendance at Chapter meetings counts towards CPE hours.
· Please RSVP by no later than 15:00hrs Friday, 11 June 2010 to Nadine: admin@isaca.org.za
Please remember that attendance at ISACA events have cost implications for the chapter. We respectfully ask members not to arrive at events unless you have confirmed your attendance by the due date. Likewise, if you have confirmed your attendance, please endeavour to attend the event.
See more ISACA events at the ISACA website.
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