The Insurance Tech Guru

The new Microsoft Windows Vista operating system, as well as the 2007 release of Microsoft Office, will offer a higher level of data security and user account control, features that will aid insurance operations in maintaining compliance with federal and state regulations, a Microsoft executive said.

ComputerWorld recently reported on the theft of yet another laptop computer that contains vital, sensitive, private information on innocent people. It seems there's no end to these incidents, but the way I see it, this is nothing that the Mission Impossible team couldn't cure.

Probably no one was looking more forward to hearing William Shatner's address at this year's ACORD LOMA Systems Forum than yours truly, but in the end, I had to sympathize with one showgoer who lamented, "Another childhood icon bites the dust."

Depending on your point of view, "global warming" may either be the most significant technological issue of our century--or the most egregious technological hoax of the millennium.

It never fails. Whenever I attend an insurance technology conference, I can be sure someone will ask, “So what have you seen that’s new or impressive?”

Well, it had to happen, folks. Just when you thought it was safe to take the family out for a steak or a burger, here comes a blogger with an article that implies that encouraging the beef industry to grow its products is tantamount to eco-terrorism!

Look! Up in the Sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's.... The Tech Guru!

Unless you've been paying close attention, you might not have noticed that the Internet Tax Freedom Act is about to expire on Nov. 1, and unless Congress does something about it, this could result in a whole new spate of taxes from local or state authorities on Internet access.

To recognize the efforts of innovative agencies using technology to improve service, boost productivity and reduce costs, National Underwriter--in partnership with ACORD--is launching the inaugural “NU Agency Technology Achievement Award.”

It seems that whenever you read about hackers, malware and other security problems in the insurance industry, the focus is on protecting carriers. But what about agents?

Despite our parents' assertions that "beauty is only skin deep," it turns out that appearances--at least insofar as they reflect the utility of software user interfaces--are very important in enterprise software buying decisions.

It happened nearly a month ago, but it's still big news. Microsoft's Kevin Kelly, a long-standing, high-profile insurance technology advocate, has moved to Brea, Calif.-based XDimensional Technologies, Inc.

Relax! The deadline for entries for the inaugural National Underwriter “Agency Technology Achievement Award,” launched in partnership with ACORD, has been extended to Feb. 25.

According to an article in Computerworld, a security strategist at Microsoft says the company's Windows Vista OS has seen about half as many vulnerabilities in its first year of availability as Windows XP did in its initial year.

In what might be an unexpected bit of common sense, a research firm has found that high-tech and computer firms rank highly on how well they treat their online customers, especially in comparison to other industries.

IBM has announced the launch of its new System z10 mainframe computer, delivering what the Armonk, N.Y.-based company claims is "up to 100 percent performance increase" and a design that will "drastically increase efficiency."

InformationWeek reports that in a contest of hackers, a MacBook Air was easily compromised within two minutes using a zero-day vulnerability (a vulnerability that is exploited for hacking before it generally becomes known) in Apple's Safari 3.1 Web browser.

Global warming advocates and opportunists were no doubt shocked and dismayed to learn in recent weeks that, rather than warming up, the Earth's temperature appears to have decreased over the past decade.

Data—specifically customer information—is the very lifeblood of the insurance enterprise. Not surprisingly, then, ownership and stewardship of that data is a subject on which many in our industry disagree.

If you were there, or if you've been reading the online news, you may have a fair idea of what went on at this year's ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum, but if you've read this blog at all, what you're really after is the underlying trends, secret murmurs and inside scoops that swirled about the conference in Las Vegas. Not being one to disappoint, I will be happy to share.

Popular new devices like Apple’s iPhone have reignited the debate over ‘consumerization’--where new technologies are introduced into the consumer market and then brought into the enterprise market--with employees determined to integrate their personal devices with their enterprise applications. However, IT managers are reluctant to take on the responsibility of managing these devices, according to a new report by independent market analyst Datamonitor.

Two U.S. House of Representatives members reported recently that their computers on Capitol Hill containing information about political dissidents had been hacked by sources "apparently working out of China," several stories said this week.

While the insurance industry and high-profile political candidates bow their heads at the altar of global warming (witness the baffling obeisance of Senator McCain), the senior meteorologist at AccuWeather.com has published an open letter to the presidential candidates calling for an unbiased looked at the alleged phenomenon.

According to a recent report in Computerworld, Microsoft Corp. has outlined new security features that it plans to add to Internet Explorer next month, including anti-malware protection and a filter said to block most cross-site scripting attacks.

A recent story in USA Today notes that "civil liberties advocates" are concerned that a color laser printer technology will lead to government spying on political dissidents, whistleblowers, or "anyone who prints materials that authorities want to track."