Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Finance Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Money Management - Essay Example A rising benefit is a decent business include though a falling gainfulness is a terrible one. The net revenue shows the benefit that a business can create subsequent to meeting the different costs and expenses (Gitman, 2007, p.32). For the four divisions of Jools Furniture Industries Ltd this edge reflects blended signs. On account of Quality items division the net revenue has improved in the course of the most recent three years. In 2007 the overall revenue of this division was - 9.90%. In the following year the administration of the division had the option to eliminate the pointless uses pushing the overall revenue in the positive region. This further improved to 3.36% in 2009. For the Kitchen and Office division the net revenue uncovers a declining pattern. ... The ROI produced by all the divisions has been over 10% throughout the previous two years. Quality items division revealed the most noteworthy ROI for the year 2009 at 18.99%. The division detailed a negative ROI of 14.9% in 2007. Kitchen division announced a ROI of 12.75% in 2009. This figure was higher in 2007 at 17.97% and it dropped to 12.87% in the next year which is a fall of about 5%. In spite of an expansion in the turnover of the division the divisional administration neglected to support the gainfulness edge of the earlier year. Room division created the second most noteworthy ROI for 2009 at 14.63%. The arrival produced by this division was surprisingly better in the earlier years at 16.62% and 18.18% for 2007 and 2008 individually. Office division revealed the third most noteworthy ROI of the organization at 13.48%. In any event, for this division the arrival produced has dropped when contrasted with the most recent couple of years. Productivity The advantage turnover pro portion is a significant marker of the executives proficiency. A high proportion infers that the organization the executives has had the option to use the advantage base proficiently for example it has had the option to create more deals (Nelson, 2008, p.370). For Kitchen division this proportion has stayed more than two throughout the previous three years. In 2007 this proportion was 2.14 and it expanded to 2.19 in 2009. This shows the administration of this division has utilized the accessible resource base wisely and effectively. With the ascent in the benefit base in 2008 the administration detailed a higher turnover for example the division made ideal use of the accessible assets. On account of Office division this proportion has improved consistently in the course of the most recent three years. It expanded from 1.68 in 2007 to 2.10 in 2009 which is very noteworthy. This proposes the divisional chiefs are constantly

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Random Walk Down Wall Street essays

Arbitrary Walk Down Wall Street papers Burton G Malkiel, the writer of A Random Walk Down Wall Street, gives me the peruser a simple way comprehend data about close to home putting resources into todays financial exchange. The book is partitioned into four sections: Stocks and their qualities, the new venture innovation, a handy guide for arbitrary walkers and different financial specialists, and how the experts play the greatest game around. This book considers a wide range of perspectives for a person on what are the most ideal ways for that individual to put away their cash. The title of this book intends to me that one individual can't anticipate the future estimation of a stock by taking a gander at the historical backdrop of what it has done previously. In this way, in this new update, Malkiel thinks about his hypothesis that the market is difficult to beat whether one is a specialist or not. His realized hypothesis presently expresses that it may be conceivable to beat the market due to surtin procedures of stock c hoice. This book gives you the general rules in turning into a brilliant speculator on Wall Street. The one theroy that sounded good to me was Castle-in-the-Air. This hypothesis expresses that no stock has characteristic worth. the main worth a stock has is the thing that individuals are eager to pay for it, According to this hypothesis. I like this hypothesis since, it not just applies to stock worth, it applies to each private great. Somebody in chicago would pay much more for an umbrella than somebody in the Sahara desert. I concur with this, yet the specialized investigation I don't see totally. For what reason would I Looking at the past patterns to anticipate the future patterns. For what reason would I do this, I locate this moronic and absurd. I don't know how to express this but rather I will attempt, Trends are set by the condition that encompasses it I see, however isnt nature under steady change, so as I would see it how could the past foresee the future stock to rise. The major examination, is more arbitrary than some other ... <!

Tuesday, August 11, 2020

Hull, Cordell

Hull, Cordell Hull, Cordell kôrdel ´ [key], 1871â€"1955, American statesman, b. Overton co. (now Pickett co.), Tenn. Admitted to the bar in 1891, he sat (1893â€"97) in the Tennessee legislature and, after service in the Spanish-American War, was appointed (1903) circuit court judge. He served (1907â€"21, 1923â€"31) in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he was the author of important tax legislation. He was elected (1930) to the U.S. Senate, but resigned (1933) when Franklin Delano Roosevelt named him Secretary of State. Hull placed great emphasis on international economic relations. Through his efforts, pacts were signed with several nations under the Reciprocal Agreements Act (1934), and he fostered the good neighbor policy toward Latin American countries. After World War II broke out in Europe he pushed for aid to the Allies and recommended revision of the Neutrality Act. After U.S. entry into the war, he worked to improve cooperation among the Allies, visiting Moscow in 1943, and back ed the establishment of a world organization to maintain peace. Ill health caused his resignation as Secretary of State in 1944. He was awarded the 1945 Nobel Peace Prize. See his autobiography (1948); biography by J. W. Pratt (2 vol., 1964). The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. See more Encyclopedia articles on: U.S. History: Biographies

Saturday, May 23, 2020

Feminist Theory Definition and Discussion

Feminist theory is a major branch within sociology that shifts its assumptions, analytic lens, and topical focus away from the male viewpoint and experience and toward that of women. In doing so, feminist theory shines a light on social problems, trends, and issues that are otherwise overlooked or misidentified by the historically dominant male perspective within social theory. Key Takeaways Key areas of focus within feminist theory include:discrimination and exclusion on the basis of sex and genderobjectificationstructural and economic inequalitypower and oppressiongender roles and stereotypes Overview Many people incorrectly believe that feminist theory focuses exclusively on girls and women  and that it has an inherent goal of promoting the superiority of women over men. In reality, feminist theory has always been about viewing the social world in a way that illuminates the forces that create and support inequality, oppression, and injustice, and in doing so, promotes the pursuit of equality and justice. That said, since the experiences and perspectives of women and girls were historically excluded from social theory and social science, much feminist theory has focused on their interactions and experiences within society to ensure that half the worlds population is not left out of how we see and understand social forces, relations, and problems. While most  feminist theorists throughout history have been women, today people of all genders can be found working in the discipline. By shifting the focus of social theory away from the perspectives and experiences of men, feminist theorists have created social theories that are more inclusive and creative than those that assume the social actor to always be a man. Part of what makes feminist theory creative and inclusive is that it often considers how systems of power and oppression interact, which is to say it does not just focus on gendered power and oppression, but on how it might intersect  with systemic racism, a hierarchical class system, sexuality, nationality, and (dis)ability, among other things. Gender  Differences Some feminist theory provides an analytic framework for understanding how womens location in, and experience of, social situations differ from mens. For example, cultural feminists look at the different values associated with womanhood and femininity as a reason why men and women experience the social world differently. Other feminist theorists believe that the different roles assigned to women and men within institutions better explain gender difference, including the sexual division of labor in the household. Existential and phenomenological feminists focus on how women have been marginalized and defined as  Ã¢â‚¬Å"other†Ã‚  in patriarchal societies. Some feminist theorists focus specifically on how masculinity is developed through socialization, and how its development interacts with the process of developing femininity in girls. Gender Inequality Feminist theories that focus on gender inequality recognize that womens location in, and experience of, social situations are not only different but also unequal to mens. Liberal feminists argue that women have the same capacity as men for moral reasoning and agency, but that patriarchy, particularly the sexist division of labor, has historically denied women the opportunity to express and practice this reasoning. These dynamics serve to shove women into the  private sphere  of the household and to exclude them from full participation in public life. Liberal feminists point out that gender inequality exists for women in a heterosexual marriage and that women do not benefit from being married. Indeed, these feminist theorists claim, married women have higher levels of stress than unmarried women and married men. Therefore, the sexual division of labor in both the public and private spheres needs to be altered for women to achieve equality in marriage. Gender Oppression Theories of gender oppression go further than theories of gender difference and gender inequality by arguing that not only are women different from or unequal to men, but that they are actively oppressed, subordinated, and even abused by men. Power is the key variable in the two main theories of gender oppression: psychoanalytic feminism and  radical feminism. Psychoanalytic feminists attempt to explain power relations between men and women by reformulating Sigmund Freuds theories of human emotions, childhood development, and the workings of the subconscious and unconscious. They believe that conscious calculation cannot fully explain the production and reproduction of patriarchy. Radical feminists  argue that being a woman is a positive thing in and of itself, but that this is not acknowledged in  patriarchal societies  where women are oppressed. They identify  physical violence  as being at the base of  patriarchy, but they think that patriarchy can be defeated if women recognize their own value and strength, establish a sisterhood of trust with other women, confront oppression critically, and form female-based separatist networks in the private and public spheres. Structural Oppression Structural oppression theories posit that womens oppression and inequality are a result of capitalism, patriarchy, and racism. Socialist feminists agree with  Karl Marx  and Freidrich Engels that the working class is exploited as a consequence of capitalism, but they seek to extend this exploitation not just to class but also to gender. Intersectionality theorists seek to explain oppression and inequality across a variety of variables, including class, gender, race, ethnicity, and age. They offer the important insight that not all women experience oppression in the same way, and that the same forces that work to oppress women and girls also oppress people of color and other marginalized groups. One way structural oppression  of women, specifically the economic kind, manifests in society is in the gender wage gap, which shows that men routinely earn more for the same work than  women. An intersectional view of this situation shows that women of color, and men of color, too, are even further penalized relative to the earnings of white men. In the late 20th century, this strain of feminist theory was extended to account for the globalization of capitalism and how its methods of production and of accumulating wealth center on the exploitation of women workers around the world.

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Getting Prison For Serving Time - 986 Words

Getting sentenced to serve time in prison is an experience no one would like to have. Having to spend either weeks, months, years or an entire lifetime locked away from society, having other people decide your life, is not a life anyone goes out looking for. However, due to circumstances, a lot of people find themselves in these types of positions. These people are leaving behind their families, friends, and work to serve time for an action or crime they supposedly committed. Few members of society, unfortunately, do not think of these prisoners as anything other than delinquents getting what they had coming, when truly they are members of society just like everyone else who have simply made some past mistakes. What people even more rarely fail to notice is the emotional and psychological effect incarceration leaves on a person, and the hardships these people face while incarcerated. This fact has proven to be an important matter that needs to be looked at in a closer level, specific ally in female inmates. People tend to create stereotypes of their ‘average’ inmate. Most people, when asked about to think of inmates, would involve a younger male figure. People under the age of 35 do indeed account for 58% of the jail population in provincial correction institutes (StatsCanada, 2015). In the year of 2013 and 2014, males accounted for 85% of admissions in Canadian provincial corrections; leaving females to make up 15% of admissions, and making up 6% federally in sentencedShow MoreRelatedRacial Disparities And The Judicial System Essay1607 Words   |  7 Pagesthe nation’s prisons and jails today. This is a 500% increase in the last 40 years, prisons are becoming overcrowded and it is only getting worse. Today, people of color make up 37% of the U.S population but make up 67% of the prison population. African American men are six times more likely to be incarcerated and hispanic males are more than twice as likely to be incarcerated than white males. Even white males c ommit the same crimes, and they still do not get the same amount of time as blacks andRead MoreRethinking The Growing Female Prison System1622 Words   |  7 PagesWomen’s population in the prison system is growing vastly, and continues to grow. Julie Ajinkya (March 8, 2013). Rethinking How to Address the Growing Female Prison Population. Retrieved from www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/news. According to the center for progress from the years 2000 through 2009 the number of women incarcerated in state or federal prisons rose by 21.6 percent in comparison to 15.6 percent increase for men. Majority of the women in the prison system struggle with, mentalRead More Alternative Methods to Prison Sentencing in Britain Essay1632 Words   |  7 PagesBritain are being sentenced to jail time: this is a fact. In 2004, there are currently over eighty thousand inmates.[1] (Peter Reydt, 2004 / Scottish Executive, 2003) Crime is on the increase but our prisons are already overcrowded. Consequently, new prisons will be required to accommodate prisoners. Where will the money come from to pay for the construction of new prisons? Will they have a sufficient rehabilitation programs in place? The prison system is obviously failingRead MoreThe Criminal Justice System And The United States Essay1445 Words   |  6 Pagesit first started in the 17th Century. The Criminal Justice System first began in the United States during the colonial times, when the colonist had to follow the rules of the British. During the Colonial times, the Criminal Justices System was not as fair as our current system is today, which meant a lot of people did not have liberties and were ultimately treated unfairly. Times have definitely changed for the Criminal Justice System and for the United States. We now have several documents givingRead MoreThe Common Problem Of Addiction950 Words   |  4 Pagestaking over our community’s but it is also taking over our jails and prisons. There are over 6.8 million people in America that are suffering with a drug or alcohol addiction, and many of these people are suffering alone. Since they have these addictions many times they are arrest for using drugs or c ommitting a crime so that they can get the drugs they need. There are over two million people serving time in our jails and prisons and over 500,000 are there because of a drug related crime. Drug andRead MoreJuvenile in the Adult Prison1351 Words   |  6 PagesJuvenile Delinquency December 3, 2014 Juveniles in The Adult Prison Children as young as 14 years old have been tried as adults and are sentenced to die in prison without considering their age and the factors that led the individual to commit the offense. Society believes that a juvenile should be tried as an adult because it will help them understand the consequences of their actions, however, children and teenagers that commit crimes are too young and they don’t have the mental ability to understandRead MoreThe Pros And Cons Of Modern Prisons1261 Words   |  6 PagesThere was a time when criminals could anonymously wander within the populous and commit crimes, without getting caught or getting severe punishments. Now, with the idea and creation of prisons, the ability to lawfully punish criminals exists. The innocent are now safe. But is modern prison truly beneficial? London, the capital of England and the United Kingdom, is known as the birthplace of modern imprisonment (â€Å"History of Prisons†). Jeremy Bentham, a philosopher th at was highly against the ideaRead MoreMandatory Minimum Sentencing On Violent Crimes Essay1492 Words   |  6 Pagessentencing can be designed to avoid injustices. A substantial number of offenders who commit violent crimes often receive lighter sentences for various reasons, whether it be because they have a â€Å"non-violent† past or they receive an early release from prison. I will also discuss how mandatory sentencing will increase consistency in the criminal justice system and will ensure that justice is always served. Lastly, I will express personal opinions and recommendations to the criminal justice system and willRead MoreAb109 Paper949 Words   |  4 PagesAB 109 Assembly Bill 109 was signed by Governor Edmund Brown Jr. and implemented on October 1, 2011 to close the revolving door of low-level inmates cycling in and out of state prison. It was a way to reduce the number of inmate in our overpopulated 33 prisons. The cause ab109 and ab117 to be put into place was a lawsuit Plata vs. Schwarzenegger fact that California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation was in violation of the eight amendments, the American with Disabilities Act and sectionRead MoreEssay about The Growth of Adult Corrections in the United States1472 Words   |  6 Pagesparole and great majorities are non-violent offenders. In â€Å"U.S. Prison Population Dwarfs that of Other Nations,† Adam Liptak states â€Å"The United States has, for instance, 2.3 million criminals behind bars, more than any other nation, according to data maintained by the International Center for Prison Studies at Kings College London.† Americans are arrested for things as minor as using drugs or writing a bad check. Residing someone to a prison should be our last alternative because it’s costly and can

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

The Right Way to Manage an Intervention Free Essays

For 42 years, Libyans had suffered from the tyrannical dictator Muammar Gaddafi who ruled them without any mercy and allocated Libya’s wealth to his family and himself. On Tuesday 15th of February 2011, Libyans started to demonstrate against the regime of Gaddafi. However, Gaddafi’s response to these demonstrations was horrible. We will write a custom essay sample on The Right Way to Manage an Intervention or any similar topic only for you Order Now He ordered his forces to open fire on the protestors. According to reporters from the BBC â€Å"500 to 700 people were killed† during February 2011 by Gaddafi’s security forces. Libyans did not give up, though. Instead, the number of demonstrators increased day by day, especially in the city of Benghazi where the demonstrators were armed. They forced the police and the army forces to withdraw from Benghazi. For a person like Gaddafi, who ruled Libya for more than 40 years, resignation was not an option. He was willing to eliminate the revolution against him no matter how. He gathered his army around the cities which the demonstrators controlled and was about to commit massacres against Libyans. The United Nations had to do something to prevent the massacres Gaddafi’s forces were about to commit. On March 2011, the UN started an intervention in Libya by imposing a no-fly zone over Libya to prevent Gaddafi’s air forces from killing civilians. This intervention -which was later led by NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) – proved later that it was the best way to end the conflicts in Libya. The three main reasons behind this statement are firstly, to protect Libyans from the Gaddafi’s crime. Secondly, because the intervention was not a direct invasion. And finally, because the intervention was done after the UN approval. The most important reason why the NATO’s intervention was the best solution in the war in Libya is because Libyans needed urgent military help to stop Gaddafi’s forces from killing civilians. If NATO’s navy in the Mediterranean had not imposed a no-fly zone over Libya Gaddafi’s air forces were about to attack civilians in Benghazi and other cities. The Libyan Representative to the UN, Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi, said in a press conference on March 2011, â€Å"We are expecting a real genocide in Tripoli. The airplanes are still bringing mercenaries to the airports. We are calling on the UN to impose a no-fly zone on all Tripoli to cut off all supplies of arms and mercenaries to the regime†. In other words, NATO’s intervention saved thousands of lives by applying a no-fly zone over Libya. No peaceful solutions would do so, especially since Gaddafi seemed insistent on proceeding in his bloody actions against his oppositions. Another reason why NATO’s intervention in Libya was a model one is because it was not a direct invasion. The NATO’s operations in Libya were all by launching air and missile strikes against important targets on Gaddafi’s forces. Ivo H. Daalder, the U. S. Permanent Representative to NATO, indicated that the NATO’s operations in Libya were successful by any standard. The operations â€Å"saved† tens of thousands of lives from almost certain massacre. These operations greatly â€Å"minimized† direct damage. It helped the â€Å"Libyan opposition† to overthrow one of the world’s worst â€Å"dictators†. All these accomplishments were done without any wounded from the allies and with the cost of only several billions of dollars. That was a â€Å"fraction† of that spent in previous â€Å"interventions in Balkans, Afghanistan, and Iraq. In other words, NATO played a huge role in ending a civil war which could last for many years by the least damage possible. The proof of that statement is what happening in Syria today. As no military force intervened to end the bloody war in Syria, the conflicting parties have been killing tens of thousands of civilians for more than two years now. Political ways are not helpful in such situation. If NATO hadn’t intervened in Libya, the civil war could not be finish till today, or at least it could cause much more victims. The third reason to consider the NATO’s intervention a successful one is because it was applied after the UN approval. The military operations were led by a group of allies, and then these operations were led by NATO, which is still a group of allies. This gave legitimacy to the intervention and proved that the intervention was only to save the Libyan people and help them get their freedom, not for the interests of a specific country. Moreover, NATO ended their operations after the death of Gaddafi. Ending their mission is a clear proof that they were not planning to invade Libya. But they were applying the UN solution to save civilians. A report published on the United Nations official website on 17th of March 2011 clarified that the Security Council â€Å"authorized† the use of force in Libya to protect Civilians from Gaddafi’s forces, especially in the city of Benghazi, â€Å"Acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter†, which allows to take military and nonmilitary actions to restore â€Å"international peace and security†. In other words, there is no proof that the NATO intervened in Libya for any kind of benefits. Even on the economical perspective, the cost of the military operations is a small fraction compared to the wealth of Libya which was stolen by Gaddafi and his family. Despite the obvious success of NATO’s interventions, there are critics who believe that NATO’s intervention was not helpful. The author of the essay â€Å"The Negative Influence of NATO Intervention in Libya† claimed that the NATO’s intervention that happened in Libya was not helpful. He based his thesis on three main reasons. The first one is because NATO neglected Libyan people. Secondly, because NATO killed innocent people through bombing. Finally, because NATO caused internal conflicts for Libyan people. The author mentioned some good examples to prove that the intervention was not helpful. However, His essay has three unconvincing arguments. The first one is that the author claimed that NATO neglected Libyans basing this claim on one example. That is considered as a hasty generalization. The second unconvincing argument is claiming that the main objective of the intervention was to conquer Libya without mentioning logical evidence. The last weakness in the essay is the last paragraph; the author claimed that NATO motivated Libyans to fight against each other. In the first paragraph, the author of â€Å"The Negative Influence of NATO Intervention in Libya† concluded that NATO neglected Libyans. He based this point on the fact that a boat carrying refugees sank in the Mediterranean Sea and NATO didn’t rescue the refugees. However, this example is not convincing to claim that NATO neglected Libyans because it’s a hasty generalization. Moreover, the author based this example on a person called JOHN-MARK IYI without mentioning his position or how he is related to the topic. On the other hand, there are a lot of proofs that NATO saved Libyans. According to the BBC NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said after announcing the end of their mission in Libya, â€Å"NATO’s military forces had prevented a massacre and saved countless lives. † He also said,† We created the conditions for the people of Libya to determine their own future. † There is no doubt that NATO has hurt Libyans to some extent, but this damage was a fraction to the one caused by Gaddafi’s forces. Claiming that NATO’s objective was to conquer Libya is the second unconvincing point in Hijazi’s essay. A clear proof that NATO’s operation was not to conquer Libya is that they announced the end of the mission on the 31st of October 2011 after the end of Gaddafi’s regime. If NATO had any interests in conquering Libya they would not end the military operations in Libya. Moreover, Hijazi mentioned that NATO’s airstrikes killed a lot of civilians and destroyed a lot of houses without supporting his claim with clear evidence that the people killed were civilians. Especially that Gaddafi’s army used to hide inside civilians houses, which makes it hard to specify whether the killed people were civilians or soldiers from Gaddafi’s army. In other words, the points mentioned by the author don’t prove that NATO intended to conquer Libya. The last unconvincing point in Hijazi’s essay is claiming that NATO motivated Libyans to start a civil war. That claim is not logical for several reasons. Firstly, the war started before any foreign intervention in Libya and the main cause of this war is to overthrow the Gaddafi’s regime. Secondly, Hijazi didn’t mention how NATO could get any benefits if a civil war started in Libya. And most importantly, Gaddafi’s soldiers were not Libyan which means it was not a civil war. Martin Chulov and David Smith published an article in The Guardian website, they say,† Many black Africans have been arrested and accused of fighting for dictator, but claim they were press-ganged. † In other words, it’s true that NATO participated in the war in Libya, but claiming that they started the war there is not convincing. To sum it all up, the war in Libya caused the death for a lot of Innocent civilians. Without the involvement of NATO, the war would be running until today, causing the death of innocents every single day. Because simply, there was no other clear, political solution would work with the insanity of Gaddafi. For sure, the intervention of NATO was not a perfect choice. However, it was the one with least damage. Moreover, today Libya seems to heel slowly form the war it had, and fortunately it seems that the NATO intervention had no dangerous impacts on Libya. In general, it’s possible to say that sometimes the only way to end violence is to use violence. How to cite The Right Way to Manage an Intervention, Papers

Saturday, May 2, 2020

Data Breaches and Debunking Myths †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Data Breaches and Debunking Myths. Answer: Introduction: Earlier on in the year, Verizon the telecommunication company was subject to one of the biggest data breaches in the world. The companys systems were severely exposed which leaked millions of records owned by the companys customers. The company, however, did assure its customers that the attack did not present any serious threat as it was contained and isolated based on their operational systems(Pachal, 2017). Verizon has for many years offered telecommunication services to customers and with mobile communication on the rise, its services have had an increased application which has subsequently increased the data the company accesses. This data was fairly exposed after some systems owned by the organization was left unattended lacking the necessary security procedures. At the start of the breach, investigators highlighted that records owned by 6 million customers were exposed. However, this number later doubled and increased beyond this number as highlighted by independent research investigations. In the final estimate, the leak claimed over 14 million victims as their information was publicly available to the public(Deahl, 2017). In essence, the data breach affected the customer service department where clients regularly contacted to have their queries and problems solved. This leak was therefore outlined to have affected all customers who had been in touch with the company in the six months prior to the data leak. Moreover, the leak was contained to the department as isolated systems were used to control the customer care service as compared to all other services. Nevertheless, the leak exposed a fair amount of sensitive information including addresses, names and contact details. Moreover, some customers access pins were exposed as they had been used them during the communication exercise(Verizon, 2017). Immediately after the breach was discovered by an independent researcher, Verizon placed full blame for the breach on an independent service provider who had been contracted to handle the customer care facilities. In their statements, Verizon highlighted a company by the name Nice Systems as the responsible party in the events that unfolded. Furthermore, the organization had been using a cloud facility hosted by Amazon Web Service (AWS) which helped integrate all the communications between its customers and itself. Now, it was Nice responsibility to maintain and regulate the operations of the cloud server, a duty that they failed and which led to the leak(McAfee, 2017). On Nice Systems behalf, the companys outcome was propagated by a negligent employee who failed to secure the cloud infrastructure which left all the data stored in the AWS servers exposed. The leak uncovered a lot of information which led to the discovery of the amount of information entrusted to a third party member who had no direct contact with the customer themselves. Moreover, after several investigations were conducted, the leak was discovered to have exposed the companys log records where each and every communication was outlined. These log records contained unencrypted information that was available to the public in clear text format which also accounted for minimal redactions as it was earlier thought. In the end, records containing contact information, access PINS and customers account balance was exposed (Kumar, 2017). Vulnerability used: Although cloud services are easy to maintain and manage, their security policies require intricate procedures to secure their structures and infrastructures. For Verizon, these procedures were not implemented at the time of the breach which highlighted the failure of the organization as its actions (sub-contracting another company) led to the problem. Moreover, the parties involved also facilitated the attack as there was minimal accountability based on the hands that the information was exchanged. The data was controlled by the AWS, Nice and Verizon which presents a lot of challenges when accounting for access and security procedures. In addition to this, Nice had also contracted another party member to handle the data which further intensified the problem(Pachal, 2017). First, the problem was caused by a negligent team member who failed to secure the online services. Therefore, the first possible solution would be to implement security procedures that outline detailed descriptions of setting up the necessary security measures. It is common to forget to implement some security measures as they are either too trivial or too extensive to apply. However, with a laid out guideline, the support team can follow a step by step guideline to deploy the cloud service solutions. Therefore, as a company, Verizon should develop a new security policy to guide its employees and sub-contracted company(Micro, 2015). Secondly, Verizon should do away with third party members as they present more challenges when dealing with the security of sensitive information. Remember, cloud infrastructure like any other online services has many risks and threats, from intruders to malware attacks which necessitate the need for accountability. These risks are increased by contracting a third party member to handle the data owned by an organization. Furthermore, as a subcontracted company, Nice Systems does not have a direct connection with the consumers, therefore, they may fail to face the same consequences as the mother company (Verizon). This outcome may facilitate the negligent behaviour observed in this scenario where employees forget to implement the necessary operational procedures(McAfee, 2017). Ransomware attack (May 2017) Ransomware attacks fall under the greater category of malware intrusions where malicious programs are used to infiltrate computer systems. Moreover, with ransomware attacks, the perpetrators will use the intrusion to demand certain resources which in most cases are usually money related. In all, a malicious program will hold a machine under ransom disabling the files and data owned by the user until the money is paid (Mullin Lake, 2017). In accordance with the explanation given above, the attack that took place earlier in the year subjected its victim to financial demands, an outcome that generally disabled the functionalities of many computer systems. The intrusion was known as the WannaCry attack and it affected thousands of computers worldwide as it compromised multiple systems that were connected to the online infrastructure. WannaCry employed serious vulnerabilities in computer systems to propagate its attack, a process that was difficult to stop as it affected many systems at the same time(Chappell, 2017). In all, the problem began with a leak in the NSAs (National Security Agency) hack tools which contained a number of system vulnerabilities as per the organizations cyber-weapons initiatives. Now, the initial leak was conducted by a rogue access group known as Shadow Brokers who for a long time had been compromising many computer systems around the globe. Therefore, its through their initial attack set the precedence for the final attack that took place using the malware(Chappell, 2017). Those affected and how WannaCry attacked all systems without any form of distinction which facilitates its success across the globe. In fact, at the start, the malware had infected over 45, 000 systems across 100 countries. Moreover, these systems were fairly distributed across different fields of life including the public and private sectors. However, the attack did affect some countries more than others as outlined by the damages it imposed on the end users. WannaCry heavily affected the countries of Russia, United Kingdom, China and Spain. These countries had widespread intrusions, some which compromised the major sectors of business(Larson, 2017). In Russia, for instance, the banking industry was severely affected as some of the major financial organizations were attacked. Moreover, the countries public sectors was included as its ministries (Health and Interior) were faced with the intrusion. The same outcome was also experienced in the United Kingdom where its healthcare industry was exposed to the attack owing to the connections of the NHS systems (National Health System). In all, the NHS system coordinated the health care activities in the country providing a centralised access to medical data. Now, the intrusion targeted this system which disabled all the computers connected to it affecting the work of medical practitioners and the services offered to medical patients(Graham, 2017). A similar attack was experienced in Spain where its private sectors, led by the telecommunication and electrical industry were compromised. To start with, the countries second most favoured company Telefonica was affected, an intrusion that was followed by the attack on Iberdrola the countrys Power Company. Furthermore, the attacks on these companies were so severe that the organization's shut down their systems in an attempt to contain the attack, an outcome that led to many financial damages(Larson, 2017). How the attack took place As stated before, the root of the problem was NSA and its hacking tools which were accessed by the rogue group Shadow Brokers. Through these tools a vulnerability known as EternalBlue was discovered, a vulnerability that affected Windows systems based on its Server Messaging Blocks (SMB). Now, the SMB is a communication protocol that is used by the application layer (TCP/IP) to connect and transfer information across networks. This functionality is usually achieved by two main operations; one, the facilitation of the read and write action on files found in networks and two, the ability to request for services across networks. Therefore, using the SMB, a machine is able to access and share information with the networks its connected to as well as other machines(Titcomb McGoogan, 2017). EternalBlue compromised this functionality of the SMB which gave the intruder unsolicited access to machines connected to various networks across the globe. In all, the following simple steps were used to attack machines. WannaCry started by establishing a connection with a network through the SMB protocol. This protocol used a simple handshake, a process that was fairly exploited in this stage. From the access procedure, the second step was the delivery of the malware itself which was done using an encrypted file having the activation program of the ransomware (Response, 2017). After delivering the file, the activation file was triggered which compromised the host machine. In addition to this, the program also scanned for other connections to spread the attack in subsequent networks. The final step was the replication process where other unsecured networks were attacked. According to Windows, the attack would have been avoided if the compromised systems had updated their firmware. WannaCry exploited an initial bug contained in Windows operating systems which based on its extensive application in world facilitated the attacks. Therefore, had the consumers updated their system, the necessary patches that fixed the vulnerability would have been installed stopping the attack before it happened. However, at the same time, the affected organizations should also have had better security procedures to detect and contain network intrusions. Yes, the systems were compromised by the EternalBlue vulnerability, but this weakness should have been contained by the isolation techniques used by the security measures of network control. In addition to this, the users would have had better intrusion detection systems to highlight the possible compromises within the networks themselves. Therefore, the lack of optimal security procedures and policies facilitated the atta ck as much as the Windows vulnerability. As such, the prevention solutions would have been to implement an optimal security policy after thorough risk assessment procedures coupled with the necessary systems updates (EY, 2017). References Chappell, B. (2017). 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