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Why Americans May Choose Safety Over Privacy In The Age Of Coronavirus
By Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Health experts are stressing the need to monitor COVID-19 patients to slow the pandemic, but Americans’ privacy is at stake.
“We’re looking for a quick solution, we’re not thinking about privacy issues, necessarily,” said Robert J. Strang, a former special agent with the FBI, Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Administration. He was named co-chair of the New York State anti-terrorism task force after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.
“If you look back on the Patriot Act and some of the things that we decided we were going to do after 9/11 and then turn back the pages a little bit as time went on, I have a feeling that’s the same kind of situation that we’re in right now,” Strang told WCBS 880 producer Neil A. Carousso.
He is the Chief Executive Officer of Investigative Management Group where he specializes in personal and corporate security and investigations. He believes Americans support tracking in the name of national security.
“They want to be able to do whatever it takes to keep them safe, to keep their families safe, to keep their employees safe, their communities safe,” Strang said, adding, “If it means monitoring individuals who’ve had the coronavirus, if it means monitoring hospitals, I think people, at this point in time, are okay with it.”
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield said smartphone tracking is under “aggressive evaluation.”
While the U.S. has not endorsed specific tracing technology, there are a few states looking to develop systems. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology launched the “Safe Paths” initiative to use anonymized GPS data and Bluetooth to track interactions and notify people if they’ve encountered someone who has been infected with COVID-19. Stanford University and Seattle-based CoEpi are working with the MIT team to develop an anonymous standard for contact tracing technology.
Apple and Alphabet’s Google announced last week it will help national, state and local governments launch contact tracing apps to monitor the whereabouts of people who contracted the coronavirus.
China has taken the most aggressive steps to monitor the original center of the outbreak. The Communist Party is tracing the identities of residents who left Wuhan through mobile phone numbers and location data.
South Korea investigators are utilizing smartphone data to find where people contracted the virus. They can make that determination within 10 minutes.
Western Australian lawmakers passed a bill to install home monitors for those under quarantine.
Moscow authorities said they are using facial recognition technology to target Chinese people who break quarantine in Russia.
When asked how he would advise the Trump Administration on implementing a contact tracing program, if he were asked, Strang said he would ask those who contracted COVID-19 for “consent.”
“I think most people would cooperate and would voluntarily agree to certain restrictions on their freedom,” Strang said but stipulated there had to be a set time frame to limit the possibility of government overreach.
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Small Business Survival: Hospitality Company Develops Way To Stay Alive Amid Crisis
In Best Of, Featured, Guest, Interview, Latest, News Stories, Technology, The World, Top News, videosBy Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – A New York City-based events company forced to shutter its operations temporarily after eight years in business due to the coronavirus pandemic has developed new revenue streams from adjacent services.
“Everything was great, 2020’s a huge year for us, could not wait,” William Petz, founder of Quiet Events, Inc. told WCBS 880 of the upward trajectory for his business heading into this year. He has 120,000 people on his e-mail list and hundreds attend each event nationwide.
That was the sentiment across the business community before the COVID-19 crisis forced the closure of businesses throughout the country. The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Small Business Optimism Index sunk 8.1 points in March to 96.4 – the largest monthly decline in the survey’s history – ending historic business confidence. The NFIB survey indicates business owners are bracing for further loss of revenue amid the rapid recession the global economy was thrust into with the fatal and highly contagious novel virus.
“You’ll have workplaces that will be filled with different types of reminders and postings designed to change behavior and to ingrain certain type(s) of safe approaches towards how you even navigate the office,” David Lewis, founder of human resources consulting firm OperationsInc, told WCBS 880 Business Reporter Joe Connolly.
Business owners are adapting and creating new services, some of which may be long-term offerings, as they struggle to stay afloat. That’s the topic on this week’s WCBS Small Business Spotlight focusing on small business survival, sponsored by BNB Bank.
Quiet Events hosts concert-like experiences with disc jockeys for people to enjoy their favorite genres of music in headphones designed by the company.
“You don’t have to fight about what club you’re going to tonight because all the clubs are in one,” Petz said.
If you enjoy pop music, but your friend likes country, for example, you can both enjoy each other’s company while listening to your music of choice from the DJ you prefer.
“You can enjoy having a meal or drinking with some friends or talking with them without hearing the loudness of the music behind you,” Petz said, adding, “But, then when you put the headphones on, you guys are just jamming out and you have your own personality.”
Petz said his company is called “Quiet Events” because it is a “fun night out” when you will only hear partiers singing along to the music in their ears, if you aren’t wearing headphones.
Hospitality businesses such as Quiet Events have been crushed by the coronavirus outbreak.
“We started to see the impacts already by getting the headphones manufactured in China,” Petz said.
He laid off 11 of his 13 employees and he stopped taking a paycheck three weeks ago.
Then, he developed proprietary software to host his Quiet Events virtually as people self-isolate.
“YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, it’s just one dimension. It’s basically, you’re watching content,” said Petz. “People’s attention needs to be engaged and you need to feel like you’re being social, so that’s what we created – a platform which is patent pending.”
The platform features a virtual “DJ battle” in which three DJs vie for attention and likes. Attendees can switch between the DJs and can see the percentage of people watching each performer. Petz said that creates the “FOMO” or “fear of missing out” that his company thrives on with its in-person events.
Quiet Events’ first promoted online shows were last weekend, but as Petz tweaked the virtual experience over the last three weeks, 500-1,000 people participated in each trial event. In the interim, the online events are free, but attendees are encouraged to tip the DJs.
“They don’t just play; they really do interact,” Petz said of the DJs. “They look at the chatroom. They do shout-outs.”
He hopes to re-hire his employees in the near future as he works on several adjacent services to bring in revenue while in-person events are banned to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
“We did this for ourselves, initially for the DJs,” said Petz. “Dell, before we even broadcast it out, somehow, they found out [and they said>, ‘Look, we love what you’re doing and we’d love to create an experience for our employees.’”
He then saw there was a market for leasing his software to other businesses and organizations to create corporate events on both the Quiet Events website and other companies’ sites.
“We have a partnership with Crunch Fitness to do fitness events,” Petz said. “Quiet Events also used to do something called Quiet Comedy. It’s three comedians battling it out against each other. So, it’s really three of anything battling and we’re working on making that so it’s not just three but it’s more or less.”
A traveling nurse company reached out to Quiet Events looking to hire it for a morale-booster as its staff fights its own battle on the frontlines of the COVID-19 health crisis.
He has also received interest from a charitable organization looking to compensate the DJs for performing for their audience while providing a way for participants to donate to the non-profit’s cause.
“It’s what entrepreneurs do,” Petz said.
Hear how entrepreneurs like William Petz are developing solutions and adjacent services to stay afloat and re-hire workers on this week’s WCBS Small Business Spotlight Podcast available on the RADIO.COM app.
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Hackers Deploy New Tactics During COVID-19 Crisis
By Neil A. Carousso
NEW JERSEY (WCBS 880) — Scammers are out in full force in the middle of the coronavirus crisis.
“The most stimulating part of the stimulus is the fact that the hackers are out there in droves,” Adam Levin, former director of consumer affairs in New Jersey, told WCBS 880’s Neil A. Carousso.
Levin, co-founder of the cybersecurity firm CyberScout, said scammers are deploying new tactics to take advantage of people relying on the stimulus checks that could be direct deposited as soon as Thursday.
“While we have day jobs, we are their day job, that’s never changed. The intensity, however, has increased dramatically as a result of this virus and the disaster is the unemployment, and frankly, the terror that people are going through on two levels: health and economics,” he said.
Another 6.6 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Nearly 17 million Americans have filed jobless claims since the coronavirus pandemic forced the shutdown of businesses nationwide.
Levin warns people to never click on links that appear to come from government agencies. Scammers are looking to take advantage by pretending to be the U.S. Government and preying on one’s financial stress by offering a way to receive the stimulus check faster and get more money.
“Ransomware, which is where they freeze your files, lock everything down and demand to be paid or else your files will be deleted or forever encrypted,” Levin said of one tactic. Another one is by turning one’s computer or smartphone into a “keystroke logger.” “Your log on credentials are being transmitted to the hacker,” Levin said.
He said scammers, looking to install malware, are promoting phony links for COVID-19 tracking. If one were to download it, a hacker would be able to access files and bank accounts.
“(Federal agencies) don’t send links, they don’t send attachments that you can open, they don’t call you on the phone and they don’t text,” Levin emphasized.
He encouraged people who are concerned or have questions to go on government agencies’ official .gov websites and initiate contact with their inquiry.
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Small Business Survival: Brooklyn Navy Yard Business Ramps Up War-Like Effort to Make Face Shields for Hospital Workers
By Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – Businesses in the Brooklyn Navy Yard are invigorated with the same spirit and patriotism that defined the East River industrial complex during World War II when factories produced ships used to fight Nazi Germany.
Michael Bednark reinvented his design and fabrication company named Bednark Studio to make face shields as protective gear for medical professionals in New York who are treating COVID-19 patients. He told Joe Connolly on this week’s WCBS Small Business Spotlight Podcast focusing on small business survival, sponsored by BNB Bank, that he is surrounded by small businesses who are stepping up in the battle against the deadly virus.
“I’m looking right across the street right now to a very large manufacturer called Cyre Precision. They are manufacturing hospital gowns and other safety equipment for our frontline workers,” Bednark said, adding, “The building to my right, they’re working on a ventilator prototype.”
At the impetus of the coronavirus outbreak in New York City, which is now the epicenter of the pandemic in the United States, he was forced to layoff workers. When he started hearing reports about the lack of Personal Protective Equipment or PPE for hospital workers, he worked with his design team through a weekend in mid-March to develop a face shield prototype to protect nurses and doctors against the contagious novel virus.
Bednark was in touch with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene through the Brooklyn Navy Yard. He sent pictures to the Department late Saturday evening and scheduled a meeting at its Long Island City headquarters for first thing the next morning.
“We drove over there Sunday morning, we met with them at 9:45, and at 10 AM, they said ‘let’s go with it.’”
Bednark hired 160 workers and moved into a 5,000 square foot event space in the Duggal Greenhouse in the Brooklyn Navy Yard to maximize social distancing as advised by health experts to slow the spread of coronavirus. Bednark Studio takes employees’ temperatures when they report to work and it sanitizes the workspace every night.
He orders lunch to be delivered for his workers from local restaurants hit hard by the shutdown of non-essential businesses.
“Like most New Yorkers, we have a real sense of urgency,” Bednark said.
It’s a war-like effort to fight #coronavirus. Michael Bednark tells @JoeConnollybiz how he shifted gears and ramped up production of face shields at the @BklynNavyYard for frontline hospital workers. @wcbs880 #SmallBusinessSpotlight #DifferenceMakers https://t.co/F8Hd9HBsZj pic.twitter.com/8mj0QZ8SYP
— Neil A. Carousso (@NeilACarousso) April 8, 2020
He told Connolly his team is averaging 200,000 face shields a day. By comparison, hockey equipment manufacturer Bauer said its Liverpool, New York factory makes 4,000 face shields a day.
“We welcome anyone to come and start making anything they can, look at what they have around them, what they’re abilities are and figure out a product that they can make,” Bednark said.
Listen to the WCBS Small Business Podcast above to hear how small businesses are producing vital PPE equipment for hospital workers on the frontlines of the fight against coronavirus.
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NJ Business Owner Down 100% Remains Optimistic As Companies Suffer Amid Coronavirus Outbreak
By Neil A. Carousso
NEW JERSEY (WCBS 880) – A new survey by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) reveals small businesses are being crushed by the coronavirus pandemic.
Seventy-six percent of United States small businesses are negatively impacted, according to a NFIB Research Center survey of 300,000 owners who employ 1-360 workers. It was conducted on March 20. Ten days earlier, the NFIB survey revealed just under one-quarter of small businesses reported the same.
Boxcar founder Joe Colangelo tells WCBS 880 his business is down between 98-100 percent from last month. The decline began on March 9 when he saw a 20 percent drop from the previous month. By the end of that week ending on March 13, Boxcar was down 75 percent.
“First thing you have to do before you come up with any cool new ideas is attack that expense line,” Colangelo said. “We were able to find from advertising, marketing and all these other subscriptions basically $20,000 a month in savings.”
Boxcar provides a commuter parking solution by teaming-up with churches and other organizations that have empty lots to offer strategic parking in the suburbs near mass transportation.
Colangelo told his team Monday morning, “We’re in the relationship business, figuring out how we can help people, and that’s a business that’s never going out of style.” Despite tough times for his commuter parking app based in New Jersey, he remains optimistic that he can create new uses for his software.
“In the long-term, we got to keep our eyes open and our head on a swivel, because if there’s other ways we can serve our customer’s needs, we got to really think about how we could do that so we aren’t completely exposed to a single point of failure,” Colangelo said.
Five percent of small businesses are positively impacted with likely “stronger sales due to a sharp rise in demand for certain products, goods, and services,” according to the NFIB survey.
Small businesses employ nearly half of the workforce in the U.S. They contributed roughly two-thirds of net employment gains in the nation since 2011, according to the Small Business Administration.
The federal government made its application for interest-free loans available Monday for small businesses. New York City Small Business Services also has a loan application online for payroll expenses.
Colangelo said his attorneys have advised him to sit on the fastball before applying for loans.
“We saw first 3.25 percent loans, now we’re seeing 0 percent interest loans, and, you know, there’s stuff working its way through the Senate – potential grants, right, things that don’t have to get paid back,” Colangelo said, adding, “You don’t want to take advantage of one of those [loans] if you could avoid it, and then find out that taking advantage of a 3.25 percent loan precludes you from getting a grant.
Colangelo tells WCBS 880 he has seen the best in people through this national crisis from customers asking if they can buy gift certificates to redeem in the future, so he could pay his workers, to a local elected official in New Jersey offering his home equity line of credit to Boxcar to assist the business in staying afloat.
“We don’t need it, we’re really well positioned,” Colangelo said. “I’ll never forget that.”
