Canadian Safety Reporter

6 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2014 CSR | October 2014 | News What are the potential threats? even when upset or angry at an organization, the vast majority of people will not resort to threats or harassment against an indi- vidual executive, said Calder. "Unfortunately, there's a small- er segment of individuals who may have mental health or other types of personality disorder is- sues that can become focused on those executives," he said. With the proliferation of social media, it's easier than ever before to get information about a com- pany and its executives, said Da- vid Hyde, senior security consul- tant at David Hyde & associates in Toronto. "The facilitator or the ampli- fier of the threats, if you will, is just the proliferation of social media and mass forms of social interaction, mass communica- tion," he said. "all of the risk factors are mul- tiplying, to a certain extent, be- cause in the old days, the public really wouldn't find out about a lot of the things going on. They may not know that a particular executive's (company) is doing work in an area or behaving in a way that they might deem corpo- rately irresponsible… (now), the threats are amplifying in many ways, because more people are finding out — and a slight nega- tive spin can be latched onto by issue-motivated groups who can make it a lot worse, in some cas- es, than it actually is." Threats and harassment from members of the public can take many different forms, said Calder. "They can be the chronic emailers, the person who shows up uninvited at times to the ex- ecutive's offices, demanding to see the individual in question, they can be harassing in nature, repetitive… they may or may not be violent, but they certainly cause concern — especially for the front-line staff that may be coming in contact with them," he said, adding that front-line staff are forced into a sort of "gate- keeper" role. "They also may, at that point, begin making direct or veiled threats towards either the ex- ecutive or the organization as a whole." Crossing into physical vio- lence is relatively rare, he said. "But the concern is that they're escalating in that direction, and with some of these individuals, it's a very thin line." But physical threats aren't the only ones organizations should worry about, said Hyde. "The range of threats can ob- viously be fairly broad — there's the physical threat in terms of the safety of the actual execu- tive… (but) secondly, it could be psychological. it could be a social media campaign or disruption." it could even be a techno- logical attack on the executive's personal data or accounts, said Vladimir zagribelin, cyber-se- curity expert and executive di- rector of Group-iB in Moscow. This could include an attack on personal data searching for any intimate details of their life that can be used to discredit or black- mail the executive. it could also include an attack on their credentials from corpo- rate information systems, such as logins and passwords from corporate mail, intranet, VPn, et cetera, which can be used to steal classified information, he said. The information hackers are looking for generally differs de- pending on the individuals or business they are targeting. "Top managers of worldwide famous brands often become vic- tims of Hacktivivsts, who want to draw attention to their activities and ideas," he said. "Managers working in critical infrastructure — power electricity stations, road traffic systems — possibly can be targeted by cyberterrorists to draw public attention to their political ideas, to scare people." There have even been situations where executives have been ap- proached at their homes, which widens the potential "victim pool," said Calder. EBOLA < pg. 2 EXECS IN THE CROSSHAIRS < pg. 1 Employee info critical Companies need to be aware of potential threats or someone you know well has been to West africa, you should be self-isolating yourself and you should be using the telehealth network — don't go to your doc- tor's office… that's where it gets really dangerous." employee communications are important and employers can provide links to knowledgeable sources online, such as the Public Health agency of Canada, WHO or the Centers for Disease Con- trol and Prevention (CDC). "Because these situations change so much and so rapidly, it probably is better to give a web link to current information," said Schofield. "rather than trying to summarize somebody else's ma- terials, where employers aren't experts in these areas, you're bet- ter to link directly and give em- ployees links to direct, reliable sources." if the virus does come to Can- ada, it's important to keep em- ployees informed and updated, she said. "it's a very scary disease so you want to keep some information available to employees so they don't panic." Unfortunately, employers are likely to delay preparations until there's an incident, said Scho- field. "I don't think we're going to have much interest from Cana- dian employers — not interest but action — until there are ac- tually cases in Canada." how can ebola InfectIonS be prevented? There is currently no licensed vaccine or treatment for ebola virus disease (eVD). if a person is in a region where an ebola outbreak has occurred, she should take these precautions: • avoid direct contact with blood, saliva, vomit, urine and other bodily fluids of people with eVD or unknown illnesses. • avoid direct contact with bodies of people who died of eVD or unknown illnesses. • avoid contact with any medical equipment, such as needles, contaminated with blood or bodily fluids. • Health-care workers should practise strict infection control measures, including isolating infected individu- als and properly using personal protective equipment (gowns, masks, goggles and gloves). • Health-care workers should also properly use and disinfect instruments and equipment used to treat or care for patients with ebola, such as needles and thermom- eters, before throwing them out. • avoid close contact with wild animals and avoid han- dling wild meat. • avoid potential carriers, both live and dead, since both can spread the virus. Potential carriers of the virus include: chimpanzees, gorillas, monkeys, forest antelope, pigs, porcupines and fruit bats. • Know the symptoms of eVD and see a health-care provider if they develop. • Closely monitor your health during and after travel. • Seek medical attention immediately if a fever and any other symptoms arise during or after travel. • if you develop symptoms, be sure to tell your health-care provider that you have travelled to a region where eVD was present. Source: Public Health Agency of Canada ORGZANIZATIONS > pg. 8

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