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Beneficial Ownership Information and why its important

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For detailed information and reporting links, visit the FinCen website: Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting | FinCEN.gov

Beneficial Ownership Information refers to details about individuals who ultimately own or control a legal entity, such as a company, trust, or partnership. This information is crucial for transparency, anti-money laundering (AML) efforts, and combating financial crimes like tax evasion and corruption. Here are some key points about beneficial ownership information:

 

  1. **Definition**: Beneficial ownership refers to the natural person(s) who ultimately own or control a legal entity, either directly or indirectly, and benefit from its activities.

 

  1. **Purpose**: The collection and disclosure of beneficial ownership information help prevent illicit activities such as money laundering, terrorist financing, tax evasion, and corruption. It enhances transparency in financial transactions and contributes to the integrity of the financial system.

 

  1. **Regulatory Requirements**: Many countries have regulations requiring companies and other legal entities to identify and disclose their beneficial owners. These requirements vary in scope and detail but generally aim to create transparency and accountability.

 

  1. **Information Included**: Beneficial ownership information typically includes details such as the individual’s name, date of birth, nationality, residential address, percentage of ownership or control, and the nature of their control (e.g., through shareholding or voting rights).

 

  1. **Verification and Due Diligence**: Entities responsible for collecting beneficial ownership information often conduct verification and due diligence procedures to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information provided.

 

  1. **Privacy and Confidentiality**: While transparency is crucial, there are also concerns about the privacy and confidentiality of beneficial owners. Balancing these interests is a challenge for regulators and policymakers.

 

  1. **Global Initiatives**: International organizations like the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) have issued guidelines and recommendations on beneficial ownership transparency to promote global standards and cooperation in this area.

 

  1. **Technological Solutions**: Advances in technology, such as blockchain and digital identity systems, are being explored to improve the efficiency and security of collecting, verifying, and sharing beneficial ownership information.

 

  1. **Compliance Challenges**: Implementing beneficial ownership requirements can pose challenges for businesses, especially smaller entities, in terms of compliance costs, data management, and understanding complex ownership structures.

 

  1. **Ongoing Evolution**: Beneficial ownership regulations and practices continue to evolve as authorities seek to enhance transparency, combat financial crimes, and adapt to technological advancements and global risks.

 

Overall, beneficial ownership information plays a vital role in promoting transparency, integrity, and accountability in the financial and corporate sectors, although it also presents challenges that require careful consideration and ongoing regulatory refinement.

Why do you need it?

There are several reasons why you may need to disclose beneficial ownership information or ensure compliance with related regulations:

 

  1. **Legal Requirements**: In many jurisdictions, there are legal requirements mandating the disclosure of beneficial ownership information for certain types of entities. Failure to comply with these requirements can result in penalties, fines, or legal consequences.

 

  1. **Transparency and Accountability**: Disclosing beneficial ownership information promotes transparency and accountability within your organization. It helps stakeholders, including investors, regulators, and the public, understand who ultimately owns or controls the entity and how decisions are made.

 

  1. **Compliance with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Regulations**: AML regulations aim to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing, and other illicit activities. Collecting and disclosing beneficial ownership information is often a key part of AML compliance measures.

 

  1. **Combatting Financial Crimes**: Beneficial ownership information is crucial for identifying and preventing financial crimes such as tax evasion, fraud, corruption, and embezzlement. It allows authorities to trace and investigate suspicious or illegal activities.

 

  1. **Enhancing Trust and Credibility**: By being transparent about beneficial ownership, you demonstrate a commitment to ethical business practices, which can enhance trust and credibility with customers, partners, and stakeholders.

 

  1. **Avoiding Reputational Risks**: Failing to disclose beneficial ownership information or being non-compliant with regulations can lead to reputational risks. It may raise suspicions about the integrity of your business operations and deter potential partners or investors.

 

  1. **Global Standards and Expectations**: In an increasingly interconnected world, there is a growing expectation for businesses to adhere to global standards of transparency and corporate governance. Disclosing beneficial ownership information aligns with these expectations.

 

  1. **Preventing Regulatory Violations**: Compliance with beneficial ownership regulations helps prevent violations of laws and regulations related to corporate governance, financial reporting, and disclosure requirements.

 

  1. **Supporting Financial Institutions and Partners**: Financial institutions and business partners often require access to accurate beneficial ownership information as part of their due diligence processes. Providing this information promptly and accurately can facilitate smoother transactions and relationships.

 

  1. **Future-Proofing Your Business**: As regulatory requirements evolve and transparency expectations increase, proactively managing and disclosing beneficial ownership information can help future-proof your business and avoid potential compliance issues down the line.

 

In summary, disclosing beneficial ownership information and ensuring compliance with related regulations are essential for legal, ethical, and reputational reasons. It demonstrates your commitment to transparency, integrity, and responsible business practices while also helping to mitigate risks associated with financial crimes and regulatory non-compliance.

Employee Acceptable Use Policy for using AI at Work

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Purpose: This Acceptable Use Policy outlines the guidelines and expectations for employees using Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies in the workplace. The policy is designed to ensure responsible and ethical use of AI tools, promoting a secure and productive work environment while safeguarding the privacy and sensitive information of both the organization and its stakeholders.

Scope: This policy applies to all employees, contractors, and third-party collaborators who utilize AI technologies in the course of their work for the organization.

Policy:

1. Authorized Use: Employees are permitted to use AI technologies provided or approved by the organization for work-related tasks, as outlined by their job responsibilities and tasks designated by their supervisors.

2. Data Privacy and Security: a. All AI activities involving sensitive information, confidential data, and personally identifiable information (PII) must be carried out following the organization’s data protection and privacy policies. b. Employees must not use AI technologies to access, collect, or manipulate data that they are not authorized to access.

3. Responsible AI Usage: a. Employees must ensure that AI tools are used ethically, avoiding any actions that could cause harm or discriminate against individuals or groups based on race, gender, age, religion, or any other protected characteristics. b. The use of AI for fraudulent, malicious, or deceptive activities is strictly prohibited.

4. Compliance with Laws and Regulations: Employees must adhere to all applicable laws, regulations, and industry standards related to AI usage, data protection, privacy, and intellectual property.

5. Intellectual Property: a. When utilizing AI tools to develop new software, applications, algorithms, or processes, employees must follow the organization’s intellectual property policies. b. Employees must respect third-party intellectual property rights when using AI tools.

6. Transparency and Accountability: a. If an employee’s role involves AI-generated content or interactions with stakeholders, they must disclose when AI is being used to ensure transparency. b. Employees are accountable for the outcomes of AI-generated actions performed under their supervision.

7. Avoiding Bias: a. When utilizing AI technologies that involve data processing, employees must make efforts to identify and mitigate biases that could lead to unfair or discriminatory outcomes. b. If an employee suspects bias in AI-generated outputs, they should promptly report the issue to their supervisor or the designated contact.

8. Reporting Misuse or Concerns: a. Employees should promptly report any misuse or concerns related to AI technologies to their supervisor, IT department, or the designated contact. b. Reports of possible AI-related security breaches or vulnerabilities must be submitted as per the organization’s security incident reporting procedures.

9. Training and Education: The organization will provide training and educational resources to employees to enhance their understanding of AI technologies, ethics, and best practices.

10. Consequences of Violations: Failure to adhere to this policy may result in disciplinary actions, up to and including termination of employment or legal action, depending on the severity and impact of the violation.

Conclusion: By following this Acceptable Use Policy for Employees Using AI at Work, employees contribute to a responsible, ethical, and secure use of AI technologies. Adherence to these guidelines ensures that AI tools contribute positively to the organization’s objectives while maintaining a safe and respectful work environment.

The advantages of choosing small IT Companies over large Corporations

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When it comes to fulfilling your IT needs, there’s often a tug of war between large, well-established corporations and smaller, agile IT companies. While big companies offer a sense of security and an impressive portfolio, opting for a small IT company can have its own set of benefits. In this blog post, we will explore the advantages of choosing small IT companies over their larger counterparts.

Personalized Attention:
One of the most significant advantages of working with a small IT company is the personalized attention you receive. Smaller teams mean fewer clients, allowing them to focus more on understanding your specific requirements and tailoring solutions to meet your exact needs. In contrast, large corporations may spread their resources thin, leading to a more generalized approach and less personalized service.

Faster Response Times:
In a small IT company, decision-making processes are streamlined, enabling quicker response times. When you encounter an issue or need support, you won’t have to navigate through multiple layers of bureaucracy to get the help you need. Direct access to a dedicated team of experts means faster resolutions and less downtime for your business operations.

Flexibility and Adaptability:
Smaller IT companies are more flexible and adaptable to changing market demands and emerging technologies. They can swiftly adjust their strategies and offerings based on your feedback and evolving business needs. This agility is crucial in today’s fast-paced technology landscape, allowing you to stay ahead of the competition.

Cost-Effectiveness:
Working with a small IT company can often be more cost-effective than partnering with a large corporation. Smaller firms typically have lower overheads and are willing to offer competitive pricing for their services. Moreover, you can avoid paying for unnecessary add-ons or features that come bundled with larger companies’ packages.

Niche Expertise:
Small IT companies often focus on specific niches or industries, allowing them to develop deep expertise in those areas. Their specialized knowledge can prove invaluable when addressing unique challenges faced by businesses in your sector. This niche expertise is something that larger IT corporations may lack due to their broad client base.

Stronger Customer Relationships:
Small IT companies value each client as a significant part of their business. Building and maintaining strong customer relationships is essential for their growth and success. As a result, you can expect a higher level of dedication, support, and responsiveness from a small IT firm compared to a larger organization with a more extensive client roster.

Innovation and Creativity:
Smaller IT companies often encourage a more entrepreneurial spirit among their team members. With a focus on innovation and creativity, these companies are more likely to come up with unique solutions tailored to your business challenges. The freedom to experiment and take risks can lead to groundbreaking ideas and cutting-edge solutions.

Conclusion:
While large IT corporations certainly have their merits, choosing a small IT company can offer numerous benefits that cater to the needs of businesses seeking personalized attention, cost-effectiveness, and niche expertise. Their agility, flexibility, and focus on building strong customer relationships make them an attractive option in today’s dynamic IT landscape. When selecting an IT partner, it’s essential to consider your specific requirements and evaluate both big and small companies to find the best fit for your business needs.

 

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How to add a signature in Outlook 365

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To add a signature in Outlook 365, follow these steps:

  1. Open Outlook 365: Launch the Microsoft Outlook application on your computer.
  2. Access the Signature Settings: Click on the “File” tab in the top-left corner of the Outlook window.
  3. Go to Options: In the File menu, select “Options” located at the bottom of the navigation pane. This will open the Outlook Options window.
  4. Navigate to Mail Options: In the Outlook Options window, click on “Mail” from the left-hand side navigation pane.
  5. Click on “Signatures”: Within the Mail options, click on the “Signatures” button, located in the “Compose messages” section. This will open the Signatures and Stationery window.
  6. Create a New Signature: In the Signatures and Stationery window, click on the “New” button to create a new signature.
  7. Enter a Name: Give your new signature a name in the “New Signature” dialog box. This name is for your reference and helps you identify the signature if you have multiple signatures.
  8. Compose your Signature: In the “Edit signature” section, compose your signature. You can include your name, job title, contact information, company logo, and any other details you want to appear in your email signature.
  9. Format your Signature: Use the formatting toolbar to adjust the font, size, color, and style of your signature. You can also add hyperlinks to websites or email addresses, insert images, and customize the layout.
  10. Set Signature Options (Optional): In the “Choose default signature” section, you can set different signatures for new messages and replies/forwards. You can also select whether to include the signature automatically on messages or insert it manually when composing an email.
  11. Save your Signature: After creating your signature, click the “OK” button to save and exit the Signatures and Stationery window.
  12. Apply the Signature: The newly created signature should now be available to use. When you compose a new email or reply to an email, the signature will automatically be included if you chose the automatic option. If you selected the manual option, you can add the signature by clicking on the “Signature” button in the Outlook message compose window.

That’s it! Your signature is now added and ready to be used in Outlook 365 for your emails.

Egnyte Power and Standard User Guides

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Egnyte Power User Guide

This guide will walk you through Egnyte’s primary features for Power Users and provides a solid foundation of knowledge about many of our capabilities. Some of the more advanced features are explored in greater detail elsewhere on our Helpdesk.

Egnyte Standard User Guide

This guide will walk you through Egnyte’s primary features available to Standard Users. Share this guide with new Standard Users so they can get the most out of Egnyte.

Folder Permissions

When you share a folder with another user in your Egnyte account, you make all of the files contained in that folder accessible to them. Depending on the other user’s folder permission level, they can read, edit, move, copy, or delete the contents. This is different from sharing a file or folder link, which only permits the recipient to download the contents. Follow one of the links below to learn more. For further questions on how permissions work in Egnyte, please refer to the Permissions FAQs. You can learn by watching a short video about Granting Access with Folder Permissions.

Invite a User or Group to Access a Folder

Once you’ve created a new folder, you can share the folder with colleagues. Navigate into the folder, select Share from the list of options, and click Manage Folder Permissions.

Note

Only Admins and folder owners can grant access to shared folders.

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The Folder Permissions window shows all users that have access to the current folder. If you want to share files with colleagues who already have an Egnyte user account, enter their username or group name in the search bar. If you haven’t yet invited any colleagues to Egnyte to share files, click Create new account for “____” and enter a new username, email address, and password. An invitation will be sent to your colleague’s email address with instructions for logging in.

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When inviting new users into Egnyte, you have the option of choosing what type of user they are added as. To learn more about the different user types, you can do so here.

When you invite a user, you’ll need to provide their email address and a user name. The User Name field will auto-populate with a suggested name based on the email address you enter for the new user.

You’ll also need to apply the permissions level you’d like the user to have. You can learn more about the access levels in the next section. By default, the new user will be given Editor access to files in these folders, allowing them to download as well as edit files. Click Done once you’re ready. The new user will have immediate access to all files in the current folder as well as all the files contained in its sub-folders (if permissions are inherited from the parent folder).

Remove a User or Group from a Folder

As users’ duties and responsibilities change, you may find that they have access to folders they no longer need. To make the change, you’ll need to navigate into the folder you want to remove them from, select Share from the list of options, and click Manage Folder Permissions.

Note

Only Admins and folder owners can change access to shared folders.

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Locate the user or group you’d like to remove and click the x next to their name.

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Once all of the users or groups have been removed, click Save to apply the changes.

Folder Access Levels

When fellow employees and outside business partners collaborate on a project, you may want collaborators to have different levels of control over the files contained in the folder to protect against file deletions and other unauthorized modifications. Egnyte provides the ability to assign four different access levels to project folders: Viewer, Editor, Full, and Owner. The following chart lays out each level’s permissions.

 

Viewer

Editor

Full

Owner*
Download/Read Files, Folders Yes Yes Yes Yes
Copy Files, Folders Yes Yes Yes Yes
Upload/Edit Files, Folders No Yes Yes Yes
Create Sub-folder No Yes Yes Yes
Rename Files, Folders No Yes Yes Yes
Move Files, Folders No No Yes Yes
Delete Files, Folders, or Versions
 No No Yes Yes
Edit Folder Sharing No No No Yes
Create Upload Links No Yes Yes Yes
Set Permissions No No No Yes

*The owner permission is called “permit” in the Classic UI.

Sub-Folder Access

When you share a folder with fellow employees or business partners, they automatically receive access to all the folder’s sub-folders. However, you can modify sub-folder level access by managing permissions at the sub-folder level. You can also configure a folder so that it doesn’t inherit permissions from its parent

Learn more about Egnyte’s folder sharing structure.

Learn more about disabling permissions inheritance for a folder.

Learn more about “None” permission in the “Folder Permissions Report.”

Sharing from a Mobile Device

You can share a folder with users and groups and even invite new users to share from your Android device, iPhone, or iPad using one of Egnyte’s mobile apps. Long tap a folder or tap the 3 dots next to the folder to see the options panel on the bottom of the screen. Tap Permission and select Add User or Add Group on the next screen.

Choose who to share the file with by searching for an existing user or group and tapping their record when it appears. If you want to add a new user, tap the + icon to select someone from your contacts or type in their name, and tap Invite new user. Enter their information, specify whether you want to make them an Administrator, Employee (Power User), or Non-employee (Standard User), and select their permission level (Owner, Full, Editor, or Viewer). Once you have their information entered, tap Invite, and they will be sent an email with login instructions.

Internet Failover

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Read more

Your secret weapon in the war against cyber extortion.

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What is Ransomware?

Malicious software that locks your files and demands payment to access them.

Ransomware is a term for the many variations of malware that infect computer systems, typically by social engineering schemes.

A cryptovirology attack encrypts critical files and systems and renders them inaccessible to the owner.

Ransomware sometimes marks the files for permanent deletion or publication on the internet. The perpetrators then demand a payment (usually in untraceable cryptocurrency like Bitcoin) for the private key required to decrypt and access the files. Infamous ransomware examples include CryptoLocker, CryptoWall, Locky, Cerber, KeyRanger, SamSam, TeslaCrypt, TorrentLocker, and Reveton.

Who are Ransomware Perpetrators?

Cybercriminals who profit greatly by violating businesses that rely on data as a lifeblood.

Ransomware cybercriminals are organized and profitable. It is estimated that this type of attack earns criminals $10 million to $50 million per month.

There are entire ransomware outfits working out of office buildings, making the stealthy and disruptive pieces of malicious software, and designing deceptively simple schemes to infiltrate small to medium sized businesses.

The criminals are business-minded innovators. Recently, a Ransomware-as-a-Service organized cybercrime ring was discovered, which infected around 150,000 victims in 201 countries in July 2016; splitting profits 40% to malware authors and 60% to those who discover new targets.

The overhead is low, the profits are high, the Bitcoin is anonymous, the list of targets is endless, the technology is not overly complicated, and the odds of getting caught are low. Ransomware perpetrators are sophisticated, profit-hungry, cybercriminals on the lookout for unsuspecting SMBs to violate.

Could my business be a Ransomware victim?

In a word: Yes.

Ransomware perpetrators cast a wide net. They target small to medium sized businesses with IT security loopholes, valuable data, and a modest budget to pay the ransom.

If data is important to your business, you are a target.

To get in to your systems, they may send a phishing email to your staff. Because 94% of people can’t distinguish between a real email and a phishing email 100% of the time, they get in. And if they don’t, they try again until someone somewhere clicks the link.

Want to learn more? Contact us today for a free assessment.