SM Online August 2015

​OFFICER SUICIDES

A recent study​ found that workers in the protective service professions—which include law enforcement, first responders such as firefighters, and security officers—suffered a higher rate of workplace suicide than those in other professions. Conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the study looked at suicides that occurred in U.S. workplaces between 2003 and 2010. The study combined data from two different sources—the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

BUG BOUNTIES

A bug bounty program is more beneficial than a single employee dedicated to finding vulnerabilities. That’s what three Berkeley researchers reported in An Empirical Study of Vulnerability Rewards Programs. The report examined the cost-effectiveness of bug bounty programs executed by Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.

NATIONAL PARKS

The U.S. Park Police Fraternal Order of Police wrote an open letter to the National Park Service director stressing the need for more resources to protect iconic sites from terrorist attacks. A lack of funding will lead to an increase in the threat to public safety, the letter states.​

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

A foreign hacker was sentenced to prison​ for his role in stealing more than $100 million worth of trade secrets from U.S. companies. Canadian David Pokora was convicted for leading a hacker group that stole information from Microsoft and used it to build a counterfeit Xbox One gaming system. 

REFERENCE CHECKS

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit brought by plaintiffs who alleged they were not hired because potential employers used a social media search tool to obtain background information about them.

RETHINKING REVIEWS

A Quantum Workplace report, Five Reasons Why Annual Performance Reviews Don’t Work, finds several flaws in the traditional annual review process. For example, reviews may not be conducive to comfortable, honest discussion, and the tight link between the evaluation and a potential pay increase can lead to an anxiety-ridden focus on how large a raise is justified, overshadowing the opportunity for useful feedback, the report finds.