Category:

Eco/Invest/Demography

Cyber joins Business Interruption as leading Global Risk for first time: Allianz

“Companies need to plan for a wide range of disruptive scenarios and triggers, as this is where their big exposure lies in today’s networked society,” says Chris Fischer Hirs, CEO of AGCS.

“Disruptive risks can be physical, such as fire or storms, or virtual, such as an IT outage, which can occur through malicious and accidental means. They can stem from their own operations but also from a company’s suppliers, customers or IT service providers. Whatever the trigger, the financial loss for companies following a standstill can be enormous.

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“Rising geopolitical and geo-economic tensions are the most urgent risk in 2019”

The report released on Wednesday said environmental degradation is the long-term risk that defines the current era, with four of the top five most impactful global risks in 2019 related to climate Rapidly evolving cyber and technological threats are the most significant potential blind spots; and the vulnerability of networked societies still not fully appreciated, said the report. 

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US: Drug advertising drives $30 bn Medical Industry marketing machine

The researchers estimated that medical marketing reached $30 billion in 2016, up from $18 billion in 1997. Spending on consumer-focused ads climbed fastest. But marketing to doctors and other health professionals still grabbed the biggest share with the bulk of it paying for free drug samples.
“Marketing drives more treatments, more testing” that patients don’t always need, said Dr. Steven Woloshin, a Dartmouth College health policy expert. Woloshin wrote the report with his wife, Dr. Lisa Schwartz, both longtime critics of over-diagnosis and over-treatment.

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Los Angeles sues IBM’s Weather Channel for use of location tracking

In a complaint filed Thursday [Jan. 3] in California state court, the city alleges IBM used detailed location data from users for targeted advertising and to identify consumer trends that might be useful to hedge funds, while at the same time telling consumers their location would only be used to localize weather forecasts. The suit doesn’t allege personally identifiable information was sold.

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