Insurance Networking News: Executive Strategies for Technology Management articles from December 2006

Insurance Networking News: Executive Strategies for Technology Management archives from December 2006

Using Technology in the Crusade Against Fraud.
December 1, 2006... Property and casualty insurance fraud cost carriers about $29 billion last year, according to the New York-based Insurance Information Institute. The trouble is that's just part of the picture. It's safe to say the number would increase when...

Data Breach Perils.(insurance industry)
December 1, 2006... Its negative connotation is deserved. For insurance companies, a data breach spells instant trouble-the least of which is potential loss of reputation, brand and revenue. If a court of law rules the insurance company is negligent, a data breach...

Healing Workers' Comp.(New Mexico Mutual Casualty Co.)
December 1, 2006... By early 2004, it was obvious to everyone at the New Mexico Mutual Casualty Co., also known as New Mexico Mutual Group, that the company's green-screen legacy claims system had outlived its usefulness. The company was bringing in a new...

Don't Panic.(risk management policies of insurance industry, meeting the needs of natural disasters)
December 1, 2006... We've been lucky this year - after being told to brace for another catastrophic hurricane season, we felt the ocean breezes grow calm and saw storm-related losses remain at a minimum. The insurance industry dealt with an estimated $61.8...

Roving Trouble.(survey on use of handheld data devices in financial services)
December 1, 2006... The use of handheld devices in financial services increased by 80% over the past two years. The freedom to work remotely can increase employee productivity, but there's a downside: Securing e-mail access to corporate server-based accounts and...

News Briefs.(American Safety Council partnered with Travelers Casualty and Surety Co., 21st annual TenCon show and conference in Dallas, award winners recognized, Chubb Group of Insurance Cos. launched online tool to help personal insurance consumers)
December 1, 2006... IDENTITY THEFT INSURANCE MAKING DEBUT One in every 23 Americans has fallen prey to identity theft-enough to prompt the American Safety Council, an Orlando, Fla.-based educational institution, to team with Travelers Casualty and Surety Co....

Lost Laptop = Exposed Insurance Data.
December 1, 2006... A costly, headline-making breach of customer data can begin with the seemingly inconsequential act of misplacing a company smart phone, personal digital assistant or laptop computer. In fact, insurance carriers say thieves now appear more...

Chronology Of Data Breaches.(Chronology)
December 1, 2006... DATE MADE PUBLIC: Late Dec. NAME(Location): Ameriprise TYPE OF BREACH: Stolen laptop containing names and Social Security numbers and in some cases, Ameriprise account information. NUMBER OF RECORDS: Unknown DATE MADE PUBLIC:...

Solutions.(Zywave Inc., CCC Information Services Inc. and SunGard Data Systems Inc. launches software solutions for insurance industry)
December 1, 2006... TOOL HELPS EMPLOYEES MANAGE THEIR BENEFITS PlanAdvisor, a benefits management tool from Milwaukee-based Zywave Inc., features a Plan Selector module to enable employees to review their own health costs. PlanAdvisor generates management...

Solutions.(AllwaySync 4.6.10 launched by Usov Lab, Ashburn, Jumpnode Systems LLC launches network management software)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... CONTENT MANAGEMENT ACROSS THE ENTERPRISE AllwaySync 4.6.10, the latest version of a tool for automating data exchange routines across multiple computers, is available from Usov Lab, Ashburn, Va. Compatible with most Windows versions, the...

Identifying Outgoing Data: Top 5 Challenges.(tips for managing sensitive data of insurance industry)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... * Fragments of sensitive data can easily be cut and pasted; * Sensitive data is often modified from an original document into derivations or excerpts; * Multiple copies of sensitive data typically exist; * Sensitive data is kept in...

Regulatory Requirements May Change The Data Breach Reporting Landscape.
December 1, 2006... At press time, two bills that could shape the way insurance companies deal with data breaches were in process. The Financial Data Protection Act (HR 4127) is designed to protect consumers by requiring reasonable security policies and...

Chronology of Data Breaches.(insurance)(Statistical data)
December 1, 2006... DATE MADE PUBLIC: Feb. 15, 2005 NAME(Location): ChoicePoint (Alpharetta, Ga.) TYPE OF BREACH: Bogus accounts established by ID thieves. The initial number of affected records was estimated at 145,000 but was later revised to 163,000....

An Industry Pulling Together.(insurance fraud in the US insurance industry, regulations to control the problem)
December 1, 2006... Insurance fraud is the second most costly white-collar crime in America-somewhat behind tax evasion, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), Des Plaines, Ill. But some express optimism concerning the industry's ability to...

What Do Carriers Need To Increase Market Share?(life insurance industry)
December 1, 2006... What are the current business and technology capabilities necessary for life insurance companies to maintain or increase their competitive position in the marketplace? Will this change over the next five years? TowerGroup, a Needham,...

Replacing Core Systems: A new core system can promote efficiency, loyalty and product innovation.
December 1, 2006... Insurance Networking News asked John Del Santo, managing director for Accenture's Insurance Practice, to explain why some insurers are replacing core systems and others aren't. INN: Why are some insurers replacing their core systems? ...

Chinese Carriers Expect Onslaught: China has opened its borders to foreign insurance companies, touching off an 'invasion' that may increase IT investment.
December 1, 2006... Chinese insurance companies were bracing for an onslaught by global competitors last month when a commitment to the World Trade Organization dictated opening the borders to foreign competition. "Almost all insurance business is opening to...

News Briefs.(housing stocks undervalued for insurance purposes, Federal Emergency Management Agency amends the National Flood Insurance Program regulations, Mark Sander appointed as chief technology officer of New York Life Insurance Co.)
December 1, 2006... HOUSING STOCK UNDERVALUED 21% According to the 2006 Insurance to Value (ITV) Quality Index, 58% of U.S. residential housing stock is currently undervalued for insurance purposes by an estimated 21%. That's an overall improvement of...

Solutions.(Towers Perrin, InsFocus Ltd. and Air Worldwide Corp. launches software solutions for insurance industry)
December 1, 2006... ACTUARIAL SOFTWARE The Tillinghast business of Towers Perrin, New York, released TAS-MoSes, an actuarial software application that uses the MoSes financial modeling software platform. The software is designed to provide enhanced goal...

Claims System Delivers Tips Based on User's Experience and skills.(New Mexico Mutual Casualty Co. uses rule-based architecture to train its claims adjusters)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Albuquerque, N.M.-based New Mexico Mutual Casualty Co. uses Guidewire's ClaimCenter's rules-based architecture to help train its claims adjusters. At the heart of the feature lies a database of adjusters' skill levels, including licenses...

For Claims Systems, It's Out With The Old And In With The New.(Donald Light of Celent LLC's Insurance Group on legacy systems of claim processing by property and casualty insurance industry)
December 1, 2006... Legacy systems-those more than five to 10 years old-are still processing claims at about half the country's P&C insurers, says Donald Light, senior analyst for Celent LLC's Insurance Group in Boston. "From the viewpoint of the industry and...

Solutions.(Trintech Group (San Mateo, California), MapInfo Corp. and Scene Genesis Inc. launches software solutions for insurance industry)
December 1, 2006... TRINTECH EXTENDS FUNCTIONS OF ASSURENET GL FOR COMPLIANCE The latest version of Trintech's AssureNET GL offers more functions to support accounting compliance requirements. The Addison, Texas-based company specializes in financial software...

Who's Buying What: Recent Deals for Technology Software and Services.(Capitol Insurance Cos. partnered with Systems Task Group International Ltd., AIG Technologies Inc. partnered with NetQoS, OneAmerica Financial Partners Inc. partners with Investigo Corp. )
December 1, 2006... CAPITOL SELECTS STG BILLING SYSTEM Middleton, Wis.-based Capitol Insurance Cos. chose Renaissance Billing Solution from New York-based Systems Task Group International Ltd.'s (STG) to support billing and accounts receivable operations. The...

Ad Index For December 2006.(advertising services)(Directory)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Advertiser Website Address Page # Acxiom www.acxiom.com CV4 CGI www.cgi.com 5 Cingular www.cingular.com/broadbandconnect 2 EDS SOLCORP www.solcorp.com CV2 EDS Solcorp Web Seminar...

Top 10 'Best Practices' For Product Development: Insurers can beat the competition by launching products in record time and managing those products for the long run.(Company overview)
December 1, 2006... The ability to launch products in record time and manage them over their entire lifecycle gives insurers a decisive advantage over competitors that can translate into increased revenue and above-average growth. So, how do insurers realize...