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Security Assessment Services: National Association of Realtors REALTOR®Secure Certification Program Digital Resources Group (DRG) is helping the real estate industry protect its assets and the clients you serve against malicious and criminal cyber attacks. DRG has been selected and certified to perform the REALTOR®Secure Certification assessment, a program designed to preserve and protect your client's valuable and most personal information. Overview Client confidence and trust have always been a hallmark of the real estate profession. Identity theft is a growing problem that threatens this trusted relationship. As information exchanges and transactions move online, clever cyber criminal are devising new attacks to compromise your computer systems and steal your clients' personal data, which can then be used to initiate fraudulent transactions. To address this growing problem of information loss and identity theft the National Association of Realtors (NAR) has introduced the REALTOR® Secure Certification program. This program is designed to ensure that its members are protecting client privacy by securing electronic transactions and computer environments, using today's best security practices. Realtors, Brokerages, MLS or Realtor Service Providers have a responsibility to proactively take the necessary steps required to protect their computer systems and client data. How does this affect to you? When a hacking incident or other cyber attack compromises your computers, network or databases, your firm's name and reputation are at stake. The impact of a security breach can have devastating bottom-line consequences. Measures must be taken immediately to correct the problem and notify all your customers who are at risk, this occurs while your company struggles to operate without computer services and put new security measures in place. A number of states have adopted privacy legislation that makes it a crime to steal private information. California was one of the first states to create actionable legislation in the form of Senate Bill 1386. Effective July 2003, SB1386 calls for strict protection of personal information. Under the legislation, realtors and their industry members may be required to notify all clients when information is compromised. It is a statistical probability that such a loss could occur if steps are not taken to protect this information. Congress is proposing broader legislation that will create Federal Privacy laws similar to SB1386. These regulations are not the only concern of the real estate industry, the industry must also consider the large number of computer viruses, system hijackings (theft of your computer resources), denial of service attacks, and information/identity theft that should concern each and every computer user. What can you do to prevent this type of loss? The more you do to protect your data and client's privacy the better prepared you will be to address this issue. The first thing you can do is to contact the Digital Resources Group (DRG) and ask about the REALTOR®Secure program. DRG can assist realtors and other concerned industry participants in obtaining this valuable certification. As an evaluator for the REALTOR®Secure program, DRG can assess the infrastructure e.g. networks, operating systems, applications and security programs used by Realtors, Brokerages, Multiple Listing Services and Service Providers. What is the process? There are a number of different tasks that DRG can perform during the REALTOR®Secure certification process. These could include but may not be limited to:
Jim Cowing :: Technology Security - A Technical Perspective Pat Smart :: SPAM and Spyware - The IT Perspective A comment from Mark Lesswing, VP for the Center for REALTOR® Technology at the National Association of Realtors (NAR): "As the industry leader, NAR is setting the standard in real estate technology. The REALTOR® Secure program is vital to MLS, brokers and associations. It helps secure the digital future of REALTORS®. We encourage our members to seek out certified evaluators and begin discussions as to certification and as to their overall security and privacy postures. We all must work together to preserve and protect our client's valuable and most personal information."Please contact DRG with questions or to begin the RealtorSecure process: RealtorSecure@drgsf.com or call (650) 638-3350 Back to Top |
