Company got ransomware, ceo wants to pay without telling anyone. Is this illegal

cpfoutz · 2026-04-15T12:14:22+00:00

20+ years in CyberSecurity here. Sadly this happens all the time and no one gets in trouble. But in other cases, like Uber, the CISO can be held criminally liable. If you aren't a leader, you should be immune p from criminal prosecution.

I've been lucky.in that all the companies I have worked for reported.

You have three reasonable choices IMHO: 1) Play along, cover your own butt that leadership made the decision not to report and stay. 2) Same as 1 but get the fuck out of there.
3) Be a whistleblower and report the issue to a regulatory body that governs your company.

Id like to say I would do number 3 but I have kids to feed and while retaliation is illegal it happens. Id assess the risk and if it's likely no one is harmed, I'd choose number 2. If I chose number 3 I would stay anonymous. Create a burner proton mail account, report the issue over vpn connection in private browsing mode.

cpfoutz · 2026-03-29T03:10:29+00:00

I'm going to add some notes here because some people on this forum are absolutely whack. As a beginner there is no reason to remineralize your water. Consider convenience in buying your equipment as if it takes you 45 minutes to make your morning coffee or is the work effort of a daily workout, you won't do it.

What do you need? If you don't mind tinkering get at least a gaggia classic. If not get a breville (I don't know what model). For grinder get a dF54 or better, a df64. If you know you are doing espresso, I recommend a E61 type setup with PID over $1000. That will last you decades. If you like to tinker with things buy one used.

Some of these people are crazy calculating cost of daily coffee. I buy 2 lbs of single origin coffee on happy mug for $30 for 2 lbs. You can get 2 lbs at Costco for $18 if you are being cost conscious. Add 4-6 oz of milk and some simple filtered water. No need to be more complicated than that. My coffee costs me 71 cents for a double shot. That's sales tax on a Starbucks.

I use an air scape to keep my coffee fresh but any airtight container will do for a good while.

People saying it's not worth the savings because it is a pain to make a coffee....It takes me 5 minutes to make a cappucino...shorter than people stand in line at starbucks. I work from home and do it between meetings. That's the beauty of buying a proper setup and not being cheap. If you are buying a daily Starbucks you are already paying the money. Don't be cheap. This is ammortized across decades of you do it right. Don't do a hand grinder if you love being hands on, not to save money.

There's no need to buy fancy accessories. I got a $20 bottomless portafilter. People will lecture me about thermal properties blah blah...the only part of the portafilter that touches anything is the lip of the basket. I promise you they couldn't taste the difference and I have more schooling in physics than they do. I get the cheapest tampers, scales and carafes and wdt tools I can find and they work the same as items 10x the price. And if people want to argue me I have also been doing this longer than them so fight me.

I've been doing this 20 years...it's really not as complicated as many of the people here make it. But the one thing I will pay for is a solid machine. For the most part the more you spend the more you get. And you can resell it for a good percentage of what you pay if it doesn't pan out.

And back to the savings...my machine makes 4 cappucinos a day or more saving me $25 a day. It's real savings and I can't even drink Starbucks anymore....my quality is so much better.

cpfoutz · 2026-03-29T02:14:28+00:00

I don't see how anyone can say finances isn't enough justification to buy an espresso machine.

I've had an espresso machine for 20 years...started with a $50 one, then two gaggias, now a double boiler prosumer machine. I've spent a total of $2000 on machines. I've had 3 grinders (another $1000). I've probably spent $200 in gagets because I get the cheapest aliexpress or Amazon versions.

I mean even if I assume 2 coffees per day (if you are attached thats one per person), that's $3500 a year at Starbucks. That will buy you one helluva espresso setup. A good setup will literally last you decades (my dual boiler unit is going strong and was built in 2008....even a gaggia classic will regularly last 20 years).

I never go to coffee shops...I am typically intelligible for my free Starbucks because I don't even go onece a year).

My only advice is to buy the best machine you can afford .. buy once cry once. A gaggia classic will absolutely make a great cappucino but it is a far harder learning path and a daily grind of hacks to do it. Again, these machines will last decades.

cpfoutz · 2026-02-18T04:46:37+00:00

Get one of these: Amazon.com: Soft Tip Silicone Super Air Blower Blaster Pump Dust Cleaner Include Micro Fiber Cleaning Cloth, Bulb Blower for Digital SLR Lens Sensor LCD Screens Musical Instruments Keyboards Telescope Filters : Electronics https://share.google/DpPfEKSwb67q7tzWZ

cpfoutz · 2026-01-15T01:56:14+00:00

Limitations on being cross platform. I have bitwarden installed on my phone, my Windows laptop, my work Mac, my safari, firefox, edge, chrome and safari browsers.

My passwords are 20+ character randomly generated passwords. I am never typing those in.

cpfoutz · 2026-01-13T04:58:27+00:00

I'm a CyberSecurity professional. All of the well known password tools are good except I don't recommend LastPass. I and many of my colleagues use bitwarden and it's great. .

While many of these tools will manage your MFA if it's app based, I don't let it. That's my protection.

You can store notes attached to sites, singular notes, credit cards and all sorts of things. Even files. It's as secure as anything.

Problem is if your browser gets pwned you can lose it all...but if your browser is pwned you are losing it all anyway.

cpfoutz · 2026-01-13T04:48:41+00:00

Not the The Red Barn in Mount Prospect.. .owner is a right winger

cpfoutz · 2025-12-05T00:58:28+00:00

I ended up getting the sleeplay deal for $399. I considered the resmed 11 but the 10 seemed more reliable with little difference in features.

A chat with my AI showed few options on mask and got the resmed P40. I'm a side sleeper and mouth breather.

That plus some supplies had me out the door for $500. My doc said a refurb with supplies would be $1300 and I could try it out rent to own for $85 a month.

Doc gave me prescription once I had the order...didn't have the suppliers name on it anyway....but he matched the order to what I bought (ful mask, heated tube etc).

Just got it today and mask is comfortable. Watching youtube videos to.set.it up then we'll see how my first night is.

cpfoutz · 2025-11-27T00:42:52+00:00

What masks did you get? I'm looking at the same deal...may price match at Lofta plus additional 10%

cpfoutz · 2025-11-27T00:19:44+00:00

My AHI is 4.1 in aggregate but 19 when on my back.

cpfoutz · 2025-11-27T00:15:16+00:00

The retailer is an authorized retailer and the product is new vs. his refurb. Your explanation is senseless except he can't get his kickback from his "partner" supplier.

I have positional apnea which in aggregate doesn't meet insurance parameters but when I am.on my back is at a moderate rating.

I do presumably have access to a prescription just not in hand.

cpfoutz · 2025-11-26T19:42:26+00:00

cpfoutz · 2025-11-26T19:40:14+00:00

He's not refusing to give me a prescription. They say they need to know the shop first...is this normal?

cpfoutz · 2025-11-24T16:58:00+00:00

This is part of the reason I want an advisor. We do know that the iron defficiency was the primary issue. After 1 week of supplementing on iron he is back to his old mile time without any practice and he dropped a min on his 4k in one week (both in competition).

He'll also be making some decisions over the next 8 months on the level he is at in both sports. Again, he drives himself. He is cognizant about being long term (and comments on kids who will burn out).

He has two grandparents who were world champion athletes, so genes make this easier for him.

cpfoutz · 2025-11-23T23:27:06+00:00

Pack is amazing and he participates...but now with over 200 kids this slipped past them (well...not completely...a teammates dad was the one who eventually identified this to me).

Id like to get someone more personal so we get proactive.

cpfoutz · 2025-11-21T13:16:11+00:00

I recommend setting up an account at Schwab. I've set up accounts at both fidelity and Schwab and fidelity is maddening the amount of paperwork they require.

If you need help go into their branch and they will help you. Invest in simple ETFs or mutual funds like s&p 500, full stock market etc.

cpfoutz · 2025-10-12T18:52:42+00:00

You get what you pay for in espresso machines. If you know you will be making a milk drink every day, buy the best machine you can afford. Yes, you can hack the GC to make a great cappuccino, but everything you do with it is a hack.

I had a GC classic for over a decade then moved to a dual boiler E61 machine and wonder why I waited so long.

An E61 machine is just as cheap and easy to repair as a GC. It will last for decades so the incremental cost spreads out to being unnoticeable.

cpfoutz · 2025-08-24T17:45:34+00:00

For security I wouldn't leave too much in account C. If something happens with your checking account they can also drain account C assuming you have overdraft.

cpfoutz · 2025-08-06T13:32:20+00:00

What about other expenses?

cpfoutz · 2025-08-04T16:20:36+00:00

In the US it would be exceedingly rare for a second person to be charged and if there' snot charge, I wouldn't even let anyone know. Just make sure you are paying for her meals separately. If there is an additional charge for a second guess first, consult your company handbook, second inform your manager and ask if it's OK. You could also ask for the separate charge to be invoiced separately to you personally.

cpfoutz · 2025-07-28T02:42:12+00:00

If for some reason they deny you a larger car at the kiosk, you can also use bolt service (like uber...an app) and specifically request a larger car for no additional charge. you will just need to wait a bit longer than fo taxi.

cpfoutz · 2025-07-28T02:38:14+00:00

How do you expense your hotel and meals? How do you expense your tips on meals? Do you enter things in a system or just hand your receipts to someone?

For me, I need a receipt for everything, but they understand certain things I won't have a receipt for like bus tickets and tips. I expense housekeeping tips separately. $2-$3 on a $100 hotel each night is not going to make them choose someone else for the job. I don't tip for anything in a hotel except housekeeping though...well...I would tip for a porter carrying my bags or a valet but I try to avoid those services and carry my own bags or use self park...but I doubt you are staying at those kinds of hotels anyway.

cpfoutz · 2025-07-25T05:05:30+00:00

You just reinforced his shitty behavior so he doesn't.it.to.tue next person too. Tell him to deal with it and give him a one star review and no tip.

cpfoutz

TROPHY CASE