This new year marks a turn in the identification of newsletters.  Since this is a volunteer position, the newsletters don't always come out on a regular schedule.  In the past we've identified the newsletters by month and year.  That hasn't always worked out so well - like when the Nov-Dec newsletter come in in March 2007, for example.  Starting this year, the newsletters will be identified by year and sequence number - so this is Volume 2007, Number 1.

There are a variety of things covered in this edition.  We start with Chapter News, then ISACA HQ news, followed by a series of articles of general interest to IT Audit and Control.

COBIT 4.1 was just released, and we have a short item about this new Framework. 

CanAudit has allowed us to reproduce an article on "Right to Audit Clauses" I think you'll find of interest.

A sample of The Institute of Internal Controls Newsletter is provided for your information.  Directions on subscribing are included with the newsletter.

AICPA has published "Generally Accepted Privacy Policies" which you may want to review.

We've got 'gadgets' all over the place - MP3 players, cell phones, Blackberry devices, etc.  Do we understand the risk these devices cause our organizations?  

A few articles are included on using your PC better.

An article on 'pretexting' is included for your consideration.  This is closely akin to what we call 'social engineering' - the obtaining of private information through various [and sometimes illegal] means.

What if you could talk to your computer, and it would listen?  What if someone else walks by and says 'shut down' while you are using it?   The article on voice input in Vista may grab your interest. 

We're all familiar with MS Office or Open Office office suites of tools.  New players are entering the market with a new means of delivery - service oriented architectures.  What if you used the application remotely rather than on your local computer.  The SOA market for office suites is starting to heat up.  You might want to check this out. 

And we conclude Volume 2007, Number 1 with a humorous "Infosec Dictionary".

We're always looking for new news to pass along, so if you have an item that you think would be of general interest please send it along to newsletter@indyisaca.org.

Enjoy.

Mike Hines
Newsletter Editor