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A Brief History of Halloween
Disposing of Unwanted Information Storage Media
Fall in Cape May
Did You Know?
 

Halloween, Samhain, and All Allows Eve essentially define the very same day, October 31st. Aside from the spooky stories and commercialization of this holiday, there are several things about this date that few individuals actually know.

Halloween history begins in the British Isles in ancient times. The Celts and Celtic priests, the Druids, called this day Samhain and, on Pagan calendars, it marked the end of the year. It was on the eve of this day that the Druids would honor Samhain, who was the Pagan God of death. The Celts believed that, by wearing costumes, they could scare off the spirits of the dead that they believed would rise on this night.

When the Romans gained control, they began honoring their Roman goddess, Pomona; believing that she would bless them with abundant gardens and fruits. This is why apples, or bobbing for them, are often a part of the Halloween tradition, as apples were a sacred fruit during this time. The Halloween colors, orange and black, are associated with the holiday because they represent the harvest and death, respectively.

Christianity’s rise brought additional changes. For instance, the Christian holiday, All Saints Day, was celebrated on the first of November. The evening prior was known as All Allows Eve, which is how October 31st earned the name Halloween. Yet, the Pagans, most of Scottish and Irish descent, continued their religious beliefs despite being introduced to Christianity. When they came to the U.S. as immigrants, the holiday traditions came with them. The first recorded observation of Halloween in the U.S. occurred in 1921, in Anoka, MN. Today, Halloween has climbed to second place in terms of commercial popularity.

 
 

A million dollars worth of $100 bills weighs 22 pounds
It will take a person more than 400 years to watch all the videos on YouTube.

Half the world's population is under 25 years of age

The sentence "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" uses every letter of the alphabet.

The hundred billionth crayon made by Crayola was Periwinkle Blue.
 
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Disposing of Unwanted Information Storage Media

Retaining data has become an important corporate consideration lately, especially in light of the passage of new laws such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Although many companies have spent a great deal of time and resources toward meeting these retention needs, little has focused on the exact opposite – destruction of data.

All data usage typically comes to an end. The natural flow once data is used turns to a stasis period where it is placed in some storage device for possible retrieval at a later date. However, the time will arrive when the need does arise to clean out this storage device. The storage media itself may also be outdated.

Take a good look around the office checking out just how many cabinets, drawers or shelves are full of compact discs (CDs) containing data that is no longer needed. The task erasing all these discs would not only be formidable, but most likely counterproductive. The CDs should be destroyed; therefore any data contained will escape unwanted eyes and sensitive corporate data never revealed. FTC Website

Once the federal government enacted the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA), companies engaged in acquiring personal consumer information, such as the type used by credit agencies and lending institutions, were required by law to comply with standards set for the destruction of information. The law was enacted to help fight the increasingly growing concern about identity theft sweeping the nation.

There are varying destruction methods to employ that are used dependent upon the storage media in question. Here are the more common storage media with required destruction methods employed.

How do I dispose of unwanted media?

  • Priority offers media disposal services, which include but are limited to, DOD wipe of hard drives, EPA Certified Computer Recycling by Pound, and Degaussing.
  • All media would be shredded and a Certificate of Destruction provided for audit purposes.
Flash or USB devices

These have become incredibly important in recent years due to their convenient size and portability. Typically these drives hold anywhere from 32 MB to a gigabyte or more. These reusable devices can last almost indefinitely being erased frequently until they cease to work. In the event one needs to be destroyed, simply crack it in half and throw it away. This will make it unusable even if found in the trash can.

Magnetic Media - Tape and Floppy Discs

Remember these? Perhaps there’s an entire file cabinet full of old discs and tapes that is never visited anymore. There are free programs found on the Internet that will erase this media. Then use scissors to cut them in half, making sure no one gains access to the information that was stored.

CDs and DVDs

These portable media storage devices are the most commonly used today. Not only do businesses employ them for storage, but they are also used to present clients with information as well. Once these CDs and DVDs are no longer needed, they can be destroyed by snapping them in half, cutting through with scissors or even using a special shredding devise designed specifically for their disposal.

Traditional 'Hard Copy' Storage

Paper, paper, paper everywhere. This is the one source that proves most productive for any identity theft. Paper is often overlooked in some of its simplistic forms like notepad or sticky notes. Often single- or multi-page reports are thrown in the waste basket next to the desk. They then find their way to an out-of-building trash receptacle where they can fall prey to spying eyes. Ramped up identity theft activity levels call for increased information theft practices that dictate the destruction of even the most trivial piece of information. That’s why it is important to destroy all handwritten or typed-out documents as well. Legal requirements dictated for complying with all HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and FACTA regulations always includes cross-cut paper shredding producing fragments that at 1mm by 5mm long.

Access Denial

Any company that creates an information destruction policy needs to consider that there is a needed balance between destruction costs versus information disclosure. This is why a business should establish an end-life for all collected data that includes the correct destruction and disposition denying anyone unauthorized access.


 
 
 

Cape May, NJ, is not a town that might bring instant associations to your mind, but this hidden gem is one of the most exciting tourist destinations in the country to visit during the fall. For those who don't know Cape May, it might come as a surprise that the fall activities center on history, the paranormal, intriguing mysteries, and food!

October is one of the best months to visit Cape May and take in tall the fall activities. The history of the area has lead to "Victorian Week," which includes tours of local landmarks, dancing lessons that teach historic dances where people are encouraged to wear Victorian dress, and paranormal tours of the town such as “Phantoms of Cape May” and “Tales of Terror Trolley Ride”.

Food and these themes cross over as well, with some restaurants offering fun interactive dinner murder mysteries, allowing people to put their Sherlock Holmes like instincts (including a Holmes weekend in November) while enjoying world class food. If you're just interested in the food, without the murder, check out the “Chef Dine Around” during Victorian week when you can enjoy each different course of a meal at a different restaurant.

Halloween is also a great time to visit the town and, since they already have paranormally themed events, they really get into the spirit of the holiday. This is one of the best times to take one of the ghost tours of town, and to enjoy the decorations put up by most hotels and inns.