Why you probably shouldn’t use Express Scripts

My health insurance provider, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, currently uses Express Scripts as its mail-order pharmacy. They’re switching to CVS Caremark as of January 1, 2023, which as you’ll see from below is probably a good thing. However, if your insurance company is still using Express Scripts, then I to encourage you to… Read More: Why you probably shouldn’t use Express Scripts »

Elan Financial Services: why are you so bad at this?

I had a Visa card issued by Elan Financial Services branded through my bank (Eastern Bank). Elan is consistently mediocre. Their web site looks and works like it was built 20 years ago. Their monthly statements tell you how much “bonus” cash back you earned but don’t tell you which transactions fall into which bonus… Read More: Elan Financial Services: why are you so bad at this? »

Speaking out about “progressive” organizations giving up on COVID

A progressive organization which I have supported philosophically and financially in the past recently sent me an invitation to an in-person holiday party. I wrote back and told them how disappointed I was with their decision to do that and that they had permanently tarnished their reputation in my eyes. They did not respond. A… Read More: Speaking out about “progressive” organizations giving up on COVID »

Scripts for using Shamir’s Secret Sharing Scheme securely

The open-source package Shamir’s Secret Sharing Scheme, or “ssss” for short, allows a relatively short secret, for example, a password or passphrase, to be split into a specified number of shares in a way that allows the entire secret to be reconstructed from only a subset of the shares. For example, you can split a… Read More: Scripts for using Shamir’s Secret Sharing Scheme securely »

Washington Post downplays excess mortality, Long COVID in its most recent article about COVID deaths

To: ariana.cha@washpost.com, dan.keating@washpost.comSubject: What about excess mortality? What about Long COVID?Date: November 28, 2022 Your article in today’s Washington Post committed a grave error in not mentioning even a single word about the fact that the statistics you were citing reflected only deaths officially classified as being caused by COVID, which is a massive undercount… Read More: Washington Post downplays excess mortality, Long COVID in its most… »

Taking your contacts with you when you switch jobs, without stealing from your former employer

I’ve worked almost entirely for startups for the past 30+ years. It’s what I love, but switching jobs a lot comes with the territory. One of the problems I face with each switch is how to take with me outside contacts I’ve made, without compromising my soon-to-be-ex-employer’s intellectual property. Sure, I’ve added some of them… Read More: Taking your contacts with you when you switch jobs, without… »

My one indispensable infosec management tool: a simple recurring task dashboard

There is one problem that every single information security / governance / risk / compliance (GRC) organization at every company has to deal with, and that’s keeping track of all the recurring tasks that you need to do to maintain your security and compliance and ensuring that they are done on time. I’m sure that… Read More: My one indispensable infosec management tool: a simple recurring task… »

Reliable 1Password backup written in Python

I’ve done a pretty deep dive comparing the features of various password managers, but one feature I didn’t cover in that analysis was backup for business customers. What commitments does the vendor make in terms of backup/restore? Do they promise to be able to restore data that is accidentally or maliciously modified or deleted by… Read More: Reliable 1Password backup written in Python »