Newsletter: Issue 9 / March 2014

Posted by | March 13, 2014 | Publications | No Comments

Letter from the President

Like just about everyone in this corner of the country, I was excited to learn that the Super Bowl was going to be played at MetLife Stadium this year. And like virtually everyone who lives, works and drives in the immediate area, I was dreading the traffic on game day.

But when Cambridge Security agreed to provide security for the teams and tourists prior to the game my attention shifted. We have provided security for a huge number of hotels all around the country, but never for hotels filled with NFL players and the coaches, trainers and staff that help the teams make it to the Super Bowl—almost all of them media stars, attracting fans and paparazzi wherever they go.

And Cambridge has provided security at hundreds of events, from PGA golf tournaments to major trade exhibitions. But not many of these compare to the week long carnival of events leading up the big game, from the 13-block stretch of Broadway filled with attractions, kids and fans to the Brooklyn Cruise filled with the rich and famous.

It wasn’t much of a game, but I am proud of the part Cambridge played ensuring the security of the Denver Broncos, the Seattle Seahawks and thousands of their fans in the days before Super Bowl XLVIII.

All the best,
Stanley J. Czwakiel
President, Cambridge Security Services

The Best Security Goes Un-noticed

The Super Bowl moved through New York City and New Jersey like a festive hurricane. The Denver Broncos took over all 351 rooms of the Hyatt Regency Jersey City; the Seahawks bought up all 21 floors of the Westin Jersey City; Super Bowl Boulevard, an extravaganza featuring everything from the Vince Lombardi trophy to a toboggan run, consumed 13 blocks of Broadway; the Super Bowl Media Center at the Sheraton Hotel swelled with hundreds of media organizations from around the world; and the Taste of NFL fundraising gala attracted enough celebrities to fill Brooklyn’s huge cruise terminal (all 180,000 square feet of it);

Helping to ensure the safety and security of everyone involved was Cambridge Security. Senior vice president Dave Malefsky was in charge of the entire operation, which included hundreds of Cambridge personnel. Fifty officers watched over the elegant $700-a-ticket Taste of NFL (all proceeds went to charity) and some 200 Cambridge men and women worked with NYPD, the NY State Police, the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to make sure there was nothing but fun over the four days that Super Bowl Boulevard occupied Broadway and Times Square.

Cambridge officers were on duty 24 hours a day in the teams’ hotels and at the media center, helping to ensure the security of the players and staffs and of the media that was so obsessed with them.

When Hurricane Super Bowl moved out, things quickly returned to normal in New York and New Jersey, thanks in part to the quiet, generally un-noticed professionalism of hundreds of Cambridge officers.

CAMBRIDGE QUIZ:  What do you do when the IRS comes calling?

First, make sure it’s really the IRS.

In just the past two years, more than 4000 people have complained to the FTC about fraudulent emails and phone calls that appeared to be from the IRS. These scams have defrauded victims of more than $5 million.

No one is immune to these kinds of crimes. We tend to think the victims are always elderly or somehow especially vulnerable. But the scammers know that when the taxman comes calling—or appears to—we don’t always remain as calm and discerning as we should.

So take this little quiz and find out how prepared you are to deal with criminals posing as IRS agents.

1. You know a phone call is really from the IRS if:

a)     Caller ID shows the IRS toll-free number

b)     You receive an email first alerting you to the call.

c)     You hear other IRS agents talking in the background

d)    You receive a follow-up call from the local police or DMV.

e)     None of the above

2. If you receive an email from the IRS with a link to their website, you should:

a)     Click on the link to verify the email’s legitimacy

b)     Not click on the link.

c)     Delete the email

d)    None of the above

3. Failure to pay taxes promptly can result in

a)     Arrest

b)     Deportation

c)     Suspension of driver’s license

d)    All of the above

e)     None of the above

TRUE OR FALSE

  1. The IRS has updated its service so it now uses email and social media to contact taxpayers.
  2. You can be sure that an IRS or other debt collection call is legitimate if the caller knows the last four digits of your Social Security Number.
  3. As a federal agency, with access to secure Internet connections, the IRS may ask for your PIN number or password in an email.
  4. The most common way for the IRS to contact you is by phone.

ANSWERS

  1. E.  All of the other answers represent sophisticated cons that scammers have been known to use: “spoofing” caller ID numbers; sending bogus emails in connection with a call; faking realistic background noise; and following up a fraudulent call from the “IRS” with another fraudulent call from someone posing as a police officer or DMV official.
  2. D.  Both (B) and (C) are pretty good answers; you should never click on a link or attachment in a suspicious email. But the best course of action is to forward such emails to phishing@irs.gov so that officials there can help put the scammers out of business.
  3.   E.  The scammers pretending to be from the IRS routinely intimidate victims by telling them that if they don’t cooperate and pay-up immediately, terrible things will happen to them. Acting Commissioner Werfel says, “If someone unexpectedly calls claiming to be from the IRS and threatens police arrest, deportation or license revocation if you don’t pay immediately, that is a sign that it really isn’t the IRS calling.”
  4. False.  The IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email to request personal or financial information. This goes for text messaging and social media as well.
  5. False.   An advisory from the federal government specifically states that scammers may be able to recite the last four digits of victims Social Security Numbers.
  6. False.  The IRS explicitly states that it does not ask for PIN numbers, passwords or other confidential information related to credit cards, bank accounts or any other type of financial account.
  7. False.  IRS Acting Commissioner Danny Werfel notes that the first IRS contact with taxpayers on a tax issue is likely to come through the mail and not by phone.

Vintage Cars and Top Security Yield a Million Dollars for Charity

Some years ago, aristocratic horse-drawn carriages paraded through the parks of Paris. They called the event a competition of elegance or a concours d’elegance Today some 60 concours d’elegance events are held throughout the U.S., featuring lovingly restored Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Bentleys, not to mention Thunderbirds, Corvettes and Camaros from days gone by.

Among the top five U.S. events this year was the 8th Annual Concours d’ Elegance in Boca Raton, Florida. From February 21 to 23, some 7,500 guests admired hundreds of the finest vintage cars in the world.

Ensuring the safety and security of all those people and all that elegant machinery were the officers and staff of Cambridge Security, chosen as the preferred security service provider for the prestigious event. From the opening party—which included gourmet food, live entertainment, celebrities and a display of exotic cars, custom motorcycles, extravagant boats, private jets, vintage aircraft, and luxury “motor coaches”—to the final lavish award ceremony three days later, Cambridge helped ensure that the charity event was a complete success, raising an estimated 1 million dollars for the Boys and Girls Club of Broward County, Florida.

What’s New?
What’s new at Cambridge Security?

 

Team Cambridge is heading back to the stadium. Cambridge has been providing security on and off the field at Rutgers’ football games this season. Now that graduation season is upon us, the team from Cambridge will be returning to Rutgers High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway NJ on May 18th. In attendance will be a lot of happy seniors, distinguished members of Rutgers faculty and administration, proud families and friends and keynote speaker, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

New Accounts in New Jersey and New York: Since our last newsletter, we have added two medical facilities (one undergoing renovation), an adult community and a U-Haul center to our roster of clients here. We are also increasing the security work we do for one of New Jersey’s major ports and providing security for a statewide social services organization in New York.

 

The Best of the Best in 2013:  We are delighted to announce the winners of our annual awards for employees who have shown the kind of spirit and performance Cambridge is known for:

2013 Supervisor of Year: Leroy Hannah

2013 Security Officer of the Year: Dora Jones

2013 Floater of the Year: Ansteel Celestine