Ivy Hartman: Welcome to the Noble Conference 2007. I’m Ivy Hartman and with me is Holly Luisi of the Bene Group. And Holly, welcome and tell us about the Bene Group.
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: The Bene Group actually is my company. There are two divisions and the division that I am representing is the fastest growing employee benefit in the country which are Employee Benefit Legal Plans. I also do small business legal plans and Identity Thief Protection which also includes helping companies to become factor and or HIPPA compliant which reduces their liability.
Ivy Hartman: How many businesses do you think are operating where out of site of the company and not being compliant with or HIPPA or factor?
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: You know to be honest with you Ivy, I would not know. I think it basically a lot of businesses they are—especially small businesses they are so tide up with trying to run their business at they’re probably not even aware that these losses are in placed and how heavily they can infect their business. And actually put the mud of business.
Ivy Hartman: Can you highlight a few of the lost that a small business owner might be most important to them.
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: Well, basically the factor and or HIPPA loss were put into effect to curve or actually put the own of protecting, safe guarding, storing and or disposal of both employee and customer information. The burden is now on the business owner because identity theft is called the crime of the century.
Our government, they cannot stop it. I mean it’s a round away train and so now every business is now responsible for this. And what is so important about this is that the fines both on a Federal and a State level are so heavy and actually not only the business owner of the executive officers of the company can also face jail time if there’s a breach in their security and they are accused of identity theft.
Ivy Hartman: So you do identity theft protection and we know in the news we’ve seen where employees have taken clients or patient information, and use that illegally and that’s been identity theft. So on what aspect do you help with that protection? Are you protecting the client or are you helping your client which is the business owner protect their clients or protect themselves from having their identity taken.
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: Actually Ivy, we’re protecting everyone. Everyone wins in this and one thing that I wanted to bring up is that, most people are under the misconception because of the various TV commercials and Ads that identity theft is merely financial. There are five areas of identity theft, and roughly around 28% is only financial.
There is your character identity where someone would use your good name and go out and commit crimes or other fragile anti-activities. There’s your medical identity, people will steal either your insurance, your name have testing done, and why this is so critical? It’s because on several levels they can change your medical information that goes into the MIB, the Medical Information Bureau. And then what happens is lets say you go in and they’ve got your blood type change then you need a transfusion, your life could be at risked. Your allergies, they have change that information or let say, someone goes in and has a HIV test. Now it’s reported you’re HIV positive. Your insurance is either cancelled or you try to get insurance and you’ve got to unravel that.
There is your driver’s license at your motor vehicle identity. Someone gets your information, puts their picture, DEY’s or other criminal activity. They’re coming to look for you, and then lastly, your Social Security identity where someone either change employment, the IRS is coming to look for you for taxes or again, does other fragile anti-activity that you then become liable for.
And so the reason why this is so critical is because everyone wins. The employee wins because they are helping to be protected. The business wins because now they are trying to do everything they can to educate and protect their employees and this information and trying to become —showing good faith that is to become fact and or HIPPA compliant, so this is a win-win-win and not only does our company do the monitoring, but unlike a lot of the other people who offer identity theft, what you need to check into is, they only usually offer restoration assistance which means help with the paper work where our company differs is we actually do the restoration.
Our company partners with CRO background America which is the world’s largest leading risk management company. They are in business over 30 years that is to clean up Enron after the Enron debacle. They are in roughly 60 countries and so that is made up of former FBI and CIA agents that they actually go in there and restore and do the work for you.
Ivy Hartman: Okay, so along that line to last question I have about identity theft protection and prevention is a restoration and in case is, why advice the person whose identity has stolen and used for any number of things and also advice to avoid having it taken?
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: Actually, you know not to sound like this shameless sales boy, but there is really no way to bulletproof yourself, you know it won’t happen to you, but what you can try to do again, is to have a plan or a protection in place so if and when right now at FTC, Federal Trade Commission Statistics are one in four.
Ivy Hartman: People’s identity is stolen.
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: Correct, and so I mean it’s not really so much of question if it’s a question when, and so with that being said, is to have one of these plans in placed. It’s extremely affordable if you couple it with one of legal plans it’s $995 a month. And this protects you and or your spouses significance and other which is the same price that you’re paying these other competitors that they are only monitoring your financial identity and they’re also only usually doing the assistance for the restoration whereas, we do all of these.
And another great feature of this is when it’s coupled with the legal plan, these are tax deductible. So for companies that offer these who have fringe benefit to their employees, it’s a tax deduction for the business or for those do voluntarily. They deduct this under in context under legal expenses, legal fess, when it’s with the legal plan. And it’s also affordable benefit if they leave the employer they can take it with them.
Ivy Hartman: Wonderful. Well, you can get help from the Bene Group or from Holly by contacting them, and how would we do that?
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: You can go to my website which is www.HLuisi.com, my first initial and last name.
Ivy Hartman: Okay.
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: Or my phone number.
Ivy Hartman: Okay, thank you Holly for being with us.
Holly J. Luisi, LEA: Thank you.
Ivy Hartman: The Bene Group, who provide legal services for you in all aspects for your small business as well, become a factor and HIPAA compliant and also that identity theft protection which we all know is very important. Keep up right here for more small business television on sbtv.com
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