China

What we can Learn from Startup Culture in China and Government Stability.

by Fred Abramson on February 1, 2010

Calvin Chin, an American entrepreneur in China, wrote an insightful guest post in Techcrunch about startup culture in China.  He recently attended the World Economic Summit in Davos, so you know that he has his ear to the ground on what’s going on in the largest country in the world.

Calvin Chin believes that the Chinese government has placed a premium on stability with the goal of lifting millions out of poverty at the expense of freedom of information.  This emphasis on stability, with power in the hands of the few, allows for big decisions to made quickly and without opposition.

Many of our world business leaders are also placing a premium on government stability. Thomas L. Friedman, the op-ed columnist to the New York Times, noted that at Davos many are questioning the stability of the American government. With the Republicans unwilling to pass legislation in Congress and the Democrats running to the hills, the American political system is deadlocked. With the economy in crisis, and perhaps a Marshall Plan needed, many question the economic future of America.

Many successful tech startups in China understand that the stability of their government is paramount for economic growth, even if their freedom to operate is limited. Nimble startups are able to navigate by having a keen awareness of any political or market changes.

Because Chinese startups are obviously located in China, they are unable to pack up and leave simply because the law changes or if their computers have been hacked like Google.They simply adjust. When the government decides to censure microblogging sites, startups use the existing infrastructure to to set up a microblogging site that screen Tweets.

Other successful startups in China follow these models:

  • Localize an international hit and making it cheaper and better. Chin cites Kuukie which basically rips off  Moo in the custom business card business.  Look for a Chinese startup to localize hot US startups like Foursquare.
  • Look for a fit for Chinese net culture with a product that you don’t see elsewhere.

Founders of startups are still able to circumvent the censors and obtain information by using web clients.  The system makes it difficult for big companies to compete locally.

Washington must learn from China and remove the clouds of uncertainty that plague our political system.  American startups and small business are unable to take action unless they know the cost of health care.  Without action now, look for more startups from Mao Inc. at the expense of Silicon Alley.

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What can Companies do to Protect their IP and Data from a Google-like Cyber Attack?

by Fred Abramson on January 21, 2010 · 1 comment

Protecting intellectual property from a cyber attack is something that all companies need to be concerned about. Google recently released information about a targeted attack on their intellectual property and data that occurred in December, 2009. The attack came from China and according to Google, resulted in the “theft of intellectual property from Google.” Apparently they were not the only company that was under a cyber attacks. At least 20 other corporations were hit, including a law firm that was suing China.

Google explained the cyber attack as follows:

The route attackers used was malicious software used to infect personal computers. Any computer connected to the Internet can fall victim to such attacks.

E-mails were targeted at individuals in each company that were made to appear as that they were coming from other people at each company. They attempted to get their target to click on a link or attachment.

Potential Legal Consequences of a Breach

If your company has been subject to a cyber attack and data has been breached, your company may be subject to litigation. There have been an increase in the number of  lawsuits commenced by customers and clients whose data have been compromised. For example, there is currently a lawsuit in Pennsylvania against Heartland Payment Systems, which claims that the company waited to tell consumers about a data breach and failed to protect sensitive information.

Businesses also need to be aware of compliance laws such as Sarbanes Oxley when they lose the personal information of their customers.

Potential Legal Consequences of an Intellectual Property Breach

Cyber Attacks, like the one inflicted against Google, often attempt to steal Intellectual Property.  Trademarks, patents, copyrights and trade secrets, are big targets for cyber criminals.

What companies from selected industries can do to protect their data

  • High-tech: Need to protect source code and engineering design documents.
  • Banks and Financial Companies: Confidential customer information.
  • Pharma and Bio-Tech: Trade secrets such as research and the manufacturing of drugs.

If you have any questions or if you wish to discuss this issue further, please don’t hesitate to contact me at The Law Office of Frederic R. Abramson at 212-233-0666.

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