Question 1

Issuing and retiring stock is a means to raise extra capital and/or increase control within the company. Please research a company that has recently issued stock or retired stock. Why do you feel they made the choice they did and what was the economic effect of this decision. You can use financial website such as Yahoo Finance or MSNBC.

Question 2

There are several key influences on pricing decisions that must be weighed and taken into account by management when selecting a cost system. These include:

• Customers
• Competitors
• Costs

Select an example of a pricing decision and using the above three influences, share how you believe these influences would each impact the decision. Also, include in your example the time horizon used, as well as how these influences would impact the timing element.

Question 3

High-risk vulnerabilities include non-authorized users accessing applications, guessable passwords, matching of user names and passwords, active user accounts with missing passwords, and unauthorized programs in application systems.

Medium-risk vulnerabilities include users' ability to shut down the system without being logged on, passwords and screen saver settings that were not established for PCs, and outdated versions of software stored on hard drives.

Low-risk vulnerabilities include the inability of users to change their passwords, user passwords not being changed periodically, and passwords smaller than the minimum size specified by the company.

Why do you think today's computer systems are so vulnerable?

Search magazines, newspapers, for a recent threat reported in the media. Provide the name of the source you used and the title of the article.

In thinking about security and control, how can a business ensure that its applications, networks, information, and people are secure?