Before I start with this article I would like to ask, have you ever been the victim of hacking or unlawful accessing of your data?

Has your business computer been hacked? Has someone stolen your intellectual property?

The reality is we are living in the digital age, and it is so rapidly evolving with all those new updates, gadgets, and cyber security software that sometimes even I have found myself “left behind”.

Then for a moment I ask myself, “how many people have no clue what is going on with cyber security and how fraudsters and hackers operate and who they are targeting, when and why?”

The Covid lockdowns and remote work in actuality left most of society and business very much vulnerable while fraudsters and hackers utilised these circumstances to the maximum for their advantage.

I must now define what is Cyber Security and what better source to ask, than the always correct, willing and ready to answer, internet.

Yes, correct. I asked the internet to define Cyber Security. No doubt, if I asked several Cyber Security experts, I would be given different answers so let’s keep it nice and tidy and let the all-mighty internet answer for all of us.

Hence, the definition Cyber Security is:

“Cybersecurity is the protection of internet-connected systems such as hardware, software and data from cyberthreats. The practice is used by individuals and enterprises to protect against unauthorised access to data centres and other computerised systems.”

By this definition, we can all agree that our computers, phones and all our digital gadgets are a part of the nexus where cyber security and protection from cyber threats is applied.

In reality that is not so true.

According to Savvy’s online report (Bill Tsouvalas, 12th May 2022) [1] , in Australia 1 cyber-attack occurs every 10 minutes targeting SME’s, one in four Australians have fallen victim to identity fraud, and cybercriminals can penetrate 93% of company networks.

The most interesting and scariest fact is that cybercriminals can penetrate 93% of company networks. That is a truly scary fact and even more so as we are “working from home” where our security of our digital devices depends on commercial software and downloads from the internet.

I needn’t go further; the fraudsters and cybercriminals have already explored the loopholes.

While we, I mean, we humans, individuals, cannot protect our digital assets, perhaps we can believe that governments can protect themselves better.

An absolutely fair belief, however, pollination of cyberthreats is going from individuals to companies to the government sector. Perhaps via different modus operandi of executing cyber-attack but the true target remains the same, the human.

For more understanding on how governments and countries are becoming a target of cyber attackers, hackers and cyber terrorists please check the current war in Ukraine and Russia and how governments respond to prevent hacking and cyber terrorism. According to MSSP Alert’s article (Joe Panettieri, 23rd

June 2022) [2] one thing we all have in common is in the palm of our hands. Regardless of whether you are a government employee or an individual working in your business or perhaps you are in charge of developing new medicine, it is your mobile phone.

A strange fact is that smartphones are the primary delivery method for attacks, cyber-attacks, and hacks.

To add weight on that fact, we can certainly say that there are plenty of senior citizens who don’t know what cyber terrorism is, what hacking is. After all, I personally find myself wondering sometimes when I get an SMS.

An SMS with a link from the government of course. Just click the link, or the Tax Man will be after you. This is my favourite and people will either click the link or press that number to “cancel” because they are late with their tax return. It is becoming harder and harder to distinguish between true and false links, phone calls, and emails.

Fraudsters are utilising their best weapon on disposal, their imagination. Imagination supported with documents, facts, web sites, and of course, SOPs on the internet on how to prevent fraud, cyber-attacks, and hacks.

The first line of defence and the last one in cyber space is the human. The human firewall, not software, not technological or mechanical, but human.

 

 

References

[1] B Tsouvalas, Savvy, last updated 12th May 2022 at 10:25am, https://www.savvy.com.au/media-releases/cybercrime-in-australia-report/

[2] J Panettieri, MMSP Alert, 23rd June 2022, https://www.msspalert.com/cybersecurity-news/ukraine-russia-cyberattack-timeline-updates-amid-russia-invasion/

 

 

Covid 19. The word that will live infamously forever and ever. As practice shows, one day soon, we will watch on Netflix, Stan or Prime Video some documentary about what really happened to the world in March 2020.

I do remember that I was in the Middle East when I got the news “borders are shutting down” and message “if you don’t come home in 24 hours you will never be able to come home”!

At first, I faced a dilemma, how is that possible that I cannot come back home? I was looking for more info about this pandemic but got nowhere except, we all going to be inside our homes for 2 weeks only, to ‘flatten the curve’. Well, these were the exact words I heard and of course we need to go through an education on “how to wash our hands” and “why masks on our faces are our best friends”.

At least so many medical experts were drumming on the media 24/7 about this pandemic and lucky me, I found that spot on the plane and was on my way back home. Into lockdown. Our only window to the world was the TV, Internet and 24/7 hammering by medical experts. The world opened in late 2021 and finally we can travel again, see loved ones and perhaps go for holidays because it’s safe. Or not?

It is May 2022 and I am on the road, well on the plane and traveling the world from Australia to Eastern Europe to the Middle East to Asia and finally back home to Australia. It was 20 something days between continents, cities, hotels, sun and sand storms. So let me start with the departure. After 2 years of walking in the park and talking to trees, my decision was made to fly and see clients, family and loved ones.

The departure from Australia was truly demanding: various apps to be installed, PCR tests and above all proof of vaccination and then on airplane amongst 400 passengers, where mask on face is must. Except when we eat. Or drink. Or sleep. Otherwise, masks on face. No one is policing if masks are on our faces once when airplane become warmer and cosy after a delicious meal, which is better to avoid than eat.

It doesn’t make sense, 400 souls on plane sharing a confined common space by inhaling and exhaling air amongst each other, but OK we done all paperwork before traveling, at least the virus is not amongst us… or at least we believe so.

Landing in Dubai was smooth. After 14.5 hours of enjoying sounds of engines finally I can feel the ground under my feet and with time to collect my suitcase, face the customs and take my mask off. Guess what?! No one in the airport asks you to wear a mask. We were moving forward and showing our passports. The customs officer is checking my identity and literally shows no interest for my vaccination status, apps, mask or did I wash my hands.

Welcome to Dubai. A society which is living freely. No advertisements around about Covid and no Covid marshals, police, SWAT teams to enforce masks.

Time to depart for Eastern Europe. Of course, rules around covid in Eastern Europe are even less strict, in contrary no one cares and surprise, surprise I am the only one who wears the mask. Needless to say, I was told by taxi driver “don’t worry about masks” Covid is around us so I was little bit reserved until taxi driver sarcastically said “my friend we are not in Australia, relax this is Eastern Europe”. I was silent. My silence was the answer. Taxi driver then turned and asked, “are you from Australia?” so I replied Yes. We both become silent in the confined space called – car.

Me with mask on in the back seat, him on his mobile phone talking to someone, or at least he was pretending to do so. After Eastern Europe I am back into Dubai on my way to Asia. No need to repeat the same wording and experiences but, you know what I would say anyway.

So often I asked myself the question, how is possible for the world to move freely in this “post-covid era” when in the moment you sit on plane, rules are changed, relaxed and not enforced? For the past 2 years medical experts drummed on around the clock about Covid but what I am interested in is how come medical professionals are not united around the fight against Covid? Isn’t medicine a universal discipline around the globe? Understanding what the virus is and how to combat this pandemic? Then ask yourself the question, what will happen when the next pandemic hits, more violent or deadlier than Covid19?

And at the end, imagine being a tourist in some country where you are a total stranger and don’t understand their rules or don’t know how to read advertising or promos about the pandemic and how to behave?

Perhaps the world will unite in rules and messaging around how to tackle pandemics, how travel is during a pandemic and most importantly, be kind with avoiding lockdowns and isolations from the rest of the world.

I still see that signage on “how to wash your hands”. I’m not sure if this is truly real or governments were sarcastic, but at least it was universal signage.

Do you remember that moment when you waited for someone at the airport or travelled to wait for someone who you love so much? How did you feel in that moment? Good? Excited? Anxious?

It goes without saying that sooner or later we will travel. Sometimes that choice will be that we travel for holidays, which is exciting. Particularly if we are going to visit some exotic place and drink fresh coconut.

When we travel for business, there is nothing exciting in that except a few shots in first class and placing those images on social media. Of course who wouldn’t take a few shots when your company is paying? After all under the images goes that hashtag successful, influencer and, well no one cares for you being in first class. Last and most important travel is, to see your loved ones. Boyfriend, Girlfriend and some perhaps unicorns and mermaids, but after all that type of traveling is boosted with emotions.

There is the moment in life when we either wait for someone, or we go to someone for whom we believe we can’t breathe, walk, talk, work or sleep? Did you have that moment in your life? I certainly did. But today is not about me but about me observing events on airports as an innocent bystander. The reason is that I recently travelled from Sydney to Dubai and all the way around the globe back to Sydney. So, I had time to see people at airports and observing their body language and behaviour while waiting for their next flight.

And of course, sipping some type of coffee with a ridiculous price tag. Coffee tastes like the airport, aesthetic, cold and no emotions while drinking with occasional peek into my photo album on my mobile. They are still there in my album, good. Anyway, I do remember in my old times; train stations were a battlefield of emotions. Today airports add into this personal experience in intelligence that I cannot not see or hear.

I saw a few couples on that trip, he waited for her, she was escorting him onto the plane. She waited for him. He waited for her. A vicious circle indeed. Overall, the first step is flying around the globe. The second is waiting in the crowd for that magical moment. For that sliding door to open so that emotions can explode, kisses can land on lips, cheeks, hands wrapping around bodies like a King Mambo snake.

Beautiful scenes that I wish I can go back in time for and be younger, not a senior citizen. Then there are couples who are saying good bye to each other at the airport terminal. Funny, how those moments when you say good bye to someone who are flying compared to when you arrive, you believe you have all time in the world. How wrong we humans are. We are and let me tell you why…

Airports are connecting us with loved ones, but in reality, they are separating us and it breaks my heart when I see those couples. Those silent tears with aching pain in the stomach, head and who knows where else. We don’t appreciate the one most valuable thing in our life we got at birth.
Time. It is our most valuable commodity in life.

Airports don’t stop time or slow down, they are amplifying killing fields of our emotions. Airports leave that vacuum of unsaid, unspoken words. Airports are like abbys which need to be filled with hopes, dreams and anticipations till next, what? Airport waiting of course.

So what I concluded, is that despite airports being the emotions killer we need to learn to appreciate time we have with our loved ones and to manage time ahead of us with the same people we are waiting for, and when traveling too.

Time is the answer. Time, at the airport is ultimately the beginning of something beautiful or death of emotions. So live your life, make plans now. Don’t’ spend time on airports. Instead be the one who is taking the suitcase of loved ones and give that hug and start the life together.

I am still flying for business (and with no influncers shots from first class) but I know that time is the biggest ally and biggest downfall for emotions and airport coffees are not so good to feed our emotions.

 

 

I had the opportunity to travel across the globe in the past few weeks. With that travel I was exposed to different cultures, habits, religions and most importantly to the local news (one country local TV, Radio and News Papers).

 

So, what does that mean, being exposed to the local news?

1. Watching and listening to the local news gives you a different perspective. Particularly if you know different languages and you can read without translation or subtitles.

My personal work and life experience in human intelligence and information risk management always puts me on a path to seek more sources of information and I also love to engage locals in conversation.

2. Talking and socialising with people I know from earlier life who don’t censor themselves while talking that sometimes I think that well known Roman General Coriolanus (known from being a legend to being lifelong banished due his vocabulary) of course Coriolanus was firstly being sentenced to death, so he can consider himself lucky.

Those conversations are not targeted nor socially engineered, but more importantly the frank open conversation allows me to understand how the world thinks on a local level.

So, what are the topic of news I was accessing?

There were two major topics.

The first is inflation, recession and shortages of food. The second is the war in Ukraine. The latter is predominant everywhere in the news. It was interesting to see how many countries I visited are still broadcasting news and TV shows from Russia. War is the worst and most horrific human invention and I am saying this from experience.

I saw the war. I have been to war. I consumed war. What I didn’t know, what is the first casualty of the war. Did you ever hear the saying “The first casualty when war comes is truth”?!

It is an accurate expression and it has been said and stated by Hiram W Johnson, senator for California, to the US Senate in 1917.

You know that deception doesn’t work if there is no element of smoking screens?
No problem, will address this a little later in this article/podcast.

We are all witnessing how the world is moving and shifting like tectonic plates under our feet.

In the past two years human kind has witnessed a pandemic and all sorts of liberties being challenged. In the past few months we are witnessing the war in Ukraine.

Needless to say that in the moment of writing this article/podcast, we are having a new potential health issue, Monkeypox.

As someone who saw the war, witnessed war and being in combat, I learned that war is the worst event any human can witness and that those who suffer most are civilians. At least this is my experience and opinion.

As Clausewitz said, ‘War is nothing but a duel on an extensive scale… an act of violence intended to compel our opponent to fulfil our will,’ directed by political motives and morality.

The War in Ukraine demonstrated power and unity in the fight against the occupying force. We can also see how social media plays a key role in informing the public about real time combat activities as well as sharing the day to day life of those in combat zones.

Would you agree with me that people often mistake honesty with sincerity?

That is a correct statement, people do mistake those two. Very often.

Why I am saying that?

When it comes to information warfare, particularly in war, two opposing sides include all aspects of war from kinetic to non-kinetic, hybrid, asymmetric and of course information.

I witnessed that the countries I visited openly broadcasting news from both sides of the war in Ukraine, and in discussion with locals I concluded that they forming their own opinion about the war in Ukraine, because they are seeing both sources of information.

No one is trying to stop broadcasting, say in the UAE. In contrary, people listen to what they want, when they want and without making any enemies in this process.

This practice certainly was not taken into calculation by Western society. There are countries which are not only not stopping broadcasting, but as well they continue economical exchange and growth.

Information warfare escalated into a new dimension and new levels which includes all sorts of platforms and media to share news, however information warfare as I remember includes local news papers, conversation with locals and above all knowing what their priorities are.

And let me be to the point. Most of the world is choosing more local newspapers and radio stations for that reason. They are seeing that information warfare is vague and they don’t want to take part in it because they can sense it that their behaviour and mood will be measured and catalogued for future conflicts etc.

That’s why local news has more influence than planned information warfare a.k.a. “winning hearts and minds”.

Instead, conversation behind closed doors is more honest and powerful than the news we can see on social media. Social media is the most deceptive due heavily to applying smoking mirrors when it comes to informations.

As for smoking screens, there are several methods of smoking screens when it comes to deception, but one of the most important ones when it comes to information warfare is?

One of the most crucial elements for information warfare to be successful is deception.

Deception itself could never be enough to win the information war against your opponent, competitor.

By smoking screen and today that element related to information warfare is “pattern”.

Pattern is created to seduce consumers (readers) and creates belief that will information go the same way every day.

It plays on the psychology of anticipation.

 

 

Wouldn’t you love to fly out of Sydney at sunrise on a five-star airline and by sunset be meeting millionaires for dinner at a VIP table in Dubai?

If you could visit right now a cosmopolitan city that has not been impacted by the pandemic, would you?

What if you had the opportunity to dine with family members of powerful political leaders, would you take it?

If you were offered the opportunity to dine with a CEO of an international company who employed more than 1,000 people, would you take it?

Welcome to Dubai, it is time for the world to enjoy Expo 2020.

Expo 2020 was a World Expo hosted by Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022.

Originally scheduled for 20 October 2020 to 10 April 2021, it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite being postponed, organizers kept the name Expo 2020 for marketing and branding purposes.

I do remember flying into Dubai and Europe in 2019 and saw all those beautiful signs on Emirate planes “Dubai Expo 2022” and I wanted to see this wonder because I did witness one Expo as a kid.

It was called Osijek Expo 1980. Imagine that World Expo in a communist country and me being 8 years old. All I saw was some flags and free soft drinks but hey, it was an experience.

Fast forward to May 2022 and I am in Dubai. While the Expo had finished a few weeks before, all I could hear from people around me was that it was a success.

Then I was asked by my coach and good friend Daniel Tolson to take the time to meet some new business people he is working with so I can extend my professional services and meet the demands of potential clients.

When we hear the word Dubai, we think of and see a glamorous city, lights, parties, gold, fast cars and as well the opposite to that many negative feedbacks. Whether true or not all I can say for Dubai, is well done.

 

Why is that?

Firstly, if we talk about leadership, the United Arab Emirates showed leadership, converting a city in the desert into something glamorous. So few would have had such a vision and turn it into a reality.

It was difficult to build such a city? Yes.

It was a mammoth task, with countless sacrifices and hard times in building this city? Yes.

So by any means or any rules, when someone turns the desert into a glamorous city, well done again.

But this podcast is about, what we can learn from Dubai?

Let’s hop into 2020, the year of the Rat and the year of the world shutting down, literally. The world has been shut down hence Expo 2020 was not going to happen, despite we were told “we need 2 weeks to flatten the curve”.

But finally 2021 saw Expo 2020 coming to life and just to crunch some numbers about Expo:

“According to Economic Times (Indian Times) “eight years of anticipation, over $7 billion in investment, 240 million hours of labour and six months of festivities. “

So here I am in Dubai, high noon and the month of May, hot and even more hot, Dubai looks beautiful as always and guess what? Tourists are pouring into the airport, flying in, flying out. Compared with me on the day of departure I couldn’t buy coffee on Sydney airport at 5am. Why?

Just imagine, why.

So, time for meeting business people in Dubai. I’ve done my work and Daniel kindly introduced me via message with the people I am going to meet.

Sure, I wasn’t afraid of anything perhaps because I truly feel safe in this place, this city and I was told, criminals will not rob the bank, kill someone and run away?

May I ask why not? Well, we are in desert so where they can go? Interesting.

I knew the answer, not.

Time for dinner and I met this awesome power couple and I was told by my host that he runs hundreds of restaurants across the globe so we started a conversation as if we have known each other for years.

My question was, how was during pandemic 2022? Arrests? Riots? Protests? Conspiracy theory? Vaccines? Lockdowns.

So my host replied generously, that while it was tough for people, no there was no protest, riots because the government was on top of everything in order to end the pandemic as fast as possible and back on track without big marketing slogans “Build Back Better” and so on.

 

So, what did the Dubai government do?

Firstly, they wanted that Expo back for the investment and so the economy could bounce back because with each passing day, it is money lost forever.

So, what did the Dubai government do?

Declared their neutrality like Switzerland and they started buying vaccines from every possible source, including Russia. Even the rest of the world denied the covid vaccine Sputnik V.

Secondly, they started slowly and cautiously opening society, not internally, but to the outside world because they reached the highest vaccination rate and they felt protected from the virus.

‘Ok so let me get this straight’, I asked my host, you got vaccines from everyone and anyone? Yes!

So you get vaccinated to protect yourself and simultaneously opening for tourism to the rest of the world?

Yes.

So how is that possible?

‘The answer is simple Mario’. My host explains, UAE and Dubai is like Switzerland, they are neutral and all what they do is to be in good relationship with everyone and acquire vaccines, so we can do daily life, we can start trading without delays, we can get back tourist and no Mario, no riots no police arresting those who didn’t like lockdowns because we saw here how the rest of the world is struggling and going from one to another lockdown.

Secondly airlines operated, even with less people but logisitics was good, maybe no tourist on plane but items and goods were.

So what we can learn from this?

Taking care of your own people and protecting them from harm, ie the virus, as soon as possible. Give your own people access to all of the information and most importantly show the world you are ready to do business, even in the most difficult times.

But why Dubai I asked, why do you like it here?

Answer was, we truly believe the government is here for us and we are on first place regardless of our security internally, externally and that we can work and grow as a society. Plus Mario, the food is awesome here!

Thank you Daniel and his friends who hosted me and showed me how life in Dubai is truly something we all can admire and desire.

 

 

We can all agree that lately the world looks and feels different and no doubt since January 2020, when we entered into orbitual spin, like a planet around the Sun.

We might believe that we are individuals on our own but in reality, are spinning collectively in a circle, like a celestial body, gravitating toward something brighter, better and reminiscent on some old pre-covid times.

Talking from my point of view and from my own experiences I noticed how the world is changing, our mood is changing, we have becoming distant from each other, yet we are spinning in circles with each other.

As we are circling, we are facing our own inner demons, or better to say I am starting to face my own ones.

It doesn’t happen often but mostly when I am on an airplane and flying on a long distance flight, alone with my thoughts.

 

Question for you – do you believe that Inner Demons are real?

And no, you or me don’t need an exorcist. Instead we need to acknowledge that our own inner demons are real and they are with us for as long as we need them.

Or are we just figurately using that word to describe our own bad deeds, unhappiness, or fear of retribution by life?

Do you know that quote “Truth exists, only lies are invented”?!

Same goes for our demons, they are real but what is not real is our constant denial and lying to ourselves how demons do not exist like in my example.

So, what are or who are those inner demons?

Inner demons are based on criticisms, self-doubt and negative patterns. They can be the things we tell ourselves that aren’t necessarily real. It could be something someone said when we were a child, a negative remark from an old boss or a put down from a friend.

My demons are straight forward, I know I am struggling with weight loss and only I admit it to myself in moments of unhappiness, sadness and seeing myself in the mirror.

I can admit the reasons why I didn’t achieve weight loss, while lying to myself when in public and when surrounded with other people, I find thousands of reasons why I didn’t lose weight.

Some other inner demons are those related to my goals, and those inner demons are bad.

Bad because I should be aware of the fact that I have done a lot but then self-doubt and self-criticism hit me hard, and I should ignore them.

But how?

It is external stimulus which activates our inner demons, either we have been told things, or we see other people better off than us, just to list a few.

Inner demons don’t go away. Particularly when I am on the plane, where my mind is unoccupied with nothing else except my demons.

That inner peace of mind is working, lurking and attacking all lies, so in this instance inner demons are the good guys, or perhaps they are the bad ones?

Either way, we all have self-doubts amplified with other people’s opinions and then we are inventing lies to feed our hurt self ego.

But inner demons are real, I know. When far away from those I love, from being tucked into the security of my own home, and few people and then I realised, facing my own inner demons is good.

Why is that?

Because only when I am on my own, I can critique myself, seeing myself in the mirror and hating lies I am saying to myself when I am not on my own.

They are good because you can make great life, business, family or personal decisions.

I believe that each time those inner demons jump on me (with the moment when airplane doors are closed) I need to address them.

You must address your inner demons, no one else can, except you can continue to lie yourself how everything is OK when it is not.

When those close to you adjust their angle and give you their critique and view on your life, look etc.

Stop feeding yourself with lies because who cares if you can’t do this or that, like me losing weight, I know why I am stuck, cause I am eating the sweets of my kid at night and he is a diabetic.

Luckily we always have those extra hidden sweets because of me but I addressed those inner demons, I must and can’t feed my alter ego and lie to myself how things are good.

No.

The truth is, inner demons are real. It doesn’t matter if you see them as good or bad. Deal with them, be your own critique and don’t wait for others to put you into self-doubt.

No one can believe in me except me. No one else can lose weight for me except me.

Talk to your inner demons and fight instead of inventing lies about how everything is OK.

And remember you owe no one an apology or explanation, it is your life and your self-worth is more important than triggers of your inner demons.