President Cindy Runger rang the bell, welcomed all attendees, and then introduced Skip Rowland and Freeman Fong who led the group in a spirited rendition of the National Anthem.
George Twiss provided the inspiration of the day, remarking that we should each seek out and breath in nature.
President Cindy then introduced guests and visiting Rotarians. Charley Dickey welcomed the club's newest member, Carla Anderson, who is a descendant of Finnish fishermen. She is engaged in protecting the remnants of their first home, the Isle Royale in Lake Superior. Carla is the general manager of aircraft interior design for Mitsubishi International.
John Sileo, a nationally recognized cyber security expert was Seattle Rotary 4's keynote speaker at our July 25th meeting. He has appeared as a cyber security expert on ABC, NBC, FOX Business, Anderson Cooper 360, and many other programs. The Pentagon and Visa are two of his clients.
The consistent message that Sileo delivered was that for every action there is an opposite reaction. For example, for every benefit of social media and the internet, there are downsides – people who now have access to personal information.
He spoke of several situations where 
useful technology has been used for ill-gotten gain. He asked the attendees to think about whether or not they have been contacted by Facebook, Equifax, or Target to let them know that their personal information has been breached. Many in the crowd acknowledged that they had. "Information has been gathered by Russians and then sold for other uses." He informed the attendees about the Tor software, which he likened to the Dread Pirate Roberts, that was developed to assist American spies and the military to communicate in a secure space but then was turned to ill use as the dark web by individuals such as Ross Ulbricht, the creator of Silk Road. He reported that 90% of us already have our data on the dark web.
useful technology has been used for ill-gotten gain. He asked the attendees to think about whether or not they have been contacted by Facebook, Equifax, or Target to let them know that their personal information has been breached. Many in the crowd acknowledged that they had. "Information has been gathered by Russians and then sold for other uses." He informed the attendees about the Tor software, which he likened to the Dread Pirate Roberts, that was developed to assist American spies and the military to communicate in a secure space but then was turned to ill use as the dark web by individuals such as Ross Ulbricht, the creator of Silk Road. He reported that 90% of us already have our data on the dark web.Sileo encouraged the attendees to remember that while many of us think that this wouldn’t happen to any one of us individually, it can and does. He provided his own experience as a lesson by detailing his embarrassment when he was subpoenaed by the district attorney. Sileo spoke from his experience, explaining how his identity was stolen by a trusted friend and business partner who used the relationship to electronically embezzle $300,000 from Sileo's business. As a result, he and his business were held legally and financially responsible for the felonies committed. The breach destroyed Sileo’s company and consumed two years of his life as he fought to stay out of jail.
Sileo decided to use this experience as his way out of the situation by becoming an expert in the field and speaking about his situation. "The first 38 speeches I gave were to Rotary clubs in Colorado," he reported. As encouragement, Sileo explained that change comes through tapping into our emotions. We must start with what is the most important to us and make sure that we protect our personal items such as purses, wallets, and laptops from anyone we do not know. "Don’t leave your laptop in your hotel room unattended." He encouraged us to be alert to spam in emails, explained that we should not click on any unrecognizable links, and to use common sense by calling "baloney" when something just doesn’t seem right. “The IRS doesn’t send emails or make phone calls." He provided a list of seven "leader-level" questions to help secure your company's data. More information is available here at https://www.sileo.com/guide/.
Sileo closed by encouraging everyone to make just one change in habit, whether it be keeping a closer watch on personal items or not responding to emails or phone calls that seem improbable. He suggested that we review the information in the link above. The club showed its appreciation with a loud round of applause.
President Cindy thanked Mr. Sileo and introduced Jimmy Collins.
Jimmy provided a brief overview of the upcoming week's celebration of Fleet Week, which will be held at the Bell Harbor Conference Center on August 1st. The meeting will be broken into two parts – one presented by club member and Seafair CEO Richard Anderson and the other part a panel led by retired admiral and club member Bill Center, who will be moderating a discussion between women officers in each branch of the service.
To close the meeting, President Runger thanked all the sponsors as well as the Totem reporters for their work.
