Who CAN You Trust?

If you live in the Dallas – Fort Worth area, you may be aware of the latest breaking news in cybersecurity: the city of Dallas suffered a Royal ransomware attack. This attack is causing a huge ripple effect within the community as well as the justice system as many trials have to be put on hold until the situation get’s resolved. Although the city of Dallas has released statements stating that “there is still no indication that data from residents, vendors, or employees has been leaked” – that raises a big question within the community: who can you trust?

?Who CAN You Trust?

Earlier this year, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the fast-food chain White Castle violated the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act by requiring employees to use their fingerprints to access company systems without their consent. One employee took issue, lawyered up and is now leading a class action lawsuit that is estimated may cost the company $17 billion.

I don’t know all the details, but my guess is that some well-meaning IT company or person sold the executive team on the idea of using this technology to increase security, lower costs, improve efficiency, etc. Someone?trusted?them to know what they were doing and the recommendations they made, and now they’re facing a complete and total disaster.

Thousands of investors trusted Sam Bankman-Fried, Bernie Madoff and Elizabeth Holmes (Theranos) with their money, only to discover these people were complete frauds. Many trusted Silicon Valley Bank, First Republic Bank and Signature Bank with their money, only to discover these banks were grossly mismanaged, resulting in their collapse.

In business, and all throughout our lives, we all have to make decisions about who we can trust and whose advice to follow. Pick the wrong person and they can impart serious harm.?

Far too many have misplaced their trust in people and companies, based on frivolous, emotional, irrational reasons vs. competence and track record. Most people do not take the time to carefully investigate the company or individual they are about to trust with critical aspects of their business, finances, and lives.

That said, as a BUYER or CONSUMER, you have to be very, very careful that you don’t make decisions about who to trust in the same way.?You MUST stress-test the vendors, consultants, and employees you are entrusting with critical aspects of your life, finances, and business, and not allow yourself to be seduced by “marketing” or the desire to abdicate responsibility and free yourself from doing your homework. Many of the investors who lost money in the FTX scandal did so because they didn’t do their own due diligence (despite what they said) and trusted that, because their well-known peers were investing, it was a safe investment.

In the world of consultants, authors and speakers, it’s shocking how many small business owners foolishly follow the advice of clearly unqualified “gurus” who have NOT done what they are teaching others to do, are NOT running successful businesses and are dispelling advice that is grossly inaccurate and incomplete.?

But Austin, How Do I Know WHO To Trust?

I understand why and how people put trust in those that they shouldn’t: most people want to rely on a guru to tell them what to do. As the late ingenious physicist, Albert Einstein, once said, “blind belief in authority is the greatest enemy of truth.”

Know this as a business owner, entrepreneur, and customer just like you: be very, very, wary of falling for it yourself.

It is equally important that as a business owner and consumer you are able to actually trust those who handle sensitive information for you and your business. That can be the deciding factor when choosing who is competent enough to handle your business’s unique needs. Get 12 warning signs that you hired the wrong computer consultant or are being ripped off for substandard work. All the details are here.??