Clever Title

My last work day last week, I wrote Ben a memo, which I sent by email. One lawyerly trait I have is an obsessive compulsive need to check over what I've written (not so much here, as this is supposed to be therapy.) I read over the memo a couple of times; it was about evicting homeless people out of a dead woman's house because her heirs want to sell it. Even though they're living there, Ben and I still call them homeless. They don't pay rent, you see. And calling them homeless makes it easier to kick them out of their home just in time for the start of winter. This is lawyer's work!

So the memo is about what we have to do to evict these poor saps. I reread it and think it's a really good argument I make about it being really complicated to kick them out (not really) and how it would take a super long time (I guess) and that it would be better to sell the house with them in it. Ben probably won't agree, for the more tasks we [I] do, the more he gets paid. (I get paid 18% of how much he charges clients for the work I do. Awesome, isn't it?). But maybe he will agree, as he, with 30 plus years of experience, apparently knows absolutely nothing about evictions. I see a bunch of eviction notices in his floor piles [files], but I guess they're the work of his last associate.

The memo seems pretty good, I'm happy with myself, and am feeling a little less guilty. Then I see the first line:

"To: Ben Waterman"

Doh! Ben Waterman is Ben's name in this blog, so the old fool won't hire someone to sue me. I'm worried about being fired too, but that would just put me out of my misery.

I logged in to Ben's email account. I know his password because it's his name. His email is bwaterman@domain.com, and his password is bwaterman. He didn't read that email yet, so I deleted it and sent a new one. No harm, but that was close. I fear being embarrassed more than I do being fired. Probably another lawyerly trait. Not good.

While Ben's email at least has a password, his computer is completely defenseless. His wireless router is totally open. Anyone in the building can use his connection. Moreover, all his files are shared and his firewall is disabled. Want to know someone's address, phone number, bank accounts, and social security number? Come to our building with a laptop and a wireless connection. Too lazy to do that? You can use Windows Foldershare to log on to Ben's office and home computers. The username is his email, and the password is his name.

At least Ben's office has a kind of security system; any thief looking for documents to steal will be deterred by the awful chaos. I'm waiting for Ben's clients to give him identity theft work.