July-Early August 2014
Vol. 10, No.4
410-641-6029
www.issuu.com/oceanpinesprogress Directors to decide GM’s bonus criteria at July meeting
THE OCEAN PINES JOURNAL OF NEWS & COMMENTARY COVER STORY
HACK ATTACK? Pool user tracking system shut down for days at a time Laptops have been consistently disabled at all five Ocean Pines pools on Saturdays and Sundays this summer, and some data has been manipulated. The laptops remained unusable into the week after the Fourth of July, suggesting an acceleration in denial of use attacks. By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Progress has learned that the tracking system used at all five Ocean Pines Association swimming pools may be failing more consistently this summer for reasons that may not be related to weak or intermittent microwave signals. All the laptops that are used in the tracking system at all five of the OPA pools have failed almost like clockwork on Saturday mornings this summer, remaining inaccessible on Sundays but then mysteriously, for the latter part of June, functioning again normally on Monday mornings. Then on Fourth of July weekend, the laptops failed to boot up on the following Monday and the ensuing weekdays following the weekend shut-down. OPA General Manager Bob Thompson told the Progress in a telephone interview July 9 that the problem had persisted and that, as a result, “we’re exploring alternatives because of the unique manner” in which the attacks on the computers have occurred.
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He declined to confirm that the OPA has been hacked but his reference to the “unique manner” of the attacks suggested that the possibility has crossed his mind. The pools are usually busier on weekends than they are on weekdays, adding to the inconvenience experienced by the pools’ check-in staff. All the pools were congested over the Fourth of July weekend, aggravating the inconvenience. When the tracking system is down, all pool debit card transactions have to be recorded by hand, with the information then delivered manually to the membership department in the OPA’s administration building, where the cost of the pool visit is then supposed to be deducted from the debity card data on file. It’s time-consuming and tedious and the sheer drudgery of the task probably makes it prone to error. It also invites attempts by some card-holders to game the system in an effort to avoid the fee to use the pools. Thompson has vowed that no OPA member will be able to do so, promising that the To Page 21
The Board of Directors will be deciding at its July 23 meeting the criteria by which Ocean Pines Association General Manager Bob Thompson will be able to qualify for roughly $10,000 in additional compensation unrelated to meeting financial goals, OPA President Tom Terry has disclosed. Another $30,000 or so in incentives are tied to reaching amenity financial goals and may be out of reach if certain key amenities fail to meet or come close to meeting optimistic budgetary forecasts. ~ Page 8
Thompson “attacks” Collins for asking about pond clean-up Director Jack Collins said he feels like he was personally attacked by the Ocean Pines Association’s general manager at the June 18 Board of Directors meeting during a discussion of drainage issues in the community. Collins, a resident of Harbor Village, wanted to know if cleaning out the two stormwater ponds in that section of Ocean Pines will be part of the OPA’s drainage improvement effort that is currently under way. When Collins asked about the issue, Thompson said he wouldn’t give preferential treatment to board members. ~ Page 10
Candidates offer competing views on benefits of amenities Whether or not the Ocean Pines Association’s amenities should be profitable or are just that – amenities for which property owners must help foot the bill when losses occur – was a hot topic during a June 21 forum for the five candidates battling it out in this summer’s board of directors’ election. Candidates vying for two open seats on the board are Pat Renaud, Dave Stevens, Terri Mohr, Jeff Knepper and Lawrence Lee. ~ Page 16