Avis 2012 Annual Report Download - page 27

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affect our business, our results of operations, cash flows or financial condition.
Our global operations may be exposed to political and economic risks, commercial instability and events beyond our
control in the countries in which we operate.
Our global operations are dependent upon products manufactured, purchased and sold in the U.S. and internationally,
including in countries with political and economic instability. In some cases, these countries have greater political and
economic volatility and greater vulnerability to infrastructure and labor disruptions than in our other markets. Operating and
seeking to expand business in a number of different regions and countries exposes us to a number of risks, including:
 multiple and potentially conflicting laws, regulations and policies that are subject to change;
 the imposition of currency restrictions, restrictions on repatriation of earnings or other restraints;
 national and international conflict, including terrorist acts; and
 political and economic instability or civil unrest that may severely disrupt economic activity in affected countries.
The occurrence of one or more of these events may negatively impact our business, results of operations, cash flows or
financial condition.
We face risks arising from our heavy reliance on communications networks and centralized information systems.
We rely heavily on information systems, including our reservation system, to accept reservations, process rental and sales
transactions, manage our fleet of vehicles, account for our activities and otherwise conduct our business. We have centralized
our information systems, and we rely on communications service providers to link our systems with the business locations
these systems were designed to serve. A failure of a major system, or a major disruption of communications between the
system and the locations it serves, could cause a loss of reservations, interfere with our ability to manage our fleet, slow
rental and sales processes and otherwise adversely affect our ability to manage our business effectively. Our systems’
business continuity plans and insurance programs seek to mitigate such risks but they cannot fully eliminate the risk that a
disruption could be experienced in any of our information systems.
Any failure by us to protect confidential information of our customers against security breaches, including cyber-security
breaches, could damage our reputation and substantially harm our business and results of operations.
Third parties may have the technology or expertise to breach the security of our customer transaction data and our security
measures may not prevent physical security or cyber-security breaches, which could result in substantial harm to our
business, our reputation and our results of operations. We rely on encryption and/or authentication technology licensed and,
at times, administered by third parties to effect secure transmission of confidential information, including credit card
numbers. Our outsourcing agreements with third-party service providers generally require that providers have adequate
security systems in place to protect our customer transaction data. However, advances in computer capabilities, new
discoveries in the field of cryptography or other cyber-security developments could render our security systems and
technology or those employed by our third-party service providers vulnerable to a breach. In addition, anyone who is able to
circumvent our security measures could misappropriate proprietary information or cause interruptions in our operations.
Cyber-security risks such as malicious software and attempts to gain unauthorized access to data are rapidly evolving and
could lead to disruptions in our reservation system or other data systems, unauthorized release of confidential or otherwise
protected information or corruption of data. Any successful efforts by individuals to infiltrate, break into, disrupt, damage or
otherwise steal from the Company’s, its licensees’ or its third-party service providers’ security or information systems could
damage our reputation and brand and expose us to a risk of loss or litigation and possible liability that could substantially
harm our business, cash flows or results of operations.
In addition, the industry that regulates the usage of credit and debit cards (the Payment Card Industry, or the “PCI”) imposes
strict customer credit card data security standards to ensure that our customers’ credit card information is protected. Failure to
meet the PCI data security standards could result in substantial increased fees to credit card companies, other liabilities and/or
loss of the right to collect credit card payments, which could adversely impact our operations. Failure to protect customer
credit card and other information can also result in governmental investigations or material civil or criminal liability.