A Look Back at the 23rd Annual Protector User Group Meeting:

The Protector User Group Meeting (PUGM) is an annual tradition at Equinox, and it’s an event we love hosting! So, when local regulations and pandemic trajectories indicated an in-person event looked possible for the fall of 2021 (right when we were celebrating our 35th anniversary!), we were beyond thrilled to plan and announce the 23rd edition of this gathering to be held at the Music City Center. It was even more exciting when registrations started rolling in! As you might imagine, it was quite disappointing then when public regulations, corporate travel bans, and an uptick in positive case counts necessitated transitioning to a virtual event. Still, we were encouraged by your continuing registrations.

But then, just days before the event’s start we were dealt a crushing blow when Derek Drake lost his battle with Covid. Most of you know Derek from his years of attending user group meetings or working with him on blocking projects. As a 26-year veteran of Equinox who was responsible for creating all of Protector’s interfaces, he was passionate about his work and was a customer advocate who brought your Wish List items to life in the system. With his loss so fresh on our hearts, we made the difficult decision to postpone PUGM 2021 until we could regroup. You responded with an incredible outpouring of support and sympathy, for which we are forever grateful.

Our customers are amazing, so it’s no surprise you hung tight with us through all these challenges. And thanks to your understanding and flexibility we had record attendance for the rescheduled event overall and within every single session! Offering this event online likely allowed some folks to attend who otherwise wouldn’t have been able to travel, but online meeting fatigue is also real. We recognize it’s a big ask to add yet another remote meeting to anyone’s calendar. We appreciate you carving time in your schedule to join us!

This year’s agenda included mainstays such as 'Protector 101', the 'Wish List', and 'What’s New in Protector'. It also had some noteworthy additions, which are summarized in this list:

• Equinox Support explained best practices for CDR Rules. This presentation featured practical advice and use case examples from expert rule users Leo Arteaga, Jaime Zetterstrom, and Scott Eggiman.
• Christi led an in-depth and very enlightening training on investigating and dispositioning domestic traffic pumping and IRSF events.
• Equinox Support debuted new how-to tutorials—one for 'Creating CDR Rules' and another on 'Responding to CDR Inactivity Alerts'. Tutorials are short (4 minutes-ish), easy to digest, instructional videos that illustrate how to complete a task or use a feature in Protector. We will continue to offer the existing PDFs and recorded webinars while adding new tutorials. We’ve already gotten to work on several additional tutorials based on your great suggestions.
• Equinox Development officially unveiled the all-new Protector 11 fraud management system. The first presentation outlined terms and concepts while introducing the system’s sleek new interface. At the beginning of this session. Byron delivered a moving memorial tribute to Derek Drake. The second presentation offered a practical look at Protector 11’s case management and fraud management capabilities, complete with insight from current customers who beta tested the application.

If you’d like to review those items, share them with a teammate, or you couldn’t attend this year’s educational summit, we’ve got you covered! Head on over to the Equinox library. Registering for this site takes less than a minute, and your credentials are good for all subsequent logins. Once you’ve registered, you can:

• Watch the PUGM 2021 recordings. Download them 24X7 from: www.equinoxis.com/login.php. Look under the Protector Training Videos heading.
• Check out the new tutorials on responding to inactivity alerts and creating CDR Rules. Both are less than 5 minutes long and are under the How To Tutorials heading at www.equinoxis.com/login.php.
• Review this year’s newest features by downloading What’s New in Protector 2021.PDF. It’s posted online at www.equinoxis.com/login.php under the Protector Documentation heading.
• Check out the CDR Rules blocking feature mentioned at PUGM. Get details in the Protector Blocking Bulletin posted at www.equinoxis.com/login.php under the Protector Documentation heading.
• Get a better understanding of system basics, common terms, and interface features by watching the 2021 edition of 'Protector 101'. It’s under the Protector Training Videos heading.
• Email Support at Support@Equinoxis.com with questions, compliments, or issues. You can also reach them by calling (615) 612-1225 Monday–Friday from 7:30 to 5:00 (Central).
• Schedule individualized online training or a system review by contacting Training@Equinoxis.com.
• Keep up with your 2021 Wish List requests by reading the release notes that accompany each system update/install. They inform you about all Protector enhancements throughout the year.

As was expressed several times during the meeting, we miss seeing you all in person, catching up on the happenings in your life since we saw you last, and treating you to dinner. Also, we are overwhelmed and grateful for every message, call, and text of support following the death of veteran developer and PUGM mainstay Derek Drake. Indeed, we look forward to when we can be together once again. Until then, accept our thanks for participating in the 2021 PUGM and, more importantly, for being amazing customers, partners, and friends.

About the Author

Amy Oldham is in Corporate Communications at Equinox Information Systems, where she creates and maintains the company’s technical documentation and all other customer-facing publications. Amy is also responsible for the company’s newsletter, email campaigns, press releases, and social media presence. When not writing, Amy enjoys spending time with her family, playing tennis, attending Dave Matthews Band concerts, and swimming.
To learn more about Equinox, its products, and staff, visit www.equinoxis.com or call (615) 612-1200.