Abstract
There is much hope and hype surrounding the development of innovative technologies, but are we as motivated and effective in assessing the potential risks of these technologies? It is prudent to assess and mitigate risks prior to deploying a new product or process, but how often is a risk assessment performed when new functionality or changes are proposed? This paper describes a rapid, Agile approach for intermittent risk assessment and surveillance when there are substantial changes to systems and their context of use. Fault Tree Analysis and Failure Mode and Effect Analysis were used as models in a customized approach to assess for risk and potential hazards of added functionality and changes to mobile products after initial deployment. We also describe benefits and challenges. A rapid risk assessment could also be used as an initial assessment in situations where the software development cycle is not amenable to a more time-consuming approach to risk assessment. A lesson learned in preparing to rapidly assess for risks is to consider several or some combination of approaches.
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