So today is the day for love, or so they say. Yes, it’s Valentine’s Day. Around this time, some people take to dating sites to look for that last minute date. But how ironic…one dating site hacked on Valentine’s Day.
So the dating site’s name is Coffee Meets Bagel. They told millions of their users that hackers stole their account information. Well, they gave users an email saying that a third-party ‘might’ have acquired their information. Also in this letter, Coffee Meets Bagel assured that they only stole names and emails. Because they don’t store passwords or financial stuff. They listed various steps they’re doing to protect the consumer, including working with the law to find the hackers.
However, this breach included over 670MB worth of info. Yes, it included people’s names and emails, but also registration and gender info. Though Coffee Meets Bagel has millions of accounts, we don’t know how many were hacked. In fact, as of December 2018, this dating site has over 7 million members. Then add the $25 million it made in 2018. They’re still growing. But they did give advice to it’s members in the wake of this hack. They warned against any page asking you for personal data, especially those you don’t know of. Also, watch out for suspicious emails. Our computer repair techs?remind our clients of this often.
This dating site hacked on Valentines Day though. I find it interesting hackers picked this date for the attack. Yes, few people,especially in IT service, expected this dating site to be hacked on this particular day. Maybe they know this would be a good time to get good info on people. Maybe this would be a good time to sell stuff on the dark web. But it could also be that they went through a bad Valentine’s Day experience. It could have been a break up, divorce, or the day they discovered another person in their relationship. Who knows? It’s not of of possibility. What do you think?
So Valentine’s Day is tomorrow (bah humbug!). But even us in technology, whether computer repair or IT support leadership, have a sense of humor about it. Maybe this is why T-Mobile spoofs Valentine’s Day.
So starting today, T-Mobile starts a Valentine’s Day promotion. But maybe I should call it an-anti Valentine’s Day promotion. Because here, they want you to break up with your carrier and choose T-Mobile. In fact, they even give it a name. That name is, “National Break Up With Your Carrier Day”. Here is an old 2014 commercial that captures that spirit.? Valentine’s Day is a perfect day to woo someone to you. And T-Mobile is using this day to woo you from the hands of their competitors.
I say this because they seem to be breaking out with the deals. They include two smartphones and unlimited lines for $100 a month. It also has auto pay, and many choices of phones. However, none of them include iPhone products. This even includes ‘Netflix On Us’. That’s right. With this plan, they’ll even pay for your Netflix watching habits. But let’s talk about newer, more expensive phones, like Samsung Galaxy S9 and Google Pixel 3. Obviously, they will cost you more. However, let’s say you have a Verizon account and owe them money. During this promotion, T-Mobile says they will pay up to $650 of what you owe to Verizon. That is, if you join them.
Here is a disclaimer. I am not supporting or advertising for T-Mobile, or any other phone company. But I’m reporting how smartphone companies are using Valentine’s Day to promote. That’s nothing new or unusual. However, what catches my eye here is the way they’re trying to woo customers away from the competition on this very occasion. It’s to the point they’re even paying for a bill you may owe to a competitor. This is how T-Mobile Spoofs Valentine’s Day. It reminds of a jilted lover trying to win his/her ex back from the new lover…on Valentine’s Day. Or a single person trying to take somebody’s boyfriend/girlfriend…on Valentine’s Day. That rarely works in the romance world. Will it work here?
So yesterday, I talked about President Donald Trump signing an AI initiative. This will promote AI in the workplace, and other areas of life. You would think IT service companies would be happy. But not so much. Google warns of AI.
So in an annual report, Google/Alphabet says AI could have negative impacts on their business. They really worry about ethics. Yes, obviously there is still a very high demand for their services and goods. That’s why Alphabet is still the biggest and most far-reaching corporation in the world. However, Google leaders fear that AI things like machine learning could raise ethical and legal concerns. Could those concerns cause Google to lose business?
But they know trying to avoid AI controversy can be a slippery slope. It already is. For example, take the Pixel 3. It’s a smartphone that prides itself on machine learning, but that machine learning got them in trouble. It’s machine learning created issues of privacy invasion. As a result, sales went down. Then there was Project Maven. That built this AI system for military drones. But the outcry from privacy rights and human rights groups was loud and intense. Google backed down. In fact, in June 2018, they pledged they would no longer support AI that threatened human rights.
Now, they face controversy over handling China’s lack of human rights. But now Google/Alphabet says they won’t participate in their censorship ways. Now, Google warns of AI. You know what? I’m proud of Goodle/Alphabet. It’s because of people like you and me, who are raising awareness about AI, and put the pressure on. Google seems to be getting the message. Please don’t think I’m anti-AI. I’m not. In it’s place, it can do a world of good. However, when people, corporations and governments abuse AI, it can lead to disaster. That’s the concern. I’m glad Google warns of AI, and it’s learning from their past experiences. Wouldn’t it be great if other IT support corporations do the same?
So IT support leaders and Silicon Valley billionaires aren’t the only ones that have their eye on artificial intelligence. Global political leaders do as well. In fact, Russian President Vladimir Putin said whoever controls AI controls the world. Well, US President Trump takes on artificial intelligence.
So today, they expect President Trump to sign an executive order that promotes AI. This is years in the making. Because many in IT service put pressure on him to do this. Trump calls this the ‘American A.I. Initiative’. One focus is education. This doesn’t just mean in the schools, but especially in the workforce. This includes improving services like cloud computing. It also includes improving data to build A.I. systems. Furthermore, it even includes worldwide partnerships about AI.
These are great starts. However, there are a couple of worries. First of all, they didn’t set up a budget of this AI initiative. It’s not going to be cheap. Also, many complain it’s still pretty vague. Maybe we will learn more about it after this signing. But it is a start. And it needs to start now. Because in 2017, China pledged $150 billion to become the greatest A.I. power in the world. Keep in mind the trade war between the US and China right now. Governments like Canada, United Kingdom, Russia and Singapore are also in a hurry be A.I. greats.
There are other reasons President Trump takes on artificial intelligence. It’s not just the race for jobs, education, and technology. Because AI could determine weapons and warfare and could be a threat to our national security. Our potential enemies know it. But here is one thing I wish this initiative addresses: the moral questions of AI. This is why I’m so weary of AI. It’s a threat to our jobs. It’s also a threat to our privacy (or what little of it still exists). But now, they can also lead to outright war, maybe even outright human annihilation. What do you think of the American A.I. Initiative?
So everybody knows Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is heading for divorce. He’s one of the greatest IT support legends of all-time. But public divorce alone is bad enough. Then add these next two events. It adds up to a bad week for Amazon and Jeff Bezos the IT service billionaire.
So Bezos accused AMI, a media company that owns the National Enquirer, of blackmail. I had no idea National Enquirer still existed. But on to the story…Bezos said this medium is holding nude pictures over him. The Amazon CEO even claimed the blackmail is politically motivated.? You see, Bezos hired a private investigator to see how they got private texts and photos. They especially look at Saudi Arabian connection. Because of this, according to Bezos, AMI claimed they would publish his texts and photos if they didn’t stop this investigation. However, AMI says they could publish these as ‘newsworthy’.
Then Amazon has to deal with legendary Hollywood director Woody Allen. He’s suing Amazon for $68 million. That’s a lot of money for anybody. It is even if you’re Amazon. Allen is suing them over a movie deal that ended in disaster. Allen planned to direct the film, “Rainy Day in New York”. But suddenly, Amazon Studios cancelled the deal. Allen claims they ended it after a sex scandal from the early 1990s re-surfaced (his alleged affair with his stepdaughter). In December 2017, as the Me Too movement gained momentum, Dylan Farrow wrote a scathing article, asking why Allen gets away scott free, while guys like Weinsten, Spacey and Cosby get exposed. Of course, since the 1990s, Allen denied any wrongdoing.
Amazon gave a vague statement with legalize. Even in that statement, it seems these old accusations does have something to do with this project ending. So yes, this is a bad week for Amazon and Jeff Bezos. And in this politically and socially turbulent era, the climate seems too good not for this to happen. Do politics have to deal with this? Or do jealousy and envy?
