It’s probably the story of the week: Sony’s movie house was hacked, just in time for the Christmas season movie releases. Coincidentally, it was hacked just as a movie called The Interview is getting press.
This movie is a blatant spoof of North Korean dictator Kim Jung Un. But North Korea denies they had anything to do with any hack…sort of. But they’re sure not sympathetic toward Sony. They even called it a ‘righteous deed’ and said some…ahem…sympathizers may have been inspired to do damage. A statement by the Korean Central News Agency says they believe the film was instigating a terrorist act at a time when US and North Korea relations are already hostile. This news agency warned more hacks to come and, “The righteous reaction will get stronger to smash the evil doings.” Other movies hacked include ‘Annie’ and ‘Fury’, allowing them to be seen for free even before their release date. The Interview is still scheduled for release Christmas Day 2014.
First off, you can’t trust a thing North Korea says. Not one thing! This is the same oppressive government that tells their people, “Everything is going to be all right,” when in reality, they’re literally starving to death. And even by their own statement, they seem a little too giddy at Sony’s misfortune. It sounds like they’re backing these hackers so much they have a certain relationship with them. Their statement even commands the hackers to do such deeds in the future. No, I’m not buying North Korea’s claim they had nothing to do with it. At best, they may have sympathizers around the world (I don’t know why) who carried out the hack, and were inspired by North Korea’s communist regime to carry out the malicious attack. At worst, they’re flat out lying and this dictatorial regime did the whole thing themselves. How far deep do you think North Korea is involved?
Remember when we all gathered around the TV at night (or to watch your favorite daytime soaps…admit it!)? Those days are almost over. Everyone is quitting TV.
Television habits of those between 18-49 years-old decreased 3% in 2014. That may not sound like much, but digital viewership (watching on their desktops, laptops, smartphones, gaming consoles) among that age group increased 53% this year. Among older Americans, digital and mobile viewership increased 55% since this time last year, while TV use decreased two percent. Internet video watching ?increased four hours from a year ago.In the 3rd quarter of 2014, Americans watched 141 hours of TV, down 7% from 3rd quarter 2013. Even Nielsen ratings are taking notice. Proposals have been made to change it’s ratings systems to accommodate the ever increasing number of digital viewers. However, TV watching is still by far the most popular way of viewing shows and videos. But if this trend continues for too many years, this too will change.
What’s driving this change? Well, let’s state the obvious: more people own desktops, laptops, smartphones and gaming consoles than ever before, and will continue to do so in the years to come. Plus, more people are getting streaming like Hulu and Netflix. Why pay $100 a month for cable when you can pay $8 a month for a streaming network and you can keep up the same shows anyway? And think about shows like Orange is the New Black and House of Cards. Those shows are exclusively available to Netflix and are getting critical and public acclaim. The fact that 18-49 year olds are turning to digital viewing should be enough to get attention. But now that older Americans are using digital technology, it’s time for us to take notice. And some people are. And since everyone is quitting TV, should more producers and directors seek digital streaming as the new way of things?
Apparently I am an old fuddy duddy, and I had no idea that this comments phenomenon even existed. Now I have watched and used YouTube videos to help me get through a difficult part of a game, or to find hidden items, but this is ridiculous. Watching someone else play a video game, and listening to his absurd comments and ramblings may be the end of a functional society as we know it. Last night while watching my favorite show “South Park” they were actually making fun of this phenomenon, specifically a famous YouTube personality Pew Die Pie. I mean, just typing out this guy’s name makes me want to puke in my soup. To go on YouTube and see MILLIONS of views and comments on his video’s is just mind boggling.
When I was growing up, parents couldn’t fathom why we all loved video games so much. They told us we were wasting our lives away by not going outside and enjoying real life. I didn’t see it back then, but maybe what my generation started, this new one is taking it to a whole new level. To be so lazy, that you can’t even play the mind numbing video game, and you have to watch someone else play, so you can listen to them comment on playing the game, is the end of a functional society as we know it.
If this is where the internet and the world as a whole is headed, then it is a dark day my friends. Here at Computer Geeks, we love technology, and we love the internet. But this is not some marvel of technology, this is the opposite. I almost don’t even want to post this blog to draw more attention to this, but deep down I am hoping that people will read this and inform others of how stupid this is, and stop it.
So go and look up this Pew Die Pie on YouTube, see what he is doing to the youth of America, and give this kid a piece of your mind. If we let this continue, in 10 years the internet will just be a vast wasteland of people commenting on people’s comments on comments that they saw of some guy throwing a baseball against a wall, because he has nobody to play catch with since they are all watching the comment video. That and pictures of an oiled up Kim Kardashian…
Hollywood is hacked. Five upcoming movies produced by Sony Pictures are now scrambling to protect it’s copyright laws and file-sharing hubs around the world. And who is to blame?
Movie ‘Fury’ and the remake of ‘Annie’ are being hit the hardest. Annie has been leaked and pirated three weeks before it’s much anticipated debut. It’s been downloaded over 205,000 times. Fury has been illegally downloaded over 1.2 million times in the last several days. Fury is already one of the most pirated movies of all-time; this is before it’s even released. The hack itself happened on November 24, 2014. During one hack of a Sony corporate system, a skeleton appeared on their computers saying, “Hacked by #GOP”. The group call themselves ‘Guardians of Peace’. Not only are they releasing whole movies before their theater due date, these ‘Guardians of Peace’ are threatening to release many top secrets of Sony. But there’s another, and even more sinister dynamic to this dilemma.
There’s a Sony movie called ‘The Interview’ that is scheduled to be released Christmas Day. The Interview is a blatant, unflattering spoof of the communist regime of North Korea and it’s dictator, Kim Jong-Un. It stars James Franco and Seth Rogen, and they’re journalists/talk show host scouted by the FBI to kill Kim Jong-Un. This spoof makes the N. Korean dictator very unhappy, so unhappy that he’s threatened severe consequences if The Interview isn’t pulled. How coincidental Sony gets hacked right when The Interview and several other Christmas season movies (or should I say Oscar season) are being promoted and released. Look at the names chosen: GOP, Guardians of Peace. That doesn’t sound like N. Korea. That’s the point. The hackers don’t want to look too obvious. That’s why they didn’t hack The Interview. First off, that would be too obvious. Second off, that would give more people exposure to this movie, and Jong-Un doesn’t want that. So why not go after other Sony movies? Is North Korea behind this hacking?
Today is November 18, 2014. The book Spam Nation is being released. It’s written by cyber security expert and investigative reporter Brian Krebs. Krebs’ forecast on cyber fraud is not optimistic.
On a morning show, Krebs is expecting another cyber security breach in the coming holiday shopping season. Remember the Target breach last year? In Spam Nation, he exposes the criminal masterminds behind such cyber attacks. They’re often from organized crime, gang members, and many of them are from Eastern European nations like Russia to Bulgaria. And not only is it getting easier for them, they’re getting more sophisticated. Krebs talks about spam pharmacies, viruses, malware and other devices they use. They’re even digital mob groups like Cosma, who stole untold American passwords and logins through an unforgiving malware attack. Did you know organizations like this will sell your information for as little as $25 to anyone willing to pay? Then these buyers will buy things with your account numbers, gift cards,? and anything else they get their hands on. It’s a win-win for everyone…except you the innocent consumer.
Krebs also sheds light on other issues. Did you know that you can expose yourself to spam pharmacies and hacking mobs even when you don’t open a spam or junk email? Spammers get the email, and sell usernames and passwords to the underground black market. This isn’t just an American problem; this is a global one. It costs consumers and companies billions of dollars every year. It can open the door to ills like divorce, foreclosures, even suicides. Spam Nation isn’t just doom and gloom. It gives the reader common sense things they can do to protect themselves. And it’s an easy and? read. You can read Brian Krebs security blog; he does a great job keeping up on computer security issues. Krebs does a good job exposing cyber fraud, the culprits behind it, and what we can do to protect ourselves and our households. Is Spam Nation a bestseller in the making?
Let’s go back to the decade of the 2000s: the era of George W., Paris Hilton, and the rise of reality TV. It was also the era of the podcast, programs broadcasted over the Internet. Get ready for the podcast comeback.
By 2009 or 2010, the podcast was slipping, thanks to You Tube and other social media venues. But now, the podcast is back with vengeance! Where do you want to start? You can watch true crime podcast like Serial, a radio style talk show like Alex Jones Infowars, or catch the podcast of celebrities from Jersey Shore’s Snooki to WWE superstar Chris Jericho. Last month, 39 million people listened to at least one podcast show, a new record.? Not only are more people listening to podcast, more people are launching one. John Lee Dumas, host of podcast ‘Entrepreneurship on Fire’, says “It’s spreading like wildfire.” Dumas should know. He’s made over 700 episodes of Entrepreneurship on Fire. There are several reasons why the podcast is making such a resurgent comeback. One reason is the shows are better than they were 10 years ago. Another is economics. It costs less to produce than other media. Traffic and technology have a lot to do with this trend. We’re spending more hours in our car than ever before. Most cars made in the 2010s, at least in the US, can play Internet radio either through USB, Bluetooth or auxiliary plug. It’s estimated next year, half of all cars sold will be Internet connected. By the mid 2020s, all of them will be.
I like to add another reason to the podcast comeback: the overall quality of today’s media has taken a downward turn. From the mainstream news to the music, it’s more of the same. People are tired of it and switching to podcast and other alternative entertainment. This trend will only continue as time marches on. What’s your favorite podcast?
