Based on the comments from my previous post, people are still continuing to use their credit and debit cards. Despite the fact that one of them even had their information stolen. Luckily for Jenny, she did not have any of her money stolen. Patrick on the other hand still uses his cards blindly, assuming that his banks are on his side if things go haywire.
So although the rate at which our information is being stolen continues to rise, people are still continuing to use their cards both online and in-stores. People trust that their banks will help them recover any expenses that were not rightfully made by them...
"Even if you're not doing anything wrong, you are being watched and recorded." - Edward Snowden
Do You Feel Safe?
With all of the companies that have had personal information as well as debit and credit cards stolen, does any of that change the way that you spend money either online or in stores (perhaps you're choosing to do less online shopping)?
Do you feel safe when you use a debit or credit card either online or in stores? I personally have always preferred cash over electronic payments because it takes out the chance of an error (perhaps a register taking your card payment twice, as an error).
If you don't feel safe using it, but are continuing to use electronic payments what have you done/what will you do if your card information does get stolen. I know my financial institution has sent me new cards just as precaution, but I know many banks choose not to do this because of the costs involved (if you haven't been sent new cards, are you concerned/if you have been sent new cards, are you still using them as much and in the same way as before).
Do you feel safe when you use a debit or credit card either online or in stores? I personally have always preferred cash over electronic payments because it takes out the chance of an error (perhaps a register taking your card payment twice, as an error).
If you don't feel safe using it, but are continuing to use electronic payments what have you done/what will you do if your card information does get stolen. I know my financial institution has sent me new cards just as precaution, but I know many banks choose not to do this because of the costs involved (if you haven't been sent new cards, are you concerned/if you have been sent new cards, are you still using them as much and in the same way as before).
Sony: Testing a New Market
Sony will soon be rolling out a new product for testing soon. Introducing PlayStation Vue: A Web-Based TV Service. Their new service will require a PlayStation gaming console to run, however they will be offering a personalized searchable approach to watching live and on-demand TV, via the internet. They've got many big cable networks on board with their idea including Disney, ESPN, USA, FX, Discovery, Bravo, MTV, Comedy Central and the Food Network. Sony is looking to offer a package of about 75 channels during their testing period.
I hope this turns out to be a bit of a success rather than a flop. More competition means more competitive prices for TV channels, in theory. Their interface looks very similar to Netflix, very easy to navigate and search for what you're looking for. Sony has also said that if this becomes a success they are interested in expanding this capability to iPad users as well. They've also said that they may considering the ability of allowing users to select which networks they would like to pay for, essentially allowing people to only pay for what they want. I can only wish them the best of luck.
Sources:
NY Times
CNet
I hope this turns out to be a bit of a success rather than a flop. More competition means more competitive prices for TV channels, in theory. Their interface looks very similar to Netflix, very easy to navigate and search for what you're looking for. Sony has also said that if this becomes a success they are interested in expanding this capability to iPad users as well. They've also said that they may considering the ability of allowing users to select which networks they would like to pay for, essentially allowing people to only pay for what they want. I can only wish them the best of luck.
Sources:
NY Times
CNet
USPS: Latest to Announce a Breach
That's right, the United States Postal Service (USPS) is the latest to announce that they have been breached. The breach is said to have occurred between January and mid August, compromising anyone who emailed or called the Customer Care Center (Reported to be ~2.9M people). It has also affected the USPS's 800K+ employees' records. I feel like I've been on repeat, but there has been far too many data breaches that have occurred recently. It's scary to think, but the trend seems to be that any business small or large that is connected to the internet is up for a breach of information.
What raises concerns for me is the fact that it took them months to announce the fact that they had been breached. In my own opinion it's deceptive to both their employees, and their customers. I feel like there should be better communication, and more transparency from companies who have had data breaches.
Sources:
Naked Security
ZD Net
What raises concerns for me is the fact that it took them months to announce the fact that they had been breached. In my own opinion it's deceptive to both their employees, and their customers. I feel like there should be better communication, and more transparency from companies who have had data breaches.
Sources:
Naked Security
ZD Net
Amazon Echo: Siri For Your Home
Amazon has unveiled their latest and greatest device, this one for your home. Their new device "Echo" is a virtual assistant, similar to Apple's Siri, for use at home. This new device has been demonstrated being shown as able to play music, set alarms, look up information, spell out words, create shopping lists, set reminders and various other things. The device gets connected via Wi-Fi to Amazon's cloud platform, allowing the device the ability to learn and become adaptive to its environment. Some are suggesting that this device, which is ideally being marketing to Amazon prime customers (it's retailing for $199, but $99 for prime members) will be Amazons next no-click purchasing device, where users will be able to ask their new device to simply purchase an item for them. Others are raising concerns about their own safety because Echo is constantly listening to all conversation that takes place inside the room. Although this is very neat and fascinating technology, I don't really think I'll be buying one any time soon.
Sources:
Tech Crunch
Tech Times
Sources:
Tech Crunch
Tech Times
Being Monitored: At Work
What if I told you that the same kind of data analysis that Netflix uses to recommend new shows and movies to you, may also start monitoring you at work. Workday, a cloud based software company is creating projections of your performance while at work. Keeping track of your every move, and analyzing loads of information. This is the same kind of analyzing that Facebook does to suggest advertisements, and various other websites use to make suggestions based on your previous searches and browsing history. What Workday is going to attempt to create are models of productivity, view spending of company money, and using various other things that they have yet to fully disclose. These models and spreadsheets will enable companies to make well-educated predictions on their employees performances and their own success.
This scares me a lot. Giving employers the power to monitor every single aspect of what you do while at work is a very futuristic idea that I'm not particularly caring for. I don't feel that any employer has the right, nor a good reason for doing this kind of practice. I understand that it may help weed out unsuccessful employees and eliminate unnecessary people, but this just seems very extreme to me. There are other methods that can do the same, like paying attention to whether or not that employee gets any work done in a timely manner.
Sources:
Bits: NY Times
ZD Net
Sources:
Bits: NY Times
ZD Net
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