John D. Rockefeller

 “Don’t be afraid to give up the good and go for the great.” 

Stay away from these smartphones: Report lists devices with highest failure rates

Looking for a reliable work phone? Here are the smartphone models to avoid.

Xiaomi Redmi 4 and the iPhone 6 models have the highest failure rate for Android and iPhone, according to the Mobile Device Repair and Security report from Blancco. With iOS and Android operating systems occupying 99% of all smartphone sales, Blancco studied diagnostic reports from Q4 of 2017 to determine which smartphones had the highest failure rates.

In a global market where used smartphones will be worth approximately $30 billion in 2020, according to IDC, smartphone security and efficiency are even more important.

According to the report, Samsung had the highest Android manufacturer diagnostic failure rate at 34%, with Xiaomi and Motorola following behind at 13% and 9%, respectively. While Samsung's failure rate significantly surpasses that of Xiaomi and Motorola, it is at least seeing improvement from its 53% failure rate in Q3 2017.

But the list of top failing Android device models was a little different. Here's the top five:

1.    Xiaomi Redmi 4 (9%)

2.    Motorola Moto G (5S) Plus (6%)

3.    Lenovo Lenovo K8 Note (5%)

4.    HMD Global Nokia 6 (4%)

5.    Samsung Galaxy S7 (3%)

Looking at the iOS ecosystem, the report named the iPhone 6 as having the highest failure rate at 26%. The iPhone 6S follows suit with 14% and the iPhone 6S Plus at 9%, revealing the fallibility of the iPhone 6 family.

Here's the top five list of Apple's least reliable iPhone models:

1.    iPhone 6 (26%)

2.    iPhone 6S (14%)

3.    iPhone 6S Plus (9%)

4.    iPhone 7 Plus (9%)

5.    iPhone 6 Plus (9%)

The main reason for the Android failure rate was performance (27%), while iPhones saw Bluetooth (3%) and Wi-Fi (3%) as their largest operation issues. While it appears iPhones are more successful overall, the rest of their models in the top 10 failure rates actually had higher rates than the rest of Android's top 10.

Interestingly, Blancco's testing found that older Android models and software versions remain popular in the Android market, which makes it even more important for older Androids to be erased before recycling or reselling, said the report.

If you are a business looking to supply reliable work phones to employees, the iPhone 6 and Samsung models may be the smartphones to avoid. Additionally, the research emphasizes the importance of securely erasing data from smartphones before getting rid of them, as they otherwise might still carry sensitive information about your company and clients.

The big takeaways for tech leaders:

·         Samsung and iPhone reign as winners of the highest diagnostic failure rate from Android and iPhone — Blancco, 2018.

·         With used smartphones sweeping the market, companies must be sure to wipe phones of sensitive information before selling or recycling — Blancco, 2018.

The Biggest U.S. Companies

Apple is certainly ahead in the race to a trillion among American firms.

1. COMPANY

$1,000 BIL

2. APPLE

$903.6 BIL

3. ALPHABET

$728.6 BIL

4. MICROSOFT

$651.5 BIL

5. AMAZON

$546.5 BIL

6. FACEBOOK

$524.7 BIL

7. BERKSHIRE 8.HATHAWAY

$455.8 BIL

9. JOHNSON & JOHNSON

$381 BIL

10. EXXON MOBIL

$352.8 BIL

11.J.P. MORGAN CHASE

$337.4 BIL

12. BANK OF AMERICA

$277.5 BIL

13. WAL-MART STORES

$269.5 BIL

Based on the S&P 500 Index as of 11/8/17

SOURCE: Bloomberg

Expanded Federal Probe Sinks Facebook Shares

Following news that the U.S. government probe into the Facebook data breach connected with Cambridge Analytica has widened, shares of the company dropped 2 percent in early trading on Tuesday (July 3). The fall took approximately $12 billion off Facebook’s market valuation, Reuters reported.

While shares of Facebook did lose approximately 18 percent of their value in the seven trading days after the news came to light, the stock had made a comeback prior to that, and has risen about 27 percent to date. The latest decline comes after it was reported that Facebook’s data scandal, in which Cambridge Analytica accessed the data on 87 million users without their consent, is getting further scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Citing a person familiar with the matter, The Wall Street Journal reported that the SEC and FBI are joining the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission in looking into how and why Cambridge Analytica, which was working on President Donald Trump’s election bid at the time, was able to access the user data without consent. According to the report, Facebook and Cambridge Analytica have been conflicted as to what the social media site knew about how the data would be used.

“We are cooperating with officials in the U.S., U.K. and beyond,” a spokesman for Facebook had told WSJ. “We’ve provided public testimony, answered questions and pledged to continue our assistance as their work continues.”

According to the paper, late last week Facebook provided Congress with a 747-page document that disclosed it has given companies special access to user data. It was the first time the company diverged from CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s public statement that Facebook had restricted data from outside parties since 2015. Within that report, the social media giant said it granted 61 companies — including AOL, Nike, UPS and dating app Hinge — a “one-time” six-month extension to comply with its policy changes on user data.

Worried about Gmail snooping? Here's Google's advice on keeping your account secure

Google issues a defense of Gmail-security following a report into third-party firms accessing users' emails.

Google has posted a defense of Gmail's privacy protections after a Wall Street Journal report found the service was allowing third-party companies to read personal emails.

The WSJ reported that employees at firms offering personalized services, such as shopping and travel suggestions, are accessing and reading Gmail users' messages.

While not referencing the story directly, Google Cloud's director of security, trust and privacy, Suzanne Frey, published a post in the wake of the report, in which she outlined Gmail's privacy protections.

"We continuously work to vet developers and their apps that integrate with Gmail before we open them for general access, and we give both enterprise admins and individual consumers transparency and control over how their data is used," she wrote.

Before a third-party app can access Gmail messages, Frey says the software is submitted to "a multi-step review process that includes automated and manual review of the developer, assessment of the app's privacy policy and homepage to ensure it is a legitimate app, and in-app testing to ensure the app works as it says it does".

A key part of this review is ensuring that apps only collect data they need and don't misrepresent how they are using this data, according to Frey.

How to keep your Gmail secure

Third-party apps need to have been given explicit permission by the user before those apps can access personal data, Frey said, adding that these permissions can be revoked using the Security Checkup page in the user's Google account.

Those concerned about third-party access to their Gmail account can also visit myaccount.google.com and select the Apps with account access page, from which they can revoke any previously-granted permissions.

Business users enjoy a wider range of protections, with G Suite admins able to screen connected OAuth apps to limit the data access that individual users are able to grant.

Google ceased scanning consumer Gmail messages to personalize ads to users in June last year, a point that Frey stressed in her post yesterday.

"We do not process email content to serve ads, and we are not compensated by developers for API access. Gmail's primary business model is to sell our paid email service to organizations as a part of G Suite."

Public awareness of privacy issues has been heightened recently, following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which the data firm was accused of using the personal information of millions of Facebook users to try to change election results.

Despite Google's assurances, David Emm, principal security researcher at Kaspersky Lab, says the WSJ's findings show how important it is for individuals and businesses to pay close attention to the permissions they give third-party apps.

"We have a right to privacy - but we need to be aware of what terms and conditions we are agreeing to when signing up for free email and social-media accounts, especially regarding the rights we are waiving or the access to data that we are giving away," he said.

"We should also think twice before allowing third-party apps to connect to our accounts."

The big takeaways for tech leaders:

·         G Suite admins can screen connected OAuth apps to limit the data access that individual users are able to grant.

·         Those concerned about third-party access to their Gmail account can visit myaccount.google.com and select the Apps with account access page, from which they can revoke any previously-granted permissions.

Strategies for coping with a bad boss

Is your boss about to drive you crazy? This will offer you some advice that could help you keep your sanity (and maybe your job).  

At one point or another, you will have a bad boss. Maybe they won’t be like the one in Dilbert, but they still might make your work difficult. Here are some tips to help you cope. 


Document your work 
Keep track of your accomplishments and of compliments you get from co-workers or managers of other departments. Record the date of these occurrences. When documenting them, try to record the significance of the accomplishment as well. What problem existed at the time? What would have happened had you not acted? How did your action have a positive effect on the entire organization? Keep this information on a system other than your work computer or company network—that is, keep it in a place where you can still access it even if you leave or are terminated. 

Use objective measures

When documenting your accomplishments, try to use objective measurements. If you’re on a help desk, for example, “I resolved that ticket promptly” is a meaningless statement. However, “I resolved that ticket in three hours, compared to the departmental average of five hours” carries more credibility. 

Confront with evidence 
It’s easy for a boss to yell at you based on statements you yourself make. It’s harder if you confront the boss with detailed data, in particular data that has objective measures. So, when your boss complains that you’re not resolving tickets promptly, share your data. In doing so, you’re telling the boss implicitly (or, if you’re brave enough) explicitly, “Boss, you can be angry all you want, but the data favors my position.”

Remember: Only implementation of these advice can yield positive results.

Why your next pizza dinner or ice cream dessert may be made by a robot

AI and automation are impacting more than just cashier jobs in the food service industry.

By Laurel Deppen

As artificial intelligence (AI) technology continues to advance, many Americans fear that soon their positions will be filled by robots. However, it's not just factory positions that robots are beginning to fill—food industry jobs are becoming increasingly automated as well.

The first jobs to be automated will be those of the cashiers. According to a Forbes report, fast food giant McDonald's plans to add mobile ordering and kiosks to 1,000 stores a quarter for the next seven or eight quarters. Now, however, robots are beginning to take over food preparation as well.

While this trend is beginning to make its way into our daily lives, it isn't new. A Japanese robot named Yaskawa-kun has been serving soft serve ice cream for years, as noted by Kotaku. The robot isn't the only one of its kind—ice cream robots have been popping up in other countries including Singapore, China, and Canada.

It's not just ice cream. Robots are affecting the way we experience food across the globe and in eateries that serve everything from pizza to health foods.

A downtown Boston restaurant called Spyce houses seven robotic cooking pots, as reported by the Associated Press. After the food is finished and ready to be served, the robotic pots wash themselves with water jets before a new order begins, further limiting human jobs. Spyce continues to up the tech by allowing customers to order their food on a touch-screen menu, the report noted.

Similarly, San Francisco-based restaurant company Eatsa almost exists entirely without human workers. Customers place their orders through an iPad and the food is dispensed through an automated machine.

French company Ekim has begun to cause a stir in the pizza industry by implementing a "pizzaiolo" robot that mimics the motions of human pizza pros. As Reuters reported, these robots have three arms to make more pizzas in a more efficient way.

The traditional American pizza experience is being ruptured as well. Domino's recently announced the DRU— Domino's Robotic Unit. According to Domino's, the DRU is an autonomous delivery vehicle designed to keep the pizza at an ideal temperature while navigating itself to the homes of customers.

The rise of robotic dining experiences is due to not only to developing technology, but also to hungry and busy customers who are willing to skip human interaction to get their food. For now, though, it will be a while until robots take over our entire dining experience because human labor is still much cheaper than the technology.

The big takeaways for tech leaders:

·         The growing trend of robotics in food is starting to eliminate jobs in food service, starting with cashier jobs but moving into food preparation.

·         While it is growing in popularity, robotic food service won't eliminate human workers yet due to its high cost relative to human labor.

Be careful business pros: App developers could be spying your Gmail inbox

Third-party app developers can read the Gmail inboxes of users who opt in to email-based services, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Employees of third-party app developers are reading Gmail users' private messages, reported the Wall Street Journal on Monday. Outside app developers create services that function with Gmail to give users personalized assistance, like shopping or travel suggestions. However, these developers are also using personal emails to gain insight into users' interests.

Last year, Google promised to not read user emails for ad targeting purposes. But the tech giant has done little to protect Gmail user accounts accessed by third-party developers, according to the Journal.

Hundreds of app developers can peruse the emails of users who signed up for email-based services, even letting their employees do the scanning, according to the report. Specifically, the Journal mentioned Return Path and Edison Software as repeat offenders.

Return Path studies users' emails and gathers data for marketers, reading about 8,000 user emails a couple years ago to assist in software development, said the paper. Edison Software also read emails to help launch the app's "Smart Reply" tool, according to the Journal. Both Return Path and Edison defended their actions, saying that human intelligence is necessary to develop successful artificial intelligence (AI).

Google declined to comment on the Journal's findings, but this information comes at a sensitive time in light of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which the data firm was accused of using the personal information of millions of Facebook users to try and change election results.

Google has emphasized their privacy agreement before, saying that they have strict rules for developers' access to emails, and provide an option for users to opt in or out of third-party email access. However, many people don't understand the extent of what they are signing up for, and may not realize that real people might be reading their emails instead of an automated program.

We also can't know how well outside developers stick to rule, or whether there is any proof that Google keeps track of third-party developers' habits. This means business professionals need to be careful about what they send via email, as sensitive or confidential messages may be compromised by outside developers searching through their email.

The big takeaways for tech leaders:

·         Outside developers are reading users' Gmail messages to personalize email-based services, according to the Wall Street Journal.

·         While Google promised to stop reading user emails last year, they aren't doing anything to monitor third-party app developers who have access to Gmail accounts.

PwC Charged $625.3M For Colonial Bank Fraud Scheme

ByPYMNTS

Following a non-jury trial in March, a federal judge has said that PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) must pay the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) $625.3 million after failing to detect fraud between a client and a mortgage lender. Colonial Bank, which was PwC’s client, and Taylor, Bean & Whitaker, which was the mortgage lender, ended up failing to do so in 2009, Reuters reported.

The FDIC, which was the bank’s receiver, had alleged that PwC negligently audited the bank between 2003 and 2005, as well as in 2008. In her decision, U.S. District Judge Barbara Rothstein ruled that PwC’s negligence was most likely the proximate cause of the FDIC’s damages. Rothstein also said that the accounting firm “is responsible for the full measure of damages resulting from its negligence.”

Alabama-based Colonial was one of the 25 largest banks in the U.S., and Taylor Bean, which was based in Florida, was the country’s 12^th biggest mortgage lender.

Forty percent of audits inspected by the International Forum of Independent Audit Regulators (IFIAR) included serious problems, according to news from Financial Times. The IFIAR found accounting lapses in about 40 percent of the 918 audits of public companies in 2017. The inspections targeted businesses with complex accounting needs or those with risky situations, such as merger and acquisition activity.

The IFIAR said the most common issue identified in its inspections was a failure by auditors to “assess the reasonableness assumptions,” followed by a failure to “sufficiently test the accuracy and completeness of data or reports produced by management.”

The analysts’ report found that 41 percent of issues identified by regulators’ auditing inspections in 2017 were related to issues of independence and ethics, such as an auditor having a financial relationship with a client. The publication said the IFIAR’s conclusions add to skepticism over the reliability of major accounting and auditing firms around the world, following the high-profile collapse of several conglomerates due to accounting failures.