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Facebook will be in trouble
John C Morley (Host) (00:00):
And if they get in trouble, well, one of two things is going to happen. A) People are going to be pretty much walking in the footsteps of Facebook. And I'm hoping that once Facebook gets taught a lesson and may pays a fine that these other companies are going to be like, Hey, we don't want to be like Facebook. Facebook was made an example. We don't want to be
(JMOR tech talk show! We answer questions about technology, explain the way they should work and why they tone sometime).
Well, Hi everyone. It is John C Morley, serial entrepreneur here, and it is great to be with you on another fine episode of the JMOR tech talk show. Hey Marcus, it is great to be back with you again. And we have, as I mentioned, a pretty amazing show tonight.
John C Morley (Host) (01:00):
We’re gonna see some Deja Vu with no pun intended there, but really we're, we're going to have some of this very interesting chatter about some stuff that I've definitely talked about in, in the past. And I will be very surprised if you didn't expect this. Alright, let's get right into our show. Shall we? Well, apple is now making it easier to delete accounts linked to third party apps. That's pretty nice. I guess they're starting to become a little bit more, how should we say a responsible about the way things are going and, you know, and what's actually happening. And by doing this they're requiring developers that offer a way to create accounts in their apps to also offer a way to delete them starting with app submissions on January 31st, 2022.
John C Morley (Host) (02:00):
And they shared this earlier this week. Now the account deletion requirement was originally announced alongside some other changes to the apple developer’s guideline at the WWDC 2021. And I think it's great that they're actually doing this. I mean, I think it's a great thing that they're doing and you know, it's something that that's gonna happen. It's gonna change things and hopefully people are gonna embrace it. That's what I hope. And apple has also confirmed that the introduction of it's a more prominent app reporting tool that was spot on the iOS not too long ago is available on the iOS 15, iPad, iOS 50 and also the Mac OS Monterey. Once they release it there and the button allows you to report scams or offensive, abusive, and legal content, even for apps they haven't purchased. So I think that's
John C Morley (Host) (03:00):
pretty cool actually guys, I'm really a fan that they're actually doing that. And I think security is something that we all need to be concerned about because let's face it. You know, nobody really cares about something until it causes damage or costs us money, or really unfortunately affects our loved ones. Right? So kudos to apple for doing that. But speaking about security and protecting people, I've said this a few times before Marcus, that the people that are really in danger, especially with the internet of things, are the medical devices out there. There's so many different medical internet of thing, devices and Medtronic recently issued an urgent recall of their insulin pump controller because it's vulnerable to attacks. Wow.
John C Morley (Host) (04:00):
So this medical device company Medtronic issued this recall of the remote controller for certain incident pumps because they're vulnerable to attacks, but you know, it's possible for someone to copy the signal sent from the controllers to the pumps and deliver or block a dose of insulin, which could be dangerous for diabetic patients using pumps etc. And in the recall statement, Medtronic said, and I quote that it wasn't aware of any situations where this type of hack has occurred. And I quote, the company was first made aware of this issue in 2018 after independent cyber security researcher found the vulnerability and told users about the problem, still quoting the initial alert, told users how to disable the remote control feature when they weren't using it. Now, the company says people should use the remotes after further view Medtronic, and I quote says, they've determined that the potential risks associated with the mini med remote controller
John C Morley (Host) (05:00):
outweighs the benefits of its continued use, which they said in a recall alert let's look at that statement again. After further review, Medtronic has determined that the potential risk associated with the mini med remote controller. Okay, listen, what it says after further review Medtronic has determined that the potential risks associated with the mini med remote controller outweigh the benefits of its Katina use. So that's, they're telling people to not use the Media remote controller and I'm happy that they are recalling these, but this is something that a lot of companies don't get, Marcus, they try to make something convenient and technology, I'm all for it. However, technology that's going to impede on people's privacy, such as you know, I don't like the automated devices at home. I'm not gonna mention the names
John C Morley (Host) (06:00):
One by a company with an A and one with a company with a G they're not handling data properly. And this data could be costing people their lives and privacy, and a lot more like their reputation. Another interesting fact that actually came to the news not too long ago. You know, I've said this before, when Facebook started playing around with Instagram and using the data and the actions they learn from kids, I smelled trouble, weeks ago, months ago. And if you recall, Marcus, I stated that they're going to be in a lot more than just some hot water. They're using kids in Instagram. And now mark Zuckerberg responded to the comments that were made by the lady the other day, about how the company's being unethical,
John C Morley (Host) (07:00):
how they're disabling systems. They did this you know, they basically enabled certain systems when we had the election and that was done. They disabled them. Facebook's actions didn't surprise me at all. Um, like I said, them getting in more hot water, mark Zuckerberg, and I quote, responded by saying, does it reflect the company? We know, I don't know, Mark. I tend not to believe a lot that comes out of your mouth with all due respect. I think it's just been on what I've seen and how you've acted in the past. So that's where I get my deductions from, but I have to say shame on Facebook. But I really want to give this lady a big kudos for testifying, you know, and if you're wondering, you know who was this lady that blew the whistle on
John C Morley (Host) (08:00):
on Facebook, was this lady. Well, this lady Francis Hoggin and she had to play in this for a long time. So she knew what was going on. And like she said, everyone in her company had access to this data, even though this is something that she was not directly working on. So that means data is very freely available in the Facebook enterprise. Shame on them. Yes. Twitter is confirming that it was hacked after its source code and secrets had leaked out. Hate to be a hate to be Twitch, actually Twitch confirms not Twitter, but Twitch and a real problem. Twitch confirmed that it has suffered a major data breach and that a hacker access
John C Morley (Host) (09:00):
the company servers, thanks to a mis-configuration change. You know, a lot of people don't realize how important it is to configure your servers and your computers properly. And they don't take the time to understand how something that is not set up properly can actually invite hackers and breed a lot, of not just miscommunications. But some serious damage to people and to hardware. Now I quote, we can confirm a breach has taken place, close quote, says a Twitch spokesperson on Twitter. “Our teams are working with urgency to understand the extent of this we'll update the community as soon as additional information is available”. I wouldn't hold my breath on that. So Twitch does admit a hacker was able to access data that was mistakenly exposed to the internet due to an error in a Twitch server configuration that happened by a malicious third party
John C Morley (Host) (10:00):
access that a company says it has no indication that log credentials have been exposed and that full credit card numbers were not exposed. I don't know if I believe them or not. So if you used a credit card on Twitch, I would probably ask your credit card company to cancel that credit card and issue a new number for you. Hackers have so far leaked data over, and this includes source code for the company streaming service and unreleased steam competitor from Amazon game studios and the details of creator payouts an anonymous poster on the four CHAN messaging board released 125 gigabit torrent, which they claim include the entirety of Twitch and its comet commit history. Ooh, the leak has been labeled as part one suggesting that there could be
John C Morley (Host) (11:00):
more to come personal information could be compromised like creator payments and much more. My question Marcus is what Twitch is really doing to make sure that this problem has been secured, stabilized and that something like this is never going to happen again. It seems like everyone's being really silent about this now. And I think that's happening because they really don't know. They just don't know. And it doesn't surprise me, ladies and gentlemen, I have to be honest. Netflix is going to be editing phone numbers out of the squid game. Unfortunately, due to many prank calls that happen. So Netflix as you know, very popular game squid game is getting edits because the phone numbers that were shown in the series dialed real numbers, and
John C Morley (Host) (12:00):
These real numbers led to what the company described as quote unquote unfortunate prank dials, this Korean drama about a statistic game in which players find themselves with no option, but to participate in a series of twisted challenges, contains visible phone numbers in multiple screens, shame on you, a Squid. I mean, I even know, being a video producer for years that you never show personal information, you just don't do it. And I think people are being careless. That's the problem now reporters who, you know, early reported the news say that Netflix and the production company, Siren pictures saying they purposely did not include a complete number and weren't aware of the number shown would reach a real line. Yeah. Okay. I believe that one. Netflix confirmed to the verge that the numbers that appear in Squid games will be edited adding that it hopes that
John C Morley (Host) (13:00):
The change will end the prank calls. I wouldn't want to be one of those companies that's getting those calls on about you Marcus. One man claimed to be the owner of the number told a local media outlet that he'd been bombarded with messages and calls adding that they had made it difficult to live his life normally. However, it appears as though multiple individuals may have received calls from enthusiasts from the squid game viewers. Netflix did not immediately return a request for clarification about whether the series had impacted one or more local numbers. The squid game has been a massive success for Netflix and becoming the streaming services top title in the United States. And it's remained a top title as of this, this week with some well-known Korean series is to claim that top spot according to Netflix. So, it's great for the show's creators, but certainly a win for Netflix, but it's possibly safe to assume the poor individuals
John C Morley (Host) (14:00):
receiving these calls from random squid day developers feel differently about that, I don’t know about you Marcus, but I don't think I'd want to be getting these calls during the day and definitely not middle of the night, all because a number came up on a squid show or game. Again people are being too careless. I mean, this goes back to something Marcus that I said a long time ago about people checking the quality of stuff, right? The Q and A to make sure that the data is okay for people to use, make sure that phone numbers are correct. Whenever we print like business cards, signs, wherever it is, you got to make sure the data is the right data. I can't tell you how many times we check phone numbers. We track addresses, we proof things and we tell the clients the same thing, make sure you do this because if you don't, you're going to be very sorry. And you might have some legal implications.
John C Morley (Host) (15:00):
Yeah, Very, very interesting. Well, Twitter, their latest pre tweet prompts. Now let you know when you're about to jump into a heated argument or maybe a very intense situation. Twitter is actually testing new prompts on the iOS, and the Android that warn before you jump into a conversation that could get a little bit troubling. And in one example, there was a prompt that was jumped right into a conversation in progress that says conversations like this can be intense, quote unquote. In another, which seemed like it appears, if you try to reply to one of those intense conversations is titled, let's look out for each other and lays out three bullet points to encourage empathetic and fact-based conversations. This is an interesting tactic Marcus
John C Morley (Host) (16:00):
that a Twitter is taking. And now you can actually, I guess, get more of the vibe of the conversation. So they're basically using their artificial intelligence to tell if a situation is something that is getting heated or not. I think that's pretty cool, but are they doing more than that ladies and gentlemen, or is this just something that they claim is going to help the world? I don't know the answer to that, to be honest with you. I really don't. And I know that people like these technologies, but my question is what's going on with this data? Right. What's actually going on with this data? I believe that this is all going to come down to a very similar issue to what's happening with Facebook.
John C Morley (Host) (17:00):
Are there going to be mandates put in place that are going to dictate and control where people can go and how apps can be used or controlled or disseminated or how information can be managed? I mean, I think what, I think what they, what they did is absolutely terrible. You know, the way Facebook acted and all these other companies, to be honest with you, they're starting to follow suit. And if they get in trouble, well, one of two things is going to happen. A people are going to be pretty much walking in the footsteps of Facebook. And I'm hoping that once Facebook gets taught a lesson and may pays a fine that these other companies are going to be like hey, we don't want to be like Facebook. Facebook was made an example. We don't want to become like them.
John C Morley (Host) (18:00):
Right. I know this can seem really daunting and it can seem annoying, but the real truth of the matter is, it is going to change people's lives. Yeah. It's going to change people's lives. We have to be concerned about the type of content that we put out there. Right? We have to be really concerned about that. And if we're not concerned about the information that's putting out there that we're putting out there, then we've got bigger problems. Right? And now with companies like Facebook and other companies that are big tech giants are they suddenly gonna get some type of regulation
John C Morley (Host) (19:00):
or is this just a political ploy. But you said something very interesting. This Facebook whistleblower, as we were talking about before she complains about Facebook, but you know, she doesn't think the company should be destroyed. And what she's talking about are these drastic anti-trust measures and what they would do and what they wouldn't do. I don't know if she's going to have the power to change this in the way she wants it effected because once you get the ball rolling in the legal system, you may not have the ability to dictate what happens.
John C Morley (Host) (20:00):
And all I can say is when I heard the CEO of Facebook, say it doesn't reflect the company we know, and this back and forth, you know, is going to belabor for days, months, probably years. And it is inevitable that the system has not caught up with the evolution of social media and the impact it has. And what's going on in our world. You know, when Facebook was found that the platform makes body issues worse from one in three teen girls. I mean, what is a platform like this really doing. Is self-regulation possible for large tech companies? Or is it just going to get us into more of an anarchy? Is there going to be a standard
John C Morley (Host) (21:00):
that's going to be adopted and are people going to follow this standard? You know, are they really gonna follow the standard? And if they don't follow the standard, then, then what is that going to mean? Right? What is that actually going to mean? I think when we heard, you know, Mark's response to defend against the whistleblower Francis Oregon's congressional testimony, they insisted her claim that his company prioritizes profit, overusing wellbeing he's saying it's just not true. Well, anybody can say something right, but a company that doesn't even pick up the telephone, you can't even email them. You just can't. So I know this is going to cause a lot of questions and hopefully a lot more answers
John C Morley (Host) (22:00):
because if these internal documents exist, which they do, then how can you expect a corporate culture to be doing anything different? If this is the dogma of the company and the society to which they're part of, right? Some people say government regulations, the answer is some people say it's not. And if he knows this, but Facebook stock was actually down or 5% the other day. And here's another little coincidence or wasn't a coincidence, a platform apps collapsed as well. So my feeling is, I don't think it was accidental. I, it was intentional,
John C Morley (Host) (23:00):
that the platform went down and these controversies just starting to really cause people to turn heads and not in a good way. The price of the share went down roughly 15% since it hit an all time high on September 7th, the biggest dip since its decline on the onset of the pandemic. I know that all these companies say they're doing the right thing, but you know, talk is cheap. Ladies and gentlemen, it really is, it's cheap. And when you can't pick up the phone and call a company, well, that's a problem. But what is this whistleblower from Facebook trying to accomplish? she doesn't want the company broken up, but what's her mission.
John C Morley (Host) (24:00):
And all we could think about is someone at Facebook is going to lose their job. That's interesting. And something else that happened, which was very bizarre, but true, Facebook employees were unable to access critical work tools during a six hour outage. Facebook employees and contractors complained Monday that they were unable to log onto their work accounts during the company's worst service outage since 2008, coincidence, I think not, this outage was so extreme that engineers who were given the task to help resolve the service issues were unable to even log on, to analyze what the problem even was.
John C Morley (Host) (25:00):
One Instagram employee told CNBC, and I quote that some players were saying the outage was karma for the recent whistleblower ordeal. That's pretty amazing. So employees said the outage was preventing them from accessing the tools they use to track information such as how many people are using a certain service, as well as internal chat functions. And the workers requested an anonymity because they were discussing internal confidential matters. The outage was so bad that people were not able to do anything. And the outage can come just after the day.
John C Morley (Host) (26:00):
Francis Huggin a former product manager on Facebook revealed her testimony, the Facebook files, quote unquote. It's interesting. And all we heard was, and this text message. I'm a spokesperson for the company. So this email was not working and directed CNBC to tweet from Facebook, chief technology officer Mike Schrieffer, as the company's official statement on the matter. And this is what they said. Quote, “sincere apologies to everyone impacted by outages of Facebook powered services right now” tweeted tropher quote, who last month announced his resignation from the company. Hmm, “We're experiencing networking issues
John C Morley (Host) (27:00):
and teams are working as fast as possible to debug and restore as fast as possible”. If you can't even get the technicians and the engineers into work on it, then what's the point ladies and gentlemen, I just don't believe anything they say. I mean, that's just me. I mean, I watched the movie about how Facebook started many years ago and how there were things that were like you say, not to onboard or not to above the belt. They're very below. And I just believe that the way they're handling data needs to be rethought and a process, a stereo operating procedure needs to be put in place.
John C Morley (Host) (28:00):
And that SOP needs to be shared with the public. I feel that I can't trust them as a company. They do what they need to make profit. Yes. But when I heard how the security was compromised and how they're literally abusing kids, now I'm saying basically virtually by their experience and learning from them and profiting off of that. That's terrible ladies and gentlemen, absolutely terrible. I don't know what else to tell you, but I think our world has to change. It has to. Question is
John C Morley (Host) (29:00):
when I don't know. They claim, this is the statement I quote, in August advertisers will not be able to target teens based on interest and can only advertise toward those 18 years or older. Applying those constraints helps the prevention of brands that couldn't target teens interested in alcohol, gambling, smoking, extreme weight loss and online dating. Is Facebook changing their format? Forget about the format. Is Facebook changing their policies? I think what we're starting to learn is that they're not going to change overnight, but I think they're going to morph into something more respectable and
John C Morley (Host) (30:00):
something that they have to be accountable for, but they're not going to do it overnight ladies and gentlemen, they're not, you've heard me talking about this before. And I smelled this down the road. I knew this was coming. I didn't know what day it was going to happen, but I just knew. And if you use a platform and you don't have trust in it, That's a serious problem ladies and gentlemen, a serious, serious problem, Very serious problem. But what are people supposed to do when they watch Facebook or things like Instagram? What are they supposed to do?
John C Morley (Host) (31:00):
I think the biggest problem that I see is that there is a disconnect between the mission of Facebook and what it actually does on a daily basis. Now they're saying that Facebook's going to make some changes. There are going to be some serious changes made. I mean, I'm talking about really serious changes. And I know ladies and gentlemen that this is crazy.
John C Morley (Host) (32:00):
They claim they're going to use magic of geo tracking technology and Facebook will Institute auto friending. I don't think I like that. Every time two smart phones come within one meter of each other, a pleasant, little being will sound. And the two smart phone owners will be made friends automatically. I don't think I like that. What was once a train station I quote crowded with pungent apps will now become a magical symphony of friendship. They're going to use military grade surveillance technology and Facebook will start putting your webcam to good use by tracking your eye movements. And Facebook will auto detect micro variations in how long you stare at images. Once they get the clear pattern between content and gaze established images, what's a clear pattern between content and gays established
John C Morley (Host) (33:00):
images will be automatically liked and shared based on how long you stare at them. I don't like that. Facebook has always been known for great communication, but what it lacked till now is a feeling of real human closeness. Facebook is there, but it's not really there no longer. Soon Facebook is going to just cause itself to be in other people's lives, which users like never before. I don't think I like where Facebook is going. I think it's becoming a little bit too evasive. And I don't think what they're doing is appropriate. I don't think they understand what actually is happening.
John C Morley (Host) (34:00):
And I'm talking about the people, ladies and gentlemen. That's what I'm talking about the people. Because if you can't respect people and you have to try to manipulate them, that's no good ladies and gentlemen, that's terrible. Absolutely terrible. Thus, I think we have to be careful. And I think we have to have some standards set so that some of these rules can prevent data from getting into the wrong hands. It's going to be interesting ladies and gentlemen, but you, as people need to send messages, okay. And this is going to be that you don't tolerate disrespect and
John C Morley (Host) (35:00):
that you don't tolerate technology being used at a way to abuse and manipulate you. That's what it's about ladies and gentlemen. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I am John C Morley serial entrepreneur. And I'm sure you know, by now that it gives me great pride, great pleasure and extreme honor to be with you every single time. I'm here on any one of my programs or JMOR tech talk or an unboxing review or LinkedIn stream. It's great to be here. It's great to share knowledge with you guys and, and collaborate and let you have some food for thought about things that may not be the way you perceive them. If you have an idea for a product or for a show, visit www.jmor.com under reach out, let us know it has to be educational. If you do send us a product we will ask you to send that to us and donate it to us.
John C Morley (Host) (36:00):
And I remember, you know, trying to send us a product that's a lemon and wanting us to turn into lemonade as you just to keep your product, because we're going to reveal it for the truth that it is. Well, Marcus it was great to be with you again. And you know, we will be here next week, which is October 15. I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your weekend. And can you believe Marcus in just, is it going to be 1, 2, 3 weeks from now? We're going to be a Halloween. That's unbelievable. Isn't it? Well, ladies and gentlemen, I am John C Morley serial entrepreneur. It has been great to be with you. Tell your friends and your colleagues about the JMOR tech talk show. We'd all be so grateful. And we'll see you again on another show. Take care.
(Thank you for tuning in to the JMOR weekly technology show, where we answer your questions about how technology is supposed to work. And sometimes while you have challenges, getting it to work that way. For more IT support and tips, just text IT support to 888111. That's IT support to 888111, and you'll get tips on technology. I'll see you next week right here on the Jay Moore JMOR tech talk show. Remember www.jmor.com )
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