Month: September 2019

Study shows how consumers rely on price and locality to determine quality of products

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The study suggests that marketers can use this understanding of local identity versus global identity to shape consumers’ price perceptions and behavior. UTA and three other universities contributed to the study. “Consumers tend to use price to judge a product’s quality when their local identity is most important to them,” Janakiraman said. “When promoting high-priced Read more about Study shows how consumers rely on price and locality to determine quality of products[…]

Privatised RAF pilot training takes 7 years to produce combat-ready aviators, has a shortfall of 86% with RAF needs

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The UK Armed Forces’ privatised pilot training system is taking nearly seven years to turn new recruits into frontline-ready aviators, according to the National Audit Office (NAO). The NAO investigation into the UK Military Flying Training System (UKMFTS) contract, which is let to a consortium backed in part by US arms multinational Lockheed Martin, thundered Read more about Privatised RAF pilot training takes 7 years to produce combat-ready aviators, has a shortfall of 86% with RAF needs[…]

Cheap GPS kiddie trackers have default password 123456 and send all information unencrypted

Posted on by Robin Edgar

GPS trackers are designed to bring you greater peace of mind by helping you to locate your kids, your pets, and even your car. They can help keep the elderly or disabled safe by providing them with a simple SOS button to call for immediate help. Many devices are marketed for these purposes on common Read more about Cheap GPS kiddie trackers have default password 123456 and send all information unencrypted[…]

Tesla Malfunction Locks Out Owners Who Depended on App for Entry, Forces Them to Scramble for ‘Keys’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Some Tesla users who rely on the app to gain entry to their Model 3 were temporarily unable to get into their electric cars on Labor Day. The Next Web reported that a number of people tweeted out their frustrations on Monday when they were “locked out” of their car due to phone app issues. Read more about Tesla Malfunction Locks Out Owners Who Depended on App for Entry, Forces Them to Scramble for ‘Keys’[…]

Google has secret webpages that feed your personal data to advertisers, report to EU says

Posted on by Robin Edgar

New evidence submitted for an investigation into Google’s collection of personal data in the European Union reportedly accuses the search giant of stealthy sending your personal user data to advertisers. The company allegedly relays this information to advertisers using hidden webpages, allowing it to circumvent EU privacy regulations. The evidence was submitted to Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, Read more about Google has secret webpages that feed your personal data to advertisers, report to EU says[…]

Online Depression Tests Are Collecting and Sharing Your Data

Posted on by Robin Edgar

This week, Privacy International published a report—Your mental health for sale—which explored how mental health websites handle user data. The digital rights nonprofit looked at 136 mental health webpages across Google France, Google Germany and the UK version of Google, according to the report. They chose websites based on advertised links and featured page search Read more about Online Depression Tests Are Collecting and Sharing Your Data[…]

Human speech may have a universal transmission rate: 39 bits per second

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Italians are some of the fastest speakers on the planet, chattering at up to nine syllables per second. Many Germans, on the other hand, are slow enunciators, delivering five to six syllables in the same amount of time. Yet in any given minute, Italians and Germans convey roughly the same amount of information, according to Read more about Human speech may have a universal transmission rate: 39 bits per second[…]

Hundreds of Millions of Facebook Users Phone Numbers Exposed

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Facebook is staring down yet another security blunder, this time with an incident involving an exposed server containing hundreds of millions of phone numbers that were previously associated with accounts on its platform. The situation appears to be pinned to a feature no longer enabled on the platform but allowed users to search for someone Read more about Hundreds of Millions of Facebook Users Phone Numbers Exposed[…]

More Than Half the Nation’s State Attorneys General Could Sign on to Antitrust Inquiry Against Google

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that “more than half of the nation’s state attorneys general” have signed on to and are preparing an antitrust investigation against digital titan Google, with the paper writing the inquiry is “scheduled to be announced next week, marking a major escalation in U.S. regulators’ efforts to probe Silicon Valley’s Read more about More Than Half the Nation’s State Attorneys General Could Sign on to Antitrust Inquiry Against Google[…]

Do those retail apps increase customer engagement and sales in all channels? In the US: Yes.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Researchers from Texas A&M University published new research in the INFORMS journal Marketing Science, which shows that retailers’ branded mobile apps are very effective in increasing customer engagement, increasing sales on multiple levels, not just on the retailer’s website, but also in its stores. At the same time, apps increase the rate of returns, although Read more about Do those retail apps increase customer engagement and sales in all channels? In the US: Yes.[…]

Managers rated as highly emotionally intelligent are more ineffective and unpopular, research shows

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Professor Nikos Bozionelos, of the EMLyon Business School, France, and Dr. Sumona Mukhuty, Manchester Metropolitan University, asked staff in the NHS to assess their managers’ emotional intelligence—defined as their level of empathy and their awareness of their own and others’ emotions. The 309 managers were also assessed on the amount of effort they put into Read more about Managers rated as highly emotionally intelligent are more ineffective and unpopular, research shows[…]

SpaceX Says a ‘Bug’ Prevented It From Receiving Warning of Possible ESA Satellite Collision. For the first time ESA had to unexpectedly avoid a satellite constellation.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The European Space Agency was forced to perform a “collision avoidance maneuver” to prevent its Aeolus spacecraft from potentially smashing into one of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites, in what is quickly becoming an all-too-common occurrence. According to SpaceX, it never received the expected alert that a collision was possible. ESA pumped out a series of Read more about SpaceX Says a ‘Bug’ Prevented It From Receiving Warning of Possible ESA Satellite Collision. For the first time ESA had to unexpectedly avoid a satellite constellation.[…]

Mozilla says Firefox won’t defang ad blockers – unlike Google Chrome, which is steadily removing your privacy from 3rd parties

Posted on by Robin Edgar

On Tuesday, Mozilla said it is not planning to change the ad-and-content blocking capabilities of Firefox to match what Google is doing in Chrome. Google’s plan to revise its browser extension APIs, known as Manifest v3, follows from the web giant’s recognition that many of its products and services can be abused by unscrupulous developers. Read more about Mozilla says Firefox won’t defang ad blockers – unlike Google Chrome, which is steadily removing your privacy from 3rd parties[…]

REVEALED: Hundreds of words to avoid using online if you don’t want the government spying on you

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Department of Homeland Security has been forced to release a list of keywords and phrases it uses to monitor social networking sites and online media for signs of terrorist or other threats against the U.S. The intriguing the list includes obvious choices such as ‘attack’, ‘Al Qaeda’, ‘terrorism’ and ‘dirty bomb’ alongside dozens of Read more about REVEALED: Hundreds of words to avoid using online if you don’t want the government spying on you[…]

Scammer Successfully Deepfaked CEO’s Voice To Fool Underling Into Transferring $243,000

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The CEO of an energy firm based in the UK thought he was following his boss’s urgent orders in March when he transferred funds to a third-party. But the request actually came from the AI-assisted voice of a fraudster. The Wall Street Journal reports that the mark believed he was speaking to the CEO of Read more about Scammer Successfully Deepfaked CEO’s Voice To Fool Underling Into Transferring $243,000[…]

A way to repair tooth enamel

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A team of researchers from Zhejiang University and Xiamen University has found a way to repair human tooth enamel. In their paper published in the journal Science Advances, the group describes their process and how well it worked when tested. […] the researchers first created extremely tiny (1.5-nanometer diameter) clusters of calcium phosphate, the main Read more about A way to repair tooth enamel[…]

ESA satellite dodges a “mega constellation” – Musks cluster satellites

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The European Space Agency (ESA) accomplished a first today: moving one of its satellites away from a potential collision with a “mega constellation”. The constellation in question was SpaceX’s Starlink, and the firing of the thrusters of the Aeolus Earth observation satellite was designed to raise the orbit of the spacecraft to allow SpaceX’s satellite Read more about ESA satellite dodges a “mega constellation” – Musks cluster satellites[…]

Nextdoor app full of holes

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Dutch researchers found it easy to download the names and addresses of people in neighbourhoods they weren’t a part of and to discover who was on holidays when. Source: Buurtapp Nextdoor ‘zo lek als een mandje’ – Emerce

up to 2% of all Apple iPhones Hacked, says Google, and Breaks ALL messaging Encryption as well as sending location data

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The potential impact of the latest attack on iPhones is massive, not to mention hugely concerning for every user of Apple’s famous smartphone. That simply visiting a website can lead to your iPhone being hacked silently by some unknown party is worrying enough. But given that, according to Google researchers, it’s possible for the hackers Read more about up to 2% of all Apple iPhones Hacked, says Google, and Breaks ALL messaging Encryption as well as sending location data[…]

Some of The World’s Most-Cited Scientists Have Been Citing Themselves Through Citation Farms

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A new study has revealed an unsettling truth about the citation metrics that are commonly used to gauge scientists’ level of impact and influence in their respective fields of research. Citation metrics indicate how often a scientist’s research output is formally referenced by colleagues in the footnotes of their own papers – but a comprehensive Read more about Some of The World’s Most-Cited Scientists Have Been Citing Themselves Through Citation Farms[…]