10.8.2015
Good to Know: We all love to post pics of our wonderful travels. Maybe next time stick to posting pictures of breathtaking landscapes and not of your actual boarding pass. We hear it’s not that hard for savvy people to extract information from your ticket’s barcode (e.g., full name, origin and destination cities, frequent flyer number, etc). Don’t say we never told you.
THE SKINNY
Giving ‘Em The Heisman…
When it comes to their daily contests, fantasy sports websites FanDuel, Inc. and DraftKings, Inc just said access denied to their employees wanting to use either site to get their bets on for cash money.
When SomeOne (ALLEGEDLY) Ruins It For Everyone …
The companies’ decision is in response to the fall out that ensued after DraftKings employee Ethan Haskell went online and self-reported that he prematurely released lineup data in advance of NFL games. Haskell later pulled in $350K after betting on competitor FanDuel’s site that same week. Everyone (except for DraftKings and FanDuel) yelled “flag on the play.” Now, employees with both companies are banned from playing fantasy for money on either site. We wonder how the other employees feel about this …
clean Up On Aisle Three…
FanDuel and DraftKings’s current mood: damage control (especially after the New York Attorney General fired off a letter to the companies requesting information about the case). Both companies fully admit that they know how bad all of this looks and are making moves to fix the situation. FanDuel recruited former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey to lead an internal review of company practices and make recommendations on ways to tighten up their ship. It’s also looking to set up an advisory board led by Michael Garcia, former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York who knows a thing or two about sports scandals. Garcia was a top investigator for FIFA. DraftKings put together its own legal team to looking into “one of their employees” but aren’t naming names.
What Else Is Going On?
Say What You Wanna Say …
If it’s a negative comment about Facebook’s Internet.org initiative that seeks to bring Internet access to emerging markets via a basic mobile app, the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg isn’t listening. The initiative is offering an app to Internet users in emerging markets called “Free Basics,” which includes select services like Facebook and Wikipedia. Some skeptics say that this goes against net neutrality – the idea that all Internet traffic should be treated equally and that Internet users should have access to all content they want to reach. The Zuck spoke on a Vanity Fair panel and had a few choice words to defend his company’s work. He said that net neutrality is really about price discrimination and not about access. Zuckerberg says research shows that Web access can decrease poverty levels so he just wants people in those markets to understand the Internet’s value.
Change of Plans…
Amazon-rival Jet.com just did an about face. The newcomer e-commerce site burst onto the scene with a different business model by charging peeps $50 for membership. The fees were supposed to be its revenue generator. More specifically, membership fees were intended to help the company undercut Amazon’s pricing within the next five years. Jet founder Marc Lore said they were just kidding with the fees. The company’s merchant’s weren’t into their way of doing business so changes had to be made, which means customers will see less of a discount in purchases. Questions are being raised about Jet’s ability to compete with Amazon given this move. Lore doesn’t seemed worried. He says the company is working on alternative solutions and is exploring new partnerships with potential luxury manufacturers.
Stranger Danger …
Security firm Dell SecureWorks wants LinkedIn users to be careful whose connection requests they accept. The firm just put out a report on 25 fake LinkedIn profiles. Turns out these profiles likely belonged to Iranian hackers looking to bamboozle people into revealing personal information about themselves (FYI the technical term for this is “social engineering”). Dell SecureWorks say that these hackers are mostly portrayed as people in the Middle East in the telecom or defense industry. LinkedIn has since taken down the fake profiles. In more hacker-related news, LoopPay – a company with ties to Samsung – has been breached. Reports indicate that Chinese hackers are to blame. Samsung says there’s no evidence indicating that its own systems have been compromised.
The Streets Are Talkin’
Amazon is getting crafty and taking on Etsy with its new online arts and crafts marketplace called Handmade at Amazon.
A few weeks back Mark Zuckerberg put the kibosh on rumors about a ‘dislike’ button. Facebook is said to be testing a new “reactions” feature consisting of a wide range of emoticons to supplement the ‘like’ button.
Alphabet (formerly known as Google) made its official debut this week with a fresh domain name ABC.xyz. It also owns abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com. True story.
Exceptions can be made. Crowdfunding platform Kickstarter doesn’t usually permit crowdsourcing funds for charity. But, it broke rank for Syrian refugees and teamed up with the White House to raise $1 million.