Listen to "Bottom Line IT" every week on The Michigan Business Network. We break down the technobabble by providing news, practical tips, and answers to your most pressing technology questions. We talk about how technology can be used to mitigate risks, reduce costs, increase efficiency, and produce profits for businesses.
Segment 1:
Facebook ordered to stop tracking in Belgium
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-43091087
A Belgian court has ruled that Facebook broke privacy laws by using cookies on third-party website. Consequently the court rule that Facebook must delete all data it gathered on people who did not use Facebook. The court will levy fines against Facebook until it complies with Belgian privacy laws. Facebook will appeal the verdict.
Segment 2:
5G to bring more performance, less pizazz
https://www.cnet.com/news/5g-is-less-sexy-sizzle-more-conversations-at-mwc-2018-barcelona/
The arrival of 5G technology has consumers chomping at the bit, but… We’ll have to wait until the first 5G device until later this year. The technology is in the testing phase, where engineers are looking for bugs and trying to fix them. T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray said that ongoing talks regarding 5G will center around “more than just speed,” and will include discussions about spectrum and applications for IoT.
Segment 3:
Cisco to Return $67 Billion in Profit to the U.S.
http://money.cnn.com/2018/02/15/technology/cisco-overseas-cash-tax-law/index.html
Cisco plans to relocate $67 billion in foreign profits to the U.S. in the coming months. Cisco states says that it will pass the majority ($44 Billion) of the profit onto its shareholders by way of share buybacks and higher dividends. The move mirrors what critics of the new U.S. tax plan stated companies would do upon returning profits to home, reward shareholders rather than use the money for hiring and investment. This opposed to Apple, who upon moving foreign profits home promised to pay $38 Billion in taxes, while adding 20,000 jobs, and investing $30 Billion in U.S. facilities.
Segment 4:
White House Blames Russia for NotPetya
https://www.wired.com/story/white-house-russia-notpetya-attribution/
Almost eight months after NotPetya crippled the internet, the White House has finally acknowledged the attack. Furthermore, the White House went on to blame Russia and stated that the cyberattack will be met with international consequences.
Segment 5:
Russian Meddlers Indicted
https://www.wired.com/story/mueller-indictment-russia-attack-us-democracy/
Robert Mueller’s special council indicted 13 Russian nationals and three Russian organizations for their involvement in illegally influencing the US presidential campaign. The indictment is a first as it accuses America’s adversary Russia of using social media and other means to influence US voters by spreading misinformation.
Segment 6 – Bottom Line Security:
Social Security Numbers of Cali state workers exposed in breach
http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/the-state-worker/article200628124.html
SSNs for thousands of state employees and contractors were exposed due to a data breach occurring at the Department of Fish and Wildlife, according to a memo the department sent to its own workers this week. The breach was uncovered on Dec 22nd, but the breach was not disclosed until this week. The memo goes on to state that a former state employee downloaded the data to a device and took the records outside of the internal network.
