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Volkswagon lawsuits likely to be consolidated

September 30, 2015 Astrid Countee Leave a comment Business, Court, Economy, Ethics, Legal News

Volkswagon has been in the news lately because of a scandal involving software used to trick emissions tests on diesel vehicles. The software was rigged to allow their diesel vehicles to pass their emissions test even though the emissions from the vehicles are well above the standard. Immediately following the news, the US has issued a recall for the vehicles, as well as a federal probe to find out what the company knew and when. In the meantime, lawsuits are being filed all around the country.

Robert Clifford, a prominent plantiff lawyer, expects a consolidation of lawsuits in the near future. Clifford has held a number of leadership roles in the American Bar Association and filed a suit against Volkswagen. “No doubt about it, there will be an MDL [multi-district litigation] here,” said Clifford. An overview done by the Wall Street Journal further confirms that laywers are looking to consolidate the lawsuits against Volkswagon.

Amie Parsons, a real estate agent in Dallas, recently filed lawsuit against Volkswagon. Parsons states that Volkswagon’s dishonesty seriously affects her bottom line as a real estate agent. Her attorney, Charles “Trey” Branham, spoke to a newspaper on her behalf. He stated that his client drives people around everyday for her profession, and [the Volkswagon scandal] causes her a big problem. Branham goes on to say “…it is something that affects real people on a daily basis, and it is a problem for them, not to mention the problem of putting 40 times the legal limit of pollution into the air.”

Article via ABAJournal, 29 September 2015

Photo: VW Kombi via Long Road Photography [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

Hacking Team’s clientele- corrupt governments

September 4, 2015 Abby Shulman Leave a comment Cybercrime, Economy, Government, Human Rights, Justice, News, Privacy, Security, Tech

In July of 2015, 400 gigabytes of documents outlining the dealings of spyware company Hacking Team were released. The for-profit surveillance firm was found to work with oppressive regimes across the globe, including those of Russia, Ethiopia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan. Also benefiting from the company’s exploitive surveillance tools is the US Bureau of Investigation, which has spent $775,000 on Hacking Team tools since 2011.

Hacking Team’s abilities are expansive. The firm can steal pre-encrypted data and passwords typed in Web browsers, as well as activate the microphone and camera on a target device. Users of Google Play and Apple stores may also be activating surveillance malware coded by Hacking Team.

Privacy and human rights advocates are outraged by the lack of legislation regulating firms like Hacking Team and its rival Gamma International, but regulation can be tricky. Badly drafted export controls could create red tape for journalists to circumvent when trying to access communications mechanisms or antivirus software. Syrian activists, for example, have cited American export controls as one of the leading obstacles of installing anti-surveillance software on phones and computers to protect their communications from the Assad regime.

The discussion is subtle, as it must take into account the personal liberties of global citizens, the dynamic nature of the technology industry, and the diverse interests of country governments.

Article via Committee to Protect Journalists, July 13, 2015

Photo: On the Phone via Artform Canada [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

Uber driver not considered a contractor; could set precedent

June 19, 2015 Christy Leos Leave a comment Business, Court, Economy, Finance, Human Rights, News

California’s labor commission has decided that one of Uber’s drivers is an employee and not an independent contractor. Uber, a ride-hailing service and popular app, may have to change its business model in the state. While the ruling was made in March, it has now become public due to Uber filing an appeal.

Classifying the drivers as contractors has allowed Uber to avoid paying for Social Security tax, paid sick days, health insurance, car maintenance and gas along with other expenses. Uber will be obligated to pay for these expenses if their drivers are defined as employees, and the effects could be felt by customers as well as set a precedent for future lawsuits.

Article via CNET, 17 June 2015

Photo: GREAT experience with @Uber via Anne Ruthmann [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

Intel dedicates $125 million fund to startups run by minorities and women

June 11, 2015 Christy Leos Leave a comment Business, Economy, News, Tech

Intel Capital has dedicated $125 million to helping diverse startups, a measure that has been developing since last December. According to Intel CEO Brian Krzanich, the company has hired more than double the number of diverse candidates this year.

Lisa Lambert, VP and Managing Director at Intel Capital, said that the initiative is not a social program and that minorities and women are ready to lead. “What we’re convinced of is, as you seek out diverse points of view, you’re going to produce better returns. All the studies show that.”

Diversity statistics in the tech industry(according to Lambert):

Only 15 percent of venture capital-backed companies in the U.S. have a executive team with a woman
Less than one percent of Silicon Valley startups were created by Latino or African American entrepreneurs
Eight percent of tech founders are women

“The industry, as a whole, has some improvement to make,” she said.

Some of the startups selected by the fund include Brit+Co, a company with a workforce of more than 80 percent female employees, and CareCloud, a healthcare IT startup which has a workforce that is 50 percent underrepresented minorities and 56 percent female.

Article via CNET, 9 June 2015

Photo: Intel via Morton Lin [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs]

Korea: When Laws Hold Back Tech

April 30, 2015 Christy Leos Leave a comment Economy, Government, News, Security

Having lived in Korea for the past 2 and a half years, I can say that I love this place. It is an amazing culture and a truly amazing country. It also helps that I am an internet junkie, and the service here is unbelievable. I pay 41,000 won per month (around $39.00) for 100mb internet service with no contract. This is truly a place where connectivity is king.

However, I have consistently had one major issue, and that is with online shopping and banking. When I want to go to my bank website, I have to download at least 5 security programs, including keylogging pretection software. These are all designed to keep you safe, and your information secure. Funny, that the only time my information was compromised was when it had nothing to do with e-commerce. These programs also degrade the performance of your computer.

One of the biggest issues I have is that most online shopping websites use ActiveX security from Microsoft. ActiveX is outdated, and really only works well with Internet Explorer. While I have nothing against IE, I do have issue with this,as it inherently limits browser choice. In fact, until about 2 years ago, my (soon-to-be) wife thought Internet Explorer WAS the Internet…

After searching, I found out that Korea passed a law in 1999 to protect consumers that required the use of ActiveX security. I see serious issues with laws such as these, and that is due to the inherent difference in pace between law and technology. The world has moved beyond ActiveX, and South Korea is for once, lagging behind, and this is due to enshrining ActiveX into law. However this will be changing soon.

This April, after months of rumors, the Government has finally announced plans to fix things!! This is wonderful news, however I fear that it has come too late in the game. I wonder if this had any effect on ticket sales for the Incheon Asian games(I had to have my wife order them, because the payment system was exclusively in Korean)?

All I can say is that I am glad that things are moving in the right direction, and that Korean consumers will finally have a choice in browsers.

CIJT: Do you think that it is beneficial to enshrine specific technologies into law? Any ideas on how to have law keep pace with technology?

Source article: BusinessKorea

Photo: ClipDealer GmbH