Featured Article – Innovations/Gamechangers to Expect in 2020

Posted on February 7, 2020 by Andy Miller

This is the time of year for looking ahead to how technology could be affecting and hopefully, enhancing our lives over the coming year and here is a selection of just some of the possible game-changing technological innovations that could be making an impact in 2020.

5G Technologies

Technology and communications commentators are saying that 5G’s increased bandwidth and speed, along with other benefits could start to improve file sharing and other communication capabilities for businesses this year (in the geographical areas where it’s deployed).

Quantum Technologies

Back in October, we heard about the paper, published in the journal Nature, that told how scientists may have reached quantum supremacy, whereby a quantum computer can now to do something significant that a classical computer can’t. With Google’s Sycamore chip (54-qubit processor), an algorithm output that would take 10,000 years using a classical computer only took 200 seconds, and heralded greater potentially game-changing developments this year and beyond. With results from computing power of this kind, many hitherto extremely challenging problems could be solved quickly across a range of industries, and this is likely to attract much more investment in Quantum technologies in 2020.

AI and Health

The possibilities for AI are still being explored, but thanks to start-ups like Imagen which builds AI software for the medical field e.g. OsteoDetect which uses algorithms to scan X-ray images for common wrist bone fractures, and AI software developed by Good Health researchers (in conjunction with other key partners) which has proven to be more accurate at detecting and diagnosing breast cancer than expert human radiologists, AI could be finding more positive ways to impact upon healthcare in 2020 and beyond.

Although AI has promise in so many areas, including health, one of the predicted downsides of AI developments for workers is that the automation that it brings could really start to replace many more human jobs in 2020.

Neural Interfaces

There are many predictions of how commercial applications of neural interfaces may bridge the gap between humans and computers, perhaps allowing people to think instructions to computers. One of the key challenges is, of course, that neural communications are both chemical and electrical, but this didn’t stop head of SpaceX and Tesla, Elon Musk, announcing in July last year that brain implants (‘Neuralink’) that can link directly to devices could be a reality within a year i.e. by the end of 2020. It remains to be seen, however, how much progress is made this year, but the idea that a near-instantaneous, wireless communication between brain and computer via an implant is that human brains could be offered a kind of ‘upgrade’ to enable them to keep up with and compete with AI.

Electric Vehicle Explosion

The many technologies (and government subsidies in some countries) that have led to a commitment by big car manufacturers to the production of electric vehicles mean that sales are predicted to rise 35 per cent in the first nine months of 2020. More electric cars being produced and purchased in developed countries could herald game-changing results e.g. lessening the negative environmental impact of cars.

One other innovation that could help boost the growth of electric cars is a breakthrough in battery technology, such as that announced by Tesla’s head of battery research and university academic Jeff Danh, who has published a paper about a battery that could last a million miles without losing capacity.

Display Screen Technology

Advances in technologies used for display-screen e.g. for phones are likely to prove game-changers in their industries. With new screens becoming ultra-thin LEDs and, therefore, able to be added as computational surfaces to many different surfaces and objects e.g. walls and mirrors, and with advances like foldable screens e.g. Microsoft’s Surface Neo, our environment and communications tools could see some real changes in 2020.

Translation

Technology for mobile devices, AI, and language have converged to create translation apps such as Google’s interpreter mode real-time translator that’s just been rolled out for Assistant-enabled Android and iOS phones worldwide. Having a reliable tool to hand that enables back and forth conversation with someone speaking a foreign language (and is loaded with 44 languages) could be a game-changer for business and personal travel in 2020.

Augmented Reality

Several tech commentators are predicting (perhaps optimistically) that 2020 could be the year that reliable Augmented Reality glasses find their way onto the market e.g. perhaps from Apple and could see large-scale adoption.

Looking Ahead

2020, therefore, holds a great deal of promise in terms of how different existing and some new technologies and developments combined in new products and services could become game-changers that drive positive benefits for businesses and individual users alike.

Tracking For People Who Lose Things

Posted on February 7, 2020 by Andy Miller

Google Assistant is now supporting Tile’s Bluetooth tracker which means that Tile customers can use a simple voice command to enlist the help of Google Assistant in finding their lost keys, wallet, TV remote control and more.

What Is Tile?

Tile uses Bluetooth and a phone app to locate physical ‘Tile’ tracking devices of different sizes which can be attached to keyrings, bags, slipped into wallets, or even attached to a dog’s collar. The tile app on the user’s smartphone can then be used to ring a Tile (the physical tracker that’s attached to e.g. your keyring) if it’s nearby (the Tile gives off a tone so it can be found), and by tapping the ‘Find’ button in the app, the item that has the Tile tracker attached can then be located.

If an item has been genuinely lost outside of the house, Tile can also be used to locate the item on a map which shows the last time and place that the item was with the used, and users who can’t locate their item this way can also ask the wider Tile community to anonymously help them find it.

Tile also has partnerships with manufacturers so that its technology is already built-in to items e.g. Sennheiser earphones.

Tile is reported to have already sold more than 22 million devices worldwide in 195 countries with its system being used to find 6 million items every day.

Google Assistant

The support from Google Assistant (via Nest devices – the Nest Mini or Nest Hub) means that, rather than opening a Tile app on their phone to locate their missing items, users can simply ask the Google Assistant where their item is, and/or ask the Google Assistant to ring their missing item. This adds an extra layer of convenience for Tile and Google Assistant users.

Competition From Apple

The move to partner with Google gives Tile a better opportunity to fend off likely competition from Apple, which is reported to be on the verge of releasing its own item location tracking system.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

For Tile, teaming up with Google is a very important strategic move helping it to add extra convenience and a powerful brand endorsement to its services, strengthen its current competitive edge, and give it more of a chance to fight off competition from Apple when it enters the market (soon) with a similar service.

For Google, this is a chance to add another value-adding feature to its digital assistant’s services, thereby helping it compete in another small way with competitors like Amazon.

For users of Tile, and future users of Tile who have a Google Nest device, this offers an even more convenient and fast way of using Tile’s services.

WhatsApp Ceases Support For More Old Phone Operating Systems

Posted on February 7, 2020 by Andy Miller

WhatsApp has announced that its messaging app will no longer work on outdated operating systems, which is a change that could affect millions of smartphone users.

Android versions 2.3.7 and Older, iOS 8 and Older

The change, which took place on February 1, means that WhatsApp has ended support for Android operating system versions 2.3.7 and older and iOS 8 meaning that users of WhatsApp who have those operating systems on their smartphones will no longer be able to create new accounts or to re-verify existing accounts. Although these users will still be able to use WhatsApp on their phones, WhatsApp has warned that because it has no plans to continue developing for the old operating systems, some features may stop functioning at any time.

Why?

The change is consistent with Facebook-owned app’s strategy of withdrawing support for older systems and older devices as it did back in 2016 (smartphones running older versions of Android, iOS, Windows Phone + devices running Android 2.2 Froyo, Windows Phone 7 and older versions, and iOS 6 and older versions), and when WhatsApp withdrew support for Windows phones on 31 December 2019.

For several years now, WhatsApp has made no secret of wanting to maintain the integrity of its end-to-end encrypted messaging service, making changes that will ensure that new features can be added that will keep the service competitive, maintain feature parity across different systems and devices, and focus on the operating systems that it believes that the majority of its customers in its main markets now use.

Security & Privacy?

This also means that, since there will no longer be updates for older operating systems, this could lead to privacy and security risks for those who continue using older operating systems.

What Now?

Users who have a smartphone with an older operating system can update the operating system, or upgrade to a newer smartphone with model in order to ensure that they can continue using WhatsApp.

The WhatsApp messaging service can also now be accessed through the desktop by syncing with a user’s phone.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

WhatsApp is used by many businesses for general communication and chat, groups and sending pictures, and for those business users who still have an older smartphone operating system, this change may be another reminder that the perhaps overdue time to upgrade is at hand. Some critics, however, have pointed to the fact that the move may have more of a negative effect on those WhatsApp users in growth markets e.g. Asia and Africa where many older devices and operating systems are still in use.

For WhatsApp, this move is a way to stay current and competitive in its core markets and to ensure that it can give itself the scope to offer new features that will keep users loyal and engaged with and committed to the app.

Business Leaders Lack Vital Digital Skills Says OU Survey

Posted on February 7, 2020 by Andy Miller

The Open University’s new ‘Leading in a Digital Age’ report highlights a link between improved business performance and leaders who are equipped, through technology training, to manage digital change.

Investing In Digital Skills Training

The latest version of the annual report, which bases its findings on a survey of 950 CTOs and senior leaders within UK organisations concludes that leaders who invested in digital skills training are experiencing improved productivity (56 per cent), greater employee engagement (55 per cent), enhanced agility, and vitally, increased profit.

The flipside, highlighted in the same survey, is that almost half (47 per cent) of those business leaders surveyed thought they lacked the tech skills to manage in the digital age, and more than three-quarters of them acknowledge that they could benefit from more digital training.

Key Point

The key point revealed by the OU survey and report is that the development of digital skills in businesses are led from the top and that those businesses that invest in learning and development of digital skills are likely to be more able to take advantage of opportunities in what could now be described as a ‘digital age’.

Skills Shortages

The report acknowledges the digital skills shortages that UK businesses and organisations face (63 per cent of senior business leaders report a skills shortage for their organisation) and the report identifies a regional divide in those companies reporting skills shortages – more employers in the South and particularly the South West are finding that skills are in short supply and reporting that recruitment for digital roles takes longer.

One likely contributing factor to some geographical/regional divides in skills shortages and difficulty in recruiting for tech roles in those areas may be the spending, per area, on addressing those skills shortages. For example, London is reported to have spent (in 2019) £1.4 billion (the equivalent of £30,470 per organisation), while the North East spent the least (£172.2 million), and South East spent only £10,260 per organisation.

Factors Affecting The Skills Shortage

The OU report identifies several key factors that appear to be affecting the skills shortage and the investment that may be needed to address those skills shortages. These include the uncertainty over Brexit, increased competition, an ageing population, the speed and scope of the current ‘digital revolution’, and a lack of diversity.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Bearing in mind that the OU, whose survey and report this was, is a supplier of skills training, the report, nonetheless, makes some relevant and important points. For many businesses, for example, managers and owners are most likely to the be the ones with the most integrated picture of the business and its aims, and if they had better digital skills and awareness they may be more likely to identify opportunities, and more likely to promote and invest in digital skills training within their organisation that could be integral to their organisation being able to take advantage of those opportunities.

The tech skills shortage in the UK is, unfortunately, not new and is not down to just businesses alone to solve the skills gap challenge. The government, the education system and businesses need to find ways to work together to develop a base of digital skills in the UK population and to make sure that the whole tech ecosystem finds effective ways to address the skills gap and keep the UK’s tech industries and business attractive and competitive. As highlighted in the OU report, apprenticeships may be one more integrated way to help bridge skills shortages.

Featured Article – Proposed New UK Law To Cover IoT Security

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Andy Miller

The UK government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), has announced that it will soon be preparing new legislation to enforce new standards that will protect users of IoT devices from known hacking and spying risks.

IoT Household Gadgets

This commitment to legislate leads on from last year’s proposal by then Digital Minister Margot James and follows a seven-month consultation with GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre, and with stakeholders including manufacturers, retailers, and academics.

The proposed new legislation will improve digital protection for users of a growing number of smart household devices (devices with an Internet connection) that are broadly grouped together as the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT). These gadgets, of which there is an estimated 14 billion+ worldwide (Gartner), include kitchen appliances and gadgets, connected TVs, smart speakers, home security cameras, baby monitors and more.

In business settings, IoT devices can include elevators, doors, or whole heating and fire safety systems in office buildings.

What Are The Risks?

The risks are that the Internet connection in IoT devices can, if adequate security measures are not in place, provide a way in for hackers to steal personal data, spy on users in their own homes, or remotely take control of devices in order to misuse them.

Default Passwords and Link To Major Utilities

The main security issue of many of these devices is that they have pre-set, default unchangeable passwords, and once these passwords have been discovered by cyber-criminals, the IoT devices are wide open to being tampered with and misused.

Also, IoT devices are deployed in many systems that link to and are supplied by major utilities e.g. smart meters in homes. This means that a large-scale attack on these IoT systems could affect the economy.

Examples

Real-life examples of the kind of IoT hacking that the new legislation will seek to prevent include:

– Hackers talking to a young girl in her bedroom via a ‘Ring’ home security camera (Mississippi, December 2019). In the same month, a Florida family were subjected to vocal, racial abuse in their own home and subjected to a loud alarm blast after a hacker took over their ‘Ring’ security system without permission.

– In May 2018, A US woman reported that a private home conversation had been recorded by her Amazon’s voice assistant, and then sent it to a random phone contact who happened to be her husband’s employee.

– Back in 2017, researchers discovered that a sex toy with an in-built camera could also be hacked.

– In October 2016, the ‘Mirai’ attack used thousands of household IoT devices as a botnet to launch an online distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack (on the DNS service ‘Dyn’) with global consequences.

New Legislation

The proposed new legislation will be intended to put pressure on manufacturers to ensure that:

– All internet-enabled devices have a unique password and not a default one.

– There is a public point of contact for the reporting of any vulnerabilities in IoT products.

– The minimum length of time that a device will receive security updates is clearly stated.

Challenges

Even though legislation could make manufacturers try harder to make IoT devices more secure, technical experts and commentators have pointed out that there are many challenges to making internet-enabled/smart devices secure because:

Adding security to household internet-enabled ‘commodity’ items costs money. This would have to be passed on to the customer in higher prices, but this would mean that the price would not be competitive. Therefore, it may be that security is being sacrificed to keep costs down-sell now and worry about security later.
Even if there is a security problem in a device, the firmware (the device’s software) is not always easy to update. There are also costs involved in doing so which manufacturers of lower-end devices may not be willing to incur.
With devices which are typically infrequent and long-lasting purchases e.g. white goods, we tend to keep them until they stop working, and we are unlikely to replace them because they have a security vulnerability that is not fully understood. As such, these devices are likely to remain available to be used by cyber-criminals for a long time.

Looking Ahead

Introducing legislation that only requires manufacturers to make relatively simple changes to make sure that smart devices come with unique passwords and are adequately labelled with safety and contact information sounds as though it shouldn’t be too costly or difficult. The pressure of having to display a label, by law, that indicates how safe the item is, could provide that extra motivation for manufacturers to make the changes and could be very helpful for security-conscious consumers.

The motivation for manufacturers to make the changes to the IoT devices will be even greater if faced with the prospect of retailers eventually being barred from selling products that don’t have a label, as was originally planned for the proposed legislation.

The hope from cyber-security experts and commentators is that the proposed new legislation won’t be watered down before it becomes law.

Life After End-of-Life For Windows 7 Updates

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Andy Miller

Pressure from die-hard and disgruntled Windows 7 users may have been a factor in Microsoft issuing a second update to its old Windows 7 Operating System, only two weeks after the official end-of-life date of Wednesday 14 January.

(Almost) No More Support

Microsoft had already made many announcements that support for its Windows 7 Operating system and Windows Server 2008 would (and we thought, did) formally and finally end on 14 January as part of the final push to move users over to the SaaS Windows 10 OS. There are still opportunities for those with Windows Virtual Desktop to get an extra three years of extended support (of critical and important security updates) as part of that package, and for customers with active Software Assurance to get ‘Extended Security Updates’ for subscription licenses for 75% of the on-premises annual license cost.

First of the ‘Afterlife’ Updates

The first of the two surprise updates to be issued, just for extended security updates (ESU) users, after the end of support was a patch to fix a wallpaper issue, whereby a blank screen was being shown on Windows re-start instead of the stretch option for the background desktop for some users. Comments by some disgruntled users on social media may have contributed to Microsoft releasing an update to fix the issue.

The Second Update

A second update announced by Microsoft really relates to an extension of the same issue. This time, Microsoft says it’s working on a fix to this issue for all, and not just for those who subscribed to its ESU program. On Microsoft’s Support pages it says that an update to resolve the issue will be released to all customers running Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1.

In the meantime, Microsoft suggests that customers can mitigate the issue either by setting their custom image to an option other than Stretch, e.g. Fill, Fit, Tile, or Centre, or customers can choose a custom wallpaper that matches the resolution of their desktop.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Even though the widely publicised end of support date for Windows 7 has been and gone, it should be remembered that there are an estimated 40 million people still using Windows 7 which means there is no shortage of people to complain publicly, via social media when things go wrong. Microsoft is, therefore, in that difficult period before users are unsupported before they finally switch to Windows 10 where there is likely to be more bad publicity to come for Microsoft as more issues start to affect the remaining Windows 7 users.

There is also now the very real risk that Windows 7 will be targeted more by cybercriminals, leaving those who still use it in a much more vulnerable position. At least in the case of the recent updates, Microsoft has been seen to do something beyond the call of duty to help users after the date that it officially ended support, although it’s unlikely that Microsoft will not make a habit of doing so in future.

Police Images of Serious Offenders Reportedly Shared With Private Landlord For Facial Recognition Trial

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Andy Miller

There have been calls for government intervention after it was alleged that South Yorkshire Police shared its images of serious offenders with a private landlord (Meadowhall shopping centre in Sheffield) as part of a live facial recognition trial.

The Facial Trial

The alleged details of the image-sharing for the trial were brought to the attention of the public by the BBC radio programme File on 4, and by privacy group Big Brother Watch.

It has been reported that the Meadowhall shopping centre’s facial recognition trial ran for four weeks between January and March 2018 and that no signs warning visitors that facial recognition was in use were displayed. The owner of Meadowhall shopping centre is reported as saying (last August) that the data from the facial recognition trial was “deleted immediately” after the trial ended. It has also been reported that the police have confirmed that they supported the trial.

Questions

The disclosure has prompted some commentators to question not only the ethical and legal perspective of not just holding public facial recognition trials without displaying signs but also of the police allegedly sharing photos of criminals (presumably from their own records) with a private landlord.

The UK Home Office’s Surveillance Camera Code of Practice, however, does appear to support the use of facial recognition or other biometric characteristic recognition systems if their use is “clearly justified and proportionate.”

Other Shopping Centres

Other facial recognition trials in shopping centres and public shopping areas have been met with a negative response too. For example, the halting of a trial at the Trafford Centre shopping mall in Manchester in 2018, and with the Kings Cross facial recognition trial (between May 2016 and March 2018) which is still the subject of an ICO investigation.

Met Rolling Out Facial Recognition Anyway

Meanwhile, and despite a warning from Elizabeth Denham, the UK’s Information Commissioner, back in November, the Metropolitan Police has announced it will be going ahead with its plans to use live facial recognition cameras on an operational basis for the first time on London’s streets to find suspects wanted for serious or violent crime. Also, it has been reported that South Wales Police will be going ahead in the Spring with a trial of body-worn facial recognition cameras.

EU – No Ban

Even though many privacy campaigners were hoping that the EC would push for a ban on the use of facial recognition in public spaces for up to five years while new regulations for its use are put in place, Reuters has reported that The European Union has now scrapped any possibility of a ban on facial recognition technology in public spaces.

Facebook Pays

Meanwhile, Facebook has just announced that it will pay £421m to a group of Facebook users in Illinois, who argued that its facial recognition tool violated the state’s privacy laws.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Most people would accept that facial recognition could be a helpful tool in fighting crime, saving costs, and catching known criminals more quickly and that this would be of benefit to businesses and individuals. The challenge, however, is that despite ICO investigations and calls for caution, and despite problems that the technology is known to have e.g. being inaccurate and showing a bias (being better at identifying white and male faces), not to mention its impact on privacy, the police appear to be pushing ahead with its use anyway. For privacy campaigners and others, this may give the impression that their real concerns (many of which are shared by the ICO) are being pushed aside in an apparent rush to get the technology rolled out. It appears to many that the use of the technology is happening before any of the major problems with it have been resolved and before there has been a proper debate or the introduction of an up-to-date statutory law and code of practice for the technology.

Avast Anti-Virus Is To Close Subsidiary Jumpshot After Browsing Data Selling Privacy Concerns

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Andy Miller

Avast, the Anti-virus company, has announced that it will not be providing any more data to, and will be commencing “a wind down” of its subsidiary Jumpshot Inc after a report that it was selling supposedly anonymised data to advertiser third parties that could be linked to individuals.

Jumpshot Inc.

Jumpshot Inc, founded in 2010, purchased by Avast in 2013, and operated as a data company since 2015 essentially organises and sells packaged data, that has been gathered from Avast, to enterprise clients and marketers as marketing intelligence.

Avast anti-virus incorporates a plugin that has, until now, enabled subsidiary Junpshot to scrape/gain access to that data which Jumpshot could sell to (mainly bigger) third party buyers so that they can learn what consumers are buying and where thereby helping with targeting their advertising.

Avast is reported to have access to data from 100 million devices, including PCs and phones.

Investigation Findings

The reason why Avast has, very quickly, decided to ‘wind down’ i.e. close Jumpshot is that the report of an investigation by Motherboard and PCMag revealed that Avast appeared to be harvesting users’ browser histories with the promise (to those who opted-in to data sharing) that the data would be ‘de-identified,’ ( to protect user privacy), whereas what actually appeared to be happening was that the data, which was being sold to third parties, could be linked back to people’s real identities, thereby potentially exposing every click and search they made.

When De-Identification Fails

As reported by PCMag, the inclusion of timestamp information and persistent device IDs with the collected URLs of user clicks, in this case, could, in fact, be analysed to expose someone’s identity. This could, in theory, mean that the data taken from Avast and supplied via subsidiary Jumpshot to third parties may not be de-identified, and could, therefore, pose a privacy risk to those Avast users.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

As an anti-virus company, security and privacy are essential elements of Avast’s products and customer trust is vital to its brand and its image. Some users may be surprised that their supposedly ‘de-identified’ data was being sold to third parties anyway, but with a now widely-reported privacy risk of this kind and the potential damage that it could do to Avast’s brand and reputation, it is perhaps no surprise that is has acted quickly in closing Jumphot and distancing itself from what was happening. As Avast says in its announcement about the impending closure of Jumpshot (with the loss of many jobs) “The bottom line is that any practices that jeopardize user trust are unacceptable to Avast”. PCMag has reported that it has been informed by Avast that the company will no longer be using any data from the browser extensions for any other purpose than the core security engine.

Tech Tip – Automatic Back-Up

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Andy Miller

Keeping a back up of your important folders is vital and you can easily set OneDrive in Windows 10 to make automatic back-ups. Here’s how:

– On the right-hand side of the taskbar, select OneDrive > More > Settings.

– On the AutoSave tab, select ‘Update Folders’ and select the folders that you’d like to automatically back up (sync).

– Remember, if you’re working on an important file in Word, for example, you can use the toggle switch (top left) to set AutoSave to ‘On’ so it will be automatically saved to OneDrive.

Miller Solutions Blog

Your IT Provider

Featured Article – Innovations/Gamechangers to Expect in 2020

Tracking For People Who Lose Things

WhatsApp Ceases Support For More Old Phone Operating Systems

Life After End-of-Life For Windows 7 Updates

Tech Tip – Automatic Back-Up