How did Microsoft Teams block 911 calls on Android?

The story began on November 29th, 2021, with a Reddit post entitled, “Pixel prevented me from calling 911.”

The user described how his phone failed to place a call to 911 as his grandmother was having a stroke, and that the dialer app ended in an unrecoverable state where no further phone calls could be placed. To her credit, the user’s grandmother insisted on having a landline, which the grandson successfully used to summon an ambulance and take her to the hospital.

The incident raised the big question: why did the user’s phone app crash when he tried to call 911?

Google’s official Reddit account quietly pointed the finger to a culprit: Microsoft Teams.

We believe the issue is only present on a small number of devices with the Microsoft Teams app installed when the user is not logged in, and we are currently only aware of one user report related to the occurrence of this bug. We determined that the issue was being caused by unintended interaction between the Microsoft Teams app and the underlying Android operating system.

It is worth mentioning that Penn State’s organizational policy enforces an automatic sign-out for Microsoft Teams after just a few short hours of inactivity, and this issue unknowingly affected the author of this very blog post for months.

The next question: how was Microsoft Teams – or any other app on an Android device, for that matter – able to block a phone call to the most important phone number in the United States and Canada?

The answer, according to Mishaal Rahman, was an integer overflow in the PhoneAccount subsystem, combined with a poor choice on the part of Microsoft to have Teams register itself as a new dialer app every time the app started. The PhoneAccount class used the hashCode function as a tiebreaker between the dozens of identical dialer apps from Teams in order to determine which dialer app on the phone to use to place the call to 911. But when PhoneAccount subtracted those hashes from each other, Rahman said, there is a chance that the resulting difference could be far above or below the acceptable values for an integer – causing an integer overflow and bringing the entire PhoneAccount stack down with it.

Google showed a damning lack of urgency regarding the issue. The time between the original post on Reddit and the reply from Google was nearly ten full days, and Google did not make any effort to spread awareness of the issue beyond their Reddit comment. And although Microsoft released a patch for Teams on December 10th to correct their side of the issue, Google decided that the situation – recognized as a critical denial-of-service vulnerability – was not critical enough to release an update immediately, but rather with the standard January 2022 security update. Not to mention the fact that generations of Android devices, my own phone included, will not be receiving this critical security fix as a result of the hopelessly fragmented Android ecosystem.

In short, Google did not take responsibility for its actions and omissions, and did not treat the situation with the care that it deserved. Real people could have suffered mortal injuries from this vulnerability, and we may never know if anyone else was killed or seriously injured by this bug. Landlines may still prove useful as a redundant way of calling 911, and I will be purchasing an iPhone quite soon, because I cannot in good conscience keep using a phone that is liable not to reach 911 when I need it the most.

Screenshot of a call to 911 placed from the Google Dialer, which helpfully shows the user their current location and coordinates.

The Google dialer helpfully shows the user their current location using Google Maps.

Hurricane Ida Causes Technological Setback in Louisiana

Hurricane Ida was set to hit Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane. Although Ida has been downgraded to a tropical depression, its effects are said to be long-term. The coast is suffering from power outages, flooding, and severe damage. Many cell phone services are out, which blocks access to requesting help in a specific area. The hurricane’s impact on the technology in Louisiana is going to make the next few weeks difficult. AP reported that, “The damage was so extensive that officials warned it could be weeks before the powergrid was repaired”.  There are even reports of people using walkie-talkies since they cannot make phone calls.

Power outages are proving to cause detrimental loss. People no longer know which roads are safe to navigate, which means that citizens are trapped where they are. This also poses an issue of not being able to be located by rescuers, thus people also cannot ask for food or water. The damage to the power grid is said to be disastrous, so the city is now navigating extreme weather without access to modern technology. The impacts on technology prove how much our society relies on these commodities, and without them we are set back decades in times of need.

 

Source:

https://apnews.com/article/hurricane-ida-louisiana-new-orleans-c43c2c68946ceb6100c2239534c6c290

No Strings Attached

When Kanye advised Reebok to take the jump on shoes with no shoe strings, it seems like it was Nike who took it very seriously. (Reference: Kanye’s verse in Run this Town). While Nike’s Fly Ease, shoe range without shoelaces, has been widely popular since its launch in 2015, let’s take a quick look behind its story.

In 2012, a 16-year-old teenage boy, diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, wrote a letter to Nike expressing the discomfort he felt in tying his shoelaces and how he didn’t want to be dependent on others for the same. Nike, being made aware of this situation, won the hearts of people when it introduced Nike’s Fly Ease, an exclusive range of shoes without shoelaces. Although the problem was not entirely solved, you have got to give credit to them for coming up with a possible solution, very similar to the company’s slogan, “Just Do It”.

Fast forward to 2021, Nike who hadn’t stopped working in their lab on the Fly Ease range, surprised the world with their first Hands Free shoe i.e., Nike Go Fly Ease. The first hands free shoe ever made, is now all over the internet with celebrities like Jimmy Fallon sharing their reaction on social media. The shoe works on simple yet intriguing mechanism where you just have to step your feet inside and the shoe locks your feet as you rest your them on your heels. Not every problem can be solved with wires and codes, some just require a simple combination of a lever and fulcrum.

While this may get to be the new trend, it also reflects light on the principles of Nike as a Multi-national Company, who is focusing on the issues faced by people who have physical disabilities. Earlier in 2019, Nike also released Para-Sport Mannequins. It is through gestures like these it gives us a faith and belief that the MNC’s are not all about the money-making model, but are working towards the progress of the human race as a whole. However there still comes a question of affordability. Nike on the other hand is also known for its high prices, the ones that make you think about the hole in your wallet. Should Nike consider to lower the current price of USD$120 ,to serve the very purpose of this shoe? Should other companies try to reengineer the concept of the shoe at a lower price?

While many companies have launched shoes without shoelaces, this idea, is a first in the current phase, which might catch on later in the coming days, but for now Nike has won the race, of the shoe without shoe lace. (Kanye isn’t the only one who can rap about shoes :P).

Source:
Nike Go FlyEase: The Heartwarming Story Behind Nike’s First Hands-Free Shoe (ndtv.com)
Nike Released Para-Sport Mannequins Too, And Here’s Why You Missed It (forbes.com)

Image Source:

Nike Go FlyEase Hands-Free Shoe – Nike News

My Phone, My Rules

 

At a certain point in our lives, we have all wondered how easy life would be if everything in our life was as customizable as a “Subway Sandwich”. Well, I do not know about everyone, but I certainly do get random thoughts like these and it was just when I was going through my news feed a week ago I came across this news where it stated the Lava International (An Indian Multinational Electronics Company) has launched “the world’s first customizable smartphone” where all the essential features of a smart phone such as R.A.M., Cameras, Design, all of it can be customized through a portal as per the consumer’s necessity.

As announced on the recent launch on 7th January, there are a total of “66 combinations” of features for customers to choose from under the new “made to order Z series”. Not only this, but the features can also be upgraded at a later stage. While a few companies have tried to go through with the similar approach, these are usually bulk orders and made on special request whereas Lava International has brought this concept in the market on individual orders “presumably for the first time”. Although the the options are somewhat limited to the basic features, the company would be improving on the same in the near future.

At first it sounds very interesting and convenient for a person who is aware of his/her requirements and can be satisfied with his/her decisions. However, when you look at it from a perspective of a person who has difficulty in selecting the ingredients of a Subway Sandwich, and dwells on it for eternity, it is quite a dilemma. Not only that, speaking on behalf of ‘tech freaks’ who wait for ‘trailers’ and ‘teasers’ hinting on the specs of a new cell phone, it denies them of that surprising element.

No doubt this concept of customizable phones is a new leap in the world of technology and is perfect for people who know just what they require, while the other half struggles with their option. So, are you satisfied with your requirements? Or are you still confused between Parmesan Oregano and Italian Bread?

 

Source:

Lava launches India’s first ‘made-to-order’ phone- Business News (businesstoday.in)

 

The hidden truth about smart speakers

In today’s world, you can spot smart speakers everywhere, in fact, 1 out of every 5 households in the U.S is home to a smart speaker, something which originated in 2013 with the launch of google assistant followed by apple Siri and the most popular amazon “echo”, what makes them so special is their ability to give a response to thousands of commands effortlessly, however, these so-called smart speakers don’t generate output on their own, all they do is transfer your recordings to a database connected to the internet which in turn generates output that is received by your speaker, nothing more than an ordinary microphone connected to the internet, and in the process, your recordings get stored. Interestingly these recordings are not stored temporarily, as assumed by most people, but for an indefinite amount of time or at least until you delete them from your app. Companies consider this data as a modern treasure and in terms of acquiring more of it, they are investing a significant amount of time and money on this tech to make it compatible with all possible devices and also one of the reasons why are they sold so cheap (as little as 10 dollars in the U.S). According to google and amazon, the data is utilized for adds personalization however the information about usage is still vague from a consumer point of view.

The ever rise of smart speakers suggests the arrival of a new age where companies are striving to know everything about you and your surroundings which is somewhat concerning to me about my privacy.
What are your views on this? do you consider this as data theft or is somewhat acceptable to you?

source:http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/oct/09/alexa-are-you-invading-my-privacy-the-dark-side-of-our-voice-assistants

The New PlayStation 5 Could Be Bad For GameStop

GameStop, since being founded almost 36 years ago has been facing lots of financial problems for the past five years which look to be getting even worse during the upcoming holiday season. In the past five years, the stock price has fallen almost 80% with the last peak being $48 in 2015 and currently being $9 with a strong downward trend since.

After being announced last September, the digital Playstation 5 which has the same performance as the normal one, however, lacks a disk player to play physical games has the potential to hurt GameStop. The introduction of the digital PlayStation 5 is just one reason why GameStop which relies on physical games is losing lots of income.

Even GameStop has recognized their faults with their CEO George Sherman saying, “Gaming as an industry could not be stronger … it’s us that needs to pivot. It’s GameStop that needs to make some changes.” If consumers are compelled to purchase the digital PlayStation, GameStop would suffer from a lack of physical game sales. After reporting losses of almost $110 million in the last quarter and the closing of 400-450 stores, it is very clear that GameStop needs to rethink its approach to the upcoming digital consoles. It is projected that GameStop will be fine for the next three to four years before 5G and cloud gaming become more popular and until that point, GameStop will need to “reinvent itself in terms of its positions around physical software.”

The next few years will send GameStop into the ‘Blockbuster era’. Blockbuster LLC closed in 2010 and between 2013-2014, thousands of Blockbuster stores were closed. The primary reason Blockbuster suffered was because of the introduction of Netflix’s online streaming service. In addition to Netflix, Blockbuster failed to adapt to a changing retail environment where streaming media made renting irrelevant.

As the holiday season approaches, do you think GameStop will stay afloat?

 

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/03/tech/ps5-gamestop-digital-cloud/index.html

How easy to exchange our information and make payment by technology

We can not only have conversation online and make new friends with the internet, but also pay for the things without cash. Today, we can do everything more with the technology. Moreover, people scan their QR code to become friend from stranger, student can submit their homework online, we can jump to the web interface.

Image result for scan qr code iphone

The barcode scanner need three parts to work: the illuminator, the decoder, and the sensor/convertor. After we scan the barcode, the code is converted by the sensor into a digital signal. The digital signal is then interpreted by the decoder. The decoder then sends the information to the computer attached to the scanner. Then we can get the information we want. Using various forms of code, we can almost get any information we want in our life. People can just take out their cellphone and scan the code, then we can make the deals.

https://images.app.goo.gl/GEuqoLGySSaU9EJu5

“All About QR Codes and Marketing.” How Do Barcode Scanners Work – QR Code Scanners, www.qrcodestickers.org/about-qr-codes/how-barcode-scanners-work.html.

 

The Bike Sharing Industry is Out to Conquer the World

Many cities around the US and the world are seeing an increase in the bicycle sharing business. This is a public transit system in which bicycles are made available for shared use on a short-term basis for a fee. Customers can pick up a bike from any location and dock it, or drop it off, at specified bike racks. Different services also allow the option to drop it off anywhere for use by someone else, bikes can be traced by a smartphone mapping app that shows bikes available around you.

The growth this industry has seen is due in part to the connectivity and payment options that the user has. People can easily access this service by downloading an application and paying directly from their phone. Many aspects of the business model that allowed companies such as Uber to be successful are seen with dock-less bikes which has attracted many investors, especially in China. Over ninety percent of biggest bike sharing programs began here and are continually looking to expand to countries around the world, creating a billion-dollar industry. This service has become an essential tool that has positively impacted many people around the world.

Image result for bike sharing

One of the primary reasons why investors are attracted to this business is because of the monetization possibilities that come from the collection of data within this system. Data mining in this industry has become a powerful tool for these investors to get their return on investment. The data that is collected comes from GPS chips that transmit location every second. This allows for the tracking of movement among the customers which can be helpful for the company and the city to determine the most popular drop off locations. Cities like South Bend in Indiana can use this data to consider the best places to construct new bike paths and protected bike lanes. Companies can also decide on the best places to build bigger parking spaces, a problem that cities like Amsterdam have seen during the rise of this industry. The most bike friendly city in the world has tested with the idea of banning dock-less bikes as their stations take up useful public space from many pedestrians. However, this problem can be resolved through the collection of data. This could allow for city officials to strategically place hubs for dock-less bikes in order to accommodate both the company and the people who rely on this service. Seattle for example has taken this data into account and used it to their advantage. They optimize their general bike infrastructure spending through this analyzation of data collected by bikes.

The problem of privacy concerns the public, especially during a time of our lives where tech companies don’t have sophisticated privacy laws to follow. Serious implications could arise if hackers for example, get access to this data and are able to collect information about someone’s daily bike route. Some suggest hiring independent auditors to check up on companies to make sure they are safeguarding a rider’s privacy. Facebook for example was created to improve social interactions between people, but over the past year, it is easy to see that its primary purpose is to collect personal data that is then sold to a third party. If the bike sharing industry stays true to its purpose, it will continue to benefit society so long as the data isn’t individualized or sold off to companies for make profit.

Image result for bike sharing

The story of the best fake restaurant

Critics are people who judge the merits of someone’s work professionally and are highly acclaimed. But with the advent of social media, twitter, blogs and micro-blogging sites, and with every one wanting to become a food, art and music blogger. The job of a critic in many ways has faded away, making way for the age of user-created content. Keeping in mind this pattern, I would like to share a story of a man, who led a non-existent restaurant to become London’s number one, on Trip Advisor!

It all started when Oobah Butler, a writer, who wrote fake reviews for restaurants in London at £10 was struck with an epiphany. He thought of venturing a prank, where he would create a fake restaurant, write fake reviews and make it London’s number one, only to call the bluff to Trip advisor’s genuine reviews commitment online.

 

He started by naming his backyard ‘The Shed at Dulwich’ and creating a website and logo, with a menu which serves moods( happiness, love, depressed etc. ) instead of traditional entrees. Further, he called it an appointment only restaurant, and designated the street at the corner as the address, so that no guest could find him. Furthermore, he used bleach tablets, painted sponges, shaving cream and his own foot, to create tasty looking fake food. And personally, it looked really delectable, something even Gordon Ramsay would approve.

The Shed began at 18,149th place on trip advisor, so, he asked all his friends and he himself started writing fake reviews, loads of them.  He gave each of his friends a script to follow, so that they don’t oppose each others reviews, and the restaurant looks genuine. In no time, he was at 10,000!

The prank started getting real scary when he started getting calls of Publicist, advertisers, actors, suppliers and even an airline for advertisement purposes. Further, the phone started ringing 24/7, with thousands of people willing to make reservation. With those people commenting about how they never get a booking, the restaurant created a chain effect, and was now unstoppable. 7 months into the prank, he was now the owner of the best (fake)restaurant in one of the best cities in the world, on one of the most trusted travel sites! Owing all his success to user based content, blogging, internet publicity and some brains.

I bow down to Oobah Butler. 

https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/434gqw/i-made-my-shed-the-top-rated-restaurant-on-tripadvisor

Dawn of the Brain Machine Interface

13 years ago, in 2004, Google introduced the idea of a brain implant that could read your thoughts and answer a question you were thinking of, and they received a lot of criticism over this. However, this concept is no longer science fiction. In April, Regina Dugan announced that Facebook is developing a “Brain Machine Interface (BMI) project.” The concept behind this system is to transfer brain signals to text, effectively “eliminate[ing] the screen by communicating through your skin.” Non-invasive optical light sensors will analyze the neurosignature of a word that the user consciously directs to the “pre-speech” region of the brain. Then the word is produced on a computer screen or file, at a rate of 100 words per minute.

Bryan Johnson, an entrepreneur who founded a company called Kernel, is also developing a BMI. His will be a tiny chip that would work as a “neuroprosthetic” by changing the way neurons signal each other. Initially this was intended for dementia patients, though ultimately, he believes it will be used in healthy brains to accelerate our cognitions as we have been doing with AI.

Elon Musk also has a BMI idea of his own. He calls it Neuralink. Again, this was initially designed for people with brain impairments, but Musk believes everyone will want one. Musk views this technology as a way to compete with AI. He also claims that we are “already kind of cyborgs.” Highlighting the way we are almost merged with our phones and laptops in many ways.

Dugan understands that people will be hesitant and uncomfortable with this idea, but firmly believes that their intentions are pure, to improve the lives of others. She also assures that there will be an ethics framework to protect privacy and prevent misuse.

The author of this article presents two possible outcomes of technology like this. The first being the potential damage this could cause to society. The author quotes Bob Dylan, “If my thought-dreams could be seen/They’d probably put my head in a guillotine.” This quote poses the problem that if our thoughts can be read we could create a society that can judge and punish people for what goes on in their minds. However, he also suggests that we could become a society of “super-brains” or at least “super-brain communicators.” Either way this appears to be the dawn of a new era of BMI technologies.

Article: https://www.wired.com/2017/04/we-are-entering-the-era-of-the-brain-machine-interface/

Photo Credit: Bill Diodato Getty Images