Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
B-59
PPT B-41
Viruses and Phishing
VIRUSES and PHISHING
B-41
LO B-6
• Virus — A piece of programming code
inserted into other programming that
usually lies dormant until triggered;
then causes unexpected, undesired
events.
• Phishing attempts to trick victims
into giving important information to
a bogus website.
As technology becomes a more important part of everyday
life, the number of phishing attempts and computer viruses
has grown.
PPT B-42
How to Protect Yourself Against Phishing
HOW to PROTECT YOURSELF
AGAINST PHISHING
B-42
Source: Entrepreneur, May 2010.
LO B-6
• Don’t respond to emails requesting personal
information.
• Keep your computer updated with anti-virus
software.
• Never provide or verify personal information.
• Never send sensitive personal information over e-
mail.
• Check your monthly statements.
1. This slide highlights some of the ways people can
protect themselves against phishing.
2. One common example of phishing that many stu-
dents may have received is from an African prince
who needs your personal information, so he can
complete a wire transfer and give you money.
3. Phishing attacks are common on social networking
sites. One experiment showed that 70% of all
phishing attempts on social networking sites were
successful.
PPT B-43
Laws and the Internet
LAWS and the INTERNET
B-43
LO B-6
• Legal issues surrounding Internet use:
– Copyright
– Pornography
– Harassment
– Use of Internet for scams
• Cybercrimes cost the U.S billions each year.
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
B-60
PPT B-44
Cyberterrorism
CYBERTERRORISM
B-44
LO B-6
• Cyberterrorism is the idea
that terrorist hackers
could shut down:
– Entire communications
– Money supply
– Electricity
– Transportation
PPT B-45
Privacy Issues in Technology
PRIVACY ISSUES in
TECHNOLOGY
B-45
LO B-6
• E-mail can be snooped or information stolen.
• Personal information stored can be stolen.
• Site owners can share your information without
your permission.
• Cookies — Pieces of information, such as
registration data or user preferences, sent by a
website to a browser that the browser software is
supposed to save and send back to the server when
the user returns to the website.
PPT B-46
Progress Assessment
TEST PREP
B-46
• How has information technology changed the way
people work?
• What management issues have been affected by
the growth of information technology?
1. Information technology has allowed workers to tel-
ecommute. Using computers and the Internet, the
employee links to the company’s network to
transmit his or her work to the office from any-
where in the world.
2. Four major issues that have affected management
are human resource changes, security threats, pri-
vacy concerns, and stability.
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
B-61
lecture
enhancers
“Never trust a computer you can’t throw out the window.”
Steve Wozniak
“Computers make very fast, very accurate mistakes.”
Murphy’s Law
“Knowledge is a process of piling up facts; wisdom lies in their simplification.”
Alexander Graham Bell
“You can give people responsibility and authority, but without information they are helpless.”
Bill Gates
“To err is human, but to really foul up requires a computer.”
Anonymous
“Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger
and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and bet-
ter idiots. So far, the Universe is winning.”
Rich Cook
lecture enhancer B-1
WHY WE TYPE THIS WAY
The modern office is likely to be equipped with personal computers linked through local area
networks to each other, to the Internet, and to a host of specialized equipment, from laser printers to scan-
ners to databases storing millions of customer records. Within this state-of-the-art system is a 19th–
century bottleneck—the computer keyboard.
The computer keyboard is simply a transplanted typewriter keyboard, the same keyboard that has
been used since the 1870s. The first practical modern typewriter was patented in 1868 by Christopher
Sholes, who invented the device with partners S. W. Soule and G. Glidden.
When Sholes invented the first typewriter, keys were arranged alphabetically (vestiges of this ar-
rangement can be seen on the second row of keys—D F G H J K L). Printing bars were mechanically
pushed against the paper by the pressure on the keys. Typists soon became proficient enough to cause
jams as they typed faster than the mechanical bars could move.
Typewriter manufacturers went back to the drawing board and designed a new keyboard to slow
typists down to speeds within the limits of the crude mechanism. The resulting keyboard is referred to as
“Qwerty,” named for the first six keys of the top row. Keys were placed awkwardly to force slower typ-
ing. The “A,” for instance, one of the most frequently used keys, was placed under a typist’s left-hand
little finger, the weakest finger on the hand. “E” required an awkward reach using the middle finger of the
left hand. Results were encouraging—typing speeds declined.
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
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Today mechanical keys have been replaced by electronic ones, but the keyboard arrangement has
remained unchanged. While the arrangement of keys is familiar, it is far from efficient. In the 1930s,
Washington State University Professor August Dvorak designed a better keyboard that groups the most
frequently used letters on the home row and eliminates many awkward reaches. The Dvorak system is
faster to learn, easier to type, less tiring, and less likely to cause errors than Qwerty. Using it increases
typing speed by more than 20%. Yet the system never caught on—typists did not want to learn a new sys-
tem when their typewriters all used Qwerty, and manufacturers did not want to produce Dvorak typewrit-
ers as long as typists used Qwerty.
lecture enhancer B-2
HARNESSING OUR DATA FOR PREDICTIVE COMPUTING
In our increasingly connected world, people are constantly generating new data about themselves.
While social networks collect a record of one’s feelings, sensors that measure sleep patterns and Wi–Fi–enabled
scales can keep track of vital statistics. To tech experts, all this seemingly vain information may actually lead
to the next great innovation: predictive computing. Soon enough our gadgets will know us so well that they
won’t just store our to-do lists, they might actually write the lists themselves.
Many smartphone users have already dealt with one of predictive computing’s first services, but
chances are they don’t like it that much. That’s because the auto-correct feature on most mobile devices ends
up creating just as many typographical errors as it prevents. However, for $3.99 Android users can get an app
that takes the technology to the next level. Called SwiftKey, the app gains access to your texts, email and Twit-
ter in order to learn the ways you communicate. Not only does it learn your writing style, it also can track ex-
actly when you make typos and adjust the keyboard accordingly. For instance, if you keep hitting the “R” key
when you meant to hit “E”, the app will automatically reshape the keyboard to better accommodate your typ-
ing.
The iPad app MindMeld seems even more futuristic. The app listens in on your conversation and dis-
plays information based on what you’re talking about. So if someone on your conference call starts talking
about sales in Southern California, the app will throw photos, maps and other data about the region onto the
screen. The more detailed context offered by the speaker, the more specific the information becomes. With so
many opportunities available with this new technology, industry giants Google and Apple are racing to acquire
as many predictive computing startups as possible. Apple recently splashed $40 million on Cue, a company
that created an intelligent agent to manage your daily schedule. Still, some may see these services as just an-
other set of intrusive and overreaching measures used to ensnare our personal data. Only time will tell if ad-
vances like predictive computing will truly shape our future or if consumer backlash will prevent them from
getting off the ground.i
lecture enhancer B-3
E-MAIL RULES
The most-used Internet application by volume is e-mail. Although e-mail has become a necessary
part of our modern lives, it is often misused.
In your early education, you were taught how to write a letter. You probably learned how to write
business and casual headings and salutations, state your purpose, make a request, ask for a response, and
wrap it up with “Sincerely yours.”
But an e-mail is not a letter, and the days of graceful formal communication are fading away.
Short is in, “yours truly” is out. Some guidelines:
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
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Keep It Short. Short e-mails get attention. If you receive an e-mail that’s several pages long, you
have to make some decisions. Do I have time to handle this now? Is it important enough to come back to?
If the answer is no, that e-mail won’t be read, no matter how carefully written. Supporting material can be
sent as an attachment, but give the reader a clear, concise message in the e-mail body.
Keep It in Context. Our inboxes are flooded with dozens of legitimate messages each day, not to
mention the mountains of spam that may or may not get through spam filters. When you send a message
to someone you don’t usually communicate with, include some mention of your identity. “I met you at the
conference last week” or “Jim suggested I contact you regarding this issue.” If you are responding to an
earlier message, include the previous thread. Nothing is as confusing as an e-mail saying, “What do you
mean?” or “Not really” when you have no idea what you’re supposed to understand.
Give It a Subject. The subject line is there for a reason. It tells your recipients what you want to
communicate. Some very important e-mails get overlooked with blank subject lines or topics like “Im-
portant” or “RE: RE: RE: RE: RE:” If the topic changes, change the subject line. Remember that on the
recipients’ screens, your subject competes with a large number of others for their attention.
Keep the Thread. Some e-mail users routinely trim everything out of the body of the e-mail ex-
cept their replies. Don’t do this. For example, if you are responding to a request for an opinion, don’t just
say “I agree” and cut out the thread. Let your reader browse through the background for your response. A
slightly longer e-mail isn’t going to bog down the server—the thousands of spam messages are doing that
just fine.
Make Your Requests Clear. You should set your requests apart from the rest of the message by
trimming them down to one sentence or series of bullet points. Close-ended questions (yes or no) are
more readily answered. Open-ended questions can get long and involved, and reduce the likelihood that
you’ll get a reply.
Don’t Be Afraid of Deadlines. If you need the information by Friday, let the reader know. Then
if he or she can’t meet the timetable, the reader can let you know in time for you to find another source. If
you’ve requested something that has not been delivered, it is acceptable to send a cordially worded re-
minder. But just one. Daily reminders suggest to recipients that they’re being bossed around. They may
be too busy, away on vacation, or actually working on your last request.
Remember to Say “Thank You.” Not only is it polite, but it also lets the sender know you’ve
received the message and gives the subject closure. Remember, you’ll probably need their good will at
some time in the future.
lecture enhancer B-4
THE ELITE WORLD OF DATA MINING
Today’s tech giants like Facebook and Google have become household names as people around the
world rely on them every day to navigate the Net. Silicon Valley is home to a number of other mighty compa-
nies that could someday be worth billions as well. One of these elite few is Palantir, a data-mining company
that is quickly becoming one of Palo Alto’s most exclusive employers.
If one thing is certain about the technological surge of the last two decades, it’s that the sum of all
these digital endeavors has led to an immense amount of data. Google alone facilitates millions of gigabytes’
worth of information every day. As a result, detecting weak spots or potential infiltration by hackers becomes
much more difficult, if not impossible, for even the savviest organizations. That’s where Palantir comes in.
The company’s band of computer whizzes creates highly sophisticated interfaces that can parse enormous
streams of data. This allows its clientele, ranging from the CIA to major banks, to search for and pinpoint any
signs of unlawful access.
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
B-64
Ironically, some of Palantir’s employees are former hackers themselves. But despite their pasts, every
staffer at the company is the best of the best. They see their work as a matter of good against evil. However,
the staggering abilities and independence of the Palantir staff can lead to trouble. In February the company’s
name was found on a series of e-mails that laid out a plan to sabotage the whistleblowing organization Wik-
ileaks as well as ThinkProgress.com. Amateur hackers and tech enthusiasts across the Web blasted Palantir as
traitors against their mission statement to defend rather than attack sites. Although Palantir’s CEO traced the e–
mails to a single employee and placed him on leave, the company’s reputation within the tech community may
have suffered irreparable damage. Still, Palantir could be the next multibillion-dollar behemoth, according to
the company’s chief investor Peter Thiel. A founder of PayPal and one of the first investors in Facebook, Thiel
says Palantir has the potential to rival both of those companies. And with the company valued at $735 million
already, he could very well be correct.ii
lecture enhancer B-5
REVISING MOORE’S LAW
Sixty years after transistors were invented the tiny on–off switches are starting to show their age.
The devices have been shrunk so much that the day is approaching when it will be physically impossible
to make them even smaller.
In the mid-1970s the chair of Intel Corporation, Gordon E. Moore, predicted that the capacity of
computer chips would double every year or so. This has since been called “Moore’s law.” The million-
dollar vacuum tube computers that awed people in the 1950s couldn’t keep up with a pocket calculator
today. In fact, a greeting card that plays “Happy Birthday” contains more computing power than existed
before 1950.
The transistor was invented by scientists William Shockley, John Bradeen, and Walter Brattain to
amplify voices in telephones for a Bell Labs project, for which they later shared the Nobel Prize in phys-
ics. Transistors’ ever-decreasing size and low power consumption made them an ideal candidate to re-
place the bulky vacuum tubes then used to amplify electrical signals. Transistors eventually found their
way into portable radios and other electronics devices and became the foundation of microprocessors,
memory chips, and other semiconductor devices.
The pace of innovation gained further momentum after the invention of the integrated circuit in
the late 1950s. The integrated circuit was invented by Texas Instruments’ Jack Kilby and future Intel co–
founder Robert Noyce.
The number of transistors on microprocessors—the brains of computers—has leaped from just
several thousand in the 1970s to nearly a billion today. Although Moore has qualified his capacity–
doubling prediction in the last decade, he thinks the transistor is going to be around for a long time.
“There have been ideas about how people are going to replace it,” he says, “but I don’t see anything com-
ing along that would really replace the transistor.”
The density of transistors, however, is reaching the physical limits of the technology. Once chip
makers can’t squeeze any more transistors into the same-sized slice of silicon, the dramatic performance
gains and cost reductions could suddenly slow. One problem has been trying to prevent too much heat
from escaping from thinner and thinner components. Chip companies are avidly looking for new materi-
als and other ways to improve performance.
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
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lecture enhancer B-6
JOHN ATANASOFF’S COMPUTER
Dr. John Vincent Atanasoff built the first digital computer over half a century ago, but his contri-
bution to computing was nearly lost to history. Atanasoff worked on his machine during the 1930s at Io-
wa State University. After hours of work one night in 1937, he found that he was stumped by a basic
problem of electronic design. In exhaustion, Atanasoff drove 170 miles over the state line to a roadhouse
in Illinois. (“There wasn’t any place to get a drink in Iowa,” he recalls.) In the Illinois tavern, he saw
things from a new perspective and solved some of the thorny problems that had plagued him. The com-
puter would be a digital device, unlike the analog devices that were then in use. It would use vacuum
tubes and have an on–off configuration. The computer would also have memory and be based on the
base-two number system. Finally, it would have a “jogging” function to refresh the computer memory and
prevent loss of information.
With his assistant, Clifford Berry, Atanasoff finally built his machine—the “ABC” (Atanasoff
Berry Calculator). Atanasoff signed over his rights to the invention to the Iowa State College Research
Foundation in exchange for a $5,330 grant, assuming that the college would patent the invention. World
War II intervened, however, and no one followed up. Later, personnel in charge apparently did not realize
the significance of the device, and no patent was ever obtained.
Meanwhile, Drs. John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert of the Moore School of Electrical Engineer-
ing at University of Pennsylvania were working on a computing machine for the U.S. Army. ENIAC, the
machine they developed, was completed in 1946 and has been widely referred to as the first modern com-
puter. They applied for and received two patents, one for ENIAC and one for the “jogging” memory func-
tion they used. Mauchly and Eckert assigned their patents to the Sperry Rand Corporation, for which they
later went to work. Sperry collected royalties from other computer companies for all computers using the
technology developed in ENIAC, which, over the years, has been estimated to total over $1 billion.
It was not until 1967 that another computer company, Control Data Corporation, found an ob-
scure reference to Atanasoff’s machine. CDC, along with several other companies, sued and won release
from the royalties, largely on the basis of Atanasoff’s testimony. The court ruled that the patents had
wrongly been issued and that the original theory was Dr. Atanasoff’s. However, neither Iowa State nor
Atanasoff has received any financial reward from the decision.
lecture enhancer B-7
SHARING IN SILICON VALLEY
In most industries, companies don’t share their most valuable information with competitors. For
example, the business community would consider Coca-Cola crazy if it shared its secret recipe with
Pepsi. In Silicon Valley, however, sharing information with the world, including rivals, is an everyday
practice. For instance, Google dedicates an entire team of engineers exclusively to the practice of moving
data into a format understood by their competitors’ programs in case a client wants to switch companies.
Former CEO Eric Schmidt said that the free service is meant to ensure that no users feel trapped in
Google’s networks should something go wrong.
Just as the tech industry started to boom in the 1990s, a landmark California court decision re-
fused to uphold noncompete clauses commonly found in East Coast firms. With no barriers between
them, engineers and developers were free to jump from company to company. This created a sense of
community and fellowship in Silicon Valley unlike anywhere else in the business world. Sometimes col-
laborating with a competitor just makes good sense financially. Facebook is the prime example of a tech
giant whose dominance is feared by some companies, but at the same time makes them impossible not to
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
B-66
do business with. That’s why Google-owned YouTube videos can be embedded on Facebook and why
nearly every major website includes a linkable tag to the social network on all their pages.
Not every company plays the sharing game, though. Apple is notoriously unwilling to release its
code to either users or companies. It also subjects any developers looking to list a program on the App
Store to a rigorous approval process. Google, on the other hand, allows its mobile operating system An-
droid to be adapted by rival companies and provides its app developers with relatively free reign. Right
now it’s difficult to tell which strategy is winning since both the iPhone and the many Android–powered
devices are each wildly popular. Only time will tell if Silicon Valley’s culture of sharing is sustainable in
the long term.iii
lecture enhancer B-8
HOME DEPOT’S MASSIVE SECURITY SLIP UP
With companies both large and small becoming increasingly dependent on technology, it’s im-
portant for these firms to make sure that their information is secure. But businesses need to do more than
simply install anti-hacking software and hope their defenses hold. For instance, earlier this year Home
Depot faced two small security breaches before getting hit with a company-wide hack that made national
news. Following the minor incidents, security contractors urged executives to implement a few unused
features in the anti-hacking system that would protect credit card information at cashier terminals.
Needless to say, Home Depot’s higher-ups ignored the advice. By the beginning of September,
the company suffered a hack that put up to 56 million credit cards at risk. Insiders claim the perpetrators
targeted the store’s registers, exactly where the additional security measures were meant to protect. Ac-
cording to internal company documents, execs didn’t want to pay the extra costs that came with monitor-
ing the entire register system. This bargain-basement attitude coupled with the company’s aging equip-
ment reportedly frustrated many employees over the years, leading to dozens of departures from a team
comprised of fewer than 50 people.
Although there’s no way of knowing if Home Depot could have prevented the attack entirely, ex-
perts agree that additional security measures would have significantly increased the chances of detecting a
hack. “Simple tactics go a long way, like keeping track that something new is running,” said malware re-
searcher Josh Grunzweig. “I’d argue that would catch 95 percent of this stuff.” For now, the hack doesn’t
seem to have affected Home Depot’s sales: the home improvement retailer recently released a positive
earnings report and its stock price has been climbing steadily. But even if the company still retains the
trust of customers, the dysfunctional relationship between management and its anti-hacking staff could do
long term damage. After all, if Home Depot doesn’t sort out its cyber security problems, customers might
not be so forgiving of a second intrusion.iv
lecture enhancer B-9
PASSWORD OVERLOAD
Using a password can protect information and improve security. Using multiple passwords, para-
doxically, can make data less secure.
PricewaterhouseCoopers consulting firm conducted a study for the British Department of Trade
and Industry to estimate the cost of security breaches from computer viruses, spyware, hacker attacks, and
equipment theft. It found that these breaches cost British industry $18 billion in 2005.
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
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One concern for security is the increasing number of user IDs/passwords that employees must
deal with. The study found that employees have to remember three different user IDs/passwords on aver-
age. Two percent had to recall 10 different IDs.
The more IDs and passwords that users have to remember, the more likely the business is to have
unauthorized access. The human memory is not programmed to remember this many numbers, letters, and
combinations. Users are more likely to choose passwords that are personally memorable—pet names,
birthdays, hometowns—terms that are easier for hackers to guess.v
lecture enhancer B-9
WEB SHOPPING SAFELY
E-commerce is exploding. Whether you’re ordering a book from Amazon.com or downloading a
tune from iTunes, online shopping is easy and convenient. But this convenience comes with a price. You
don’t get to examine an item closely, and entering your credit card number on an unknown site can take
some courage.
According to Lauren Weinstein, co-founder of People for Internet Responsibility, “With the In-
ternet, you don’t know if that flashy Web site you’re looking at is a multinational organization or some
kid in a garage somewhere.” Even official seals of approval from TRUSTe, VeriSign, and the Better
Business Bureau are no guarantee that you’re dealing with a reputable company. Those symbols can easi-
ly be reproduced, and they may not connect you as they should to the official sites of the certifying organ-
ization.
Scammers aren’t the only problem. Many high-volume brick-and-mortar retailers that operate
online impose different policies for Web purchases than they do for purchases in the physical store. For
example, you have fewer protections shopping at Circuitcity.com than at a Circuit city store.
A few tips to make online shopping safer:
1. Find the gotchas. A site’s “terms and conditions” detail the existing protections—for the re-
tailer, that is. You might discover that you must abide by rules of a distant state, where you agree to go if
you sue. At Target.com, the purchaser agrees to assume the risk of loss or damage to merchandise when
the shipping firm picks it up, not after delivery. When Consumer Reports tested Internet shopping sites,
nearly every one, including Amazon.com and Walmart.com, disclaimed “implied warranties,” unwritten
assurances that products will work properly and last a reasonable amount of time.
2. Check return policies. Some sites charge restocking fees as high as 25%, and others don’t ac-
cept returns of opened merchandise. Consumer Reports found some smaller sites that wouldn’t even take
returns of some defective products. Also, if you return items that came with free shipping, you probably
will have to pay the cost for the return postage. Some retailers deduct the original free shipping charges
from your refund or charge you for shipping costs even if the product is defective.
3. Guard your privacy and security. Read a site’s privacy policy. Some sites sell your customer
data, which means you’ll get tons of spam. One suggestion is to set up an e–mail account exclusively for
buying online. Most ISPs will let you set up multiple accounts. If not, services such as Hotmail and Ya-
hoo offer free e-mail service. For security, make sure that you see a security icon (such as a closed pad-
lock) when you open the Web page. This indicates a secure connection to transmitting financial data, but
doesn’t guarantee that the site is legitimate.
4. Pay with the right plastic. When you pay by credit card, your liability for unauthorized pur-
chase is capped at $50. Credit cards also let you dispute charges for items that arrive broken or not as or-
dered. Debit cards may not cover fraudulent charges if you don’t act fast enough. Another suggestion is to
investigate use of a “virtual” card number. Card issuers such as Citibank offer disposable numbers, which
limit how much retailers can charge your account.
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
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5. Don’t do business with a site if it doesn’t list the owner’s name, address, or phone number, or
if it is full of spelling errors.
6. Use shopping-comparison sites such as Shopping.com and Bizrate.com for ratings and user
feedback on Web retailers.vi
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critical
thinking exercises
Name: ___________________________
Date: ___________________________
critical thinking exercise B-1
SPAM STATISTICS
A growing problem with electronic communication over the Internet is spam, unwanted e-mail
messages. The percentage of spam for most consumers is over 75%.
Go to Postini’s website (www.Postini.com)vii and find the statistics in the online resource center.
(Sometimes the Web address for a location changes. You might need to search to find the exact location
mentioned.)
1. How many e-mail messages were processed in the last 24 hours? What percentage of these mes-
sages was spam?
2. How do spammers get your e-mail address?
3. Postini’s resource center also tracks the number of messages that contain viruses, malicious
worms, and Trojan horses. In the last 24 hours, what percentage of e-mail messages were virus
infected?
4. Do you think that spam is a real problem for organizations? Why or why not? Will spam change
American business reliance on e-mail communication in the future?
Bonus B – Using Technology to Manage Information
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Name: ___________________________
Date: ___________________________
critical thinking exercise B-2
EDUCATION ONLINE
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is one of several elite schools that are now putting
their course materials online. The MIT initiative, called OpenCourseWare, makes virtually all the
school’s courses available online for free.
Go to the MIT OpenCourseWare website (http://ocw.mit.edu). Choose one of the classes availa-
ble, open the course’s Web page, and research the course.
1. Go to the course syllabus and summarize the course description.
2. What are the requirements for the course?
3. What text is used for the course? Also list any suggested readings.
4. Do you think you would learn as much through an online course as through a live lecture course?
Why or why not?
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endnotes