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This week: Uber return to Vancouver; How the NASDAQ was hacked; Germany to use Typewriters to Foil Spying?; Third of Canadian Netflix users access through US Netflix; Canada’s High Wireless Prices
Business in Vancouver | Uber promises to return to Vancouver
Uber may be ready to give Vancouver another try. Uber briefly operated in Vancouver in the summer of 2012. In November 2012, B.C.’s Passenger Transportation Board ruled that Uber must abide by the same rules as limousines and charge a minimum of $75 per ride. The company ceased operating in Calgary after a similar ruling. Read More
IT World Canada | How the Nasdaq was hacked
There have been lots of reports that governments around the world aren’t paying enough attention to protecting their critical infrastructure – telecom networks, water systems and power grids — from cyber attacks. Stock markets would also fall into that category. Imagine what would happen if the Toronto, New York or London Stock Exchanges were put out of commission for an extended period of time, or, arguably worse, trades were manipulated.
It nearly happened. On Thursday Bloomberg BusinessWeek reported that servers running the Nasdaq exchange — home to Cisco Systems Inc., Microsoft Corp., Apple and Oracle, among others — were infected four years ago by code believed to have come from Russia. Read More…
The Guardian | Germany ‘may revert to typewriters’ to counter hi-tech espionage
German politicians are considering a return to using manual typewriters for sensitive documents in the wake of the US surveillance scandal. The head of the Bundestag’s parliamentary inquiry into NSA activity inGermany said in an interview with the Morgenmagazin TV programme that he and his colleagues were seriously thinking of ditching email completely. Read More…
CBC | U.S. Netflix accessed by 1/3 of anglophone Canadian users
In the U.S., you can log into Netflix to catch the controversial final season of Dexter, binge on all seven seasons of 30 Rock, watch the first eight seasons of the cult TV comedy It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, stream all but the most recent season of the biker drama Sons of Anarchy, or catch the first three seasons of the break-out hit Louie. In Canada, none of those are available.
But there’s a not-so-secret trick for Canadian Netflix subscribers to access movies and TV shows that are supposed to be available only south of the border. Read More…
Business in Vancouver | Canadian wireless prices among the highest in developed world: CRTC
Despite the federal government’s efforts to boost flexibility for wireless customers, rates for basic-level packages have actually risen since Ottawa implemented a new policy doing away with three-year contracts in favour of two-years plans. Read More…