The Economic, Legal and Technological Environment in Daily Living

QUESTION

Every 2-3 weeks (see schedule) you will need to submit a short essay on a topic of your choice (among the list of topics given below). You should submit the following:

• Choose one topic among the topic for the specific week. You will need to submit this assignment four times.
• Search for a recent article (within 6 months) related to the topic of the week in an online business newspaper or business magazine of your choice (e.g., Fortune, Inc., Business Week, Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Money, etc.).
• Submit the following, in a word document, using Turnitin tool (submission via email or message will not be accepted):
  1. A summary of the article (150-250 words)
  2. How the article relates to the topic selected (100-150 words)
  3. The link to the article
• Attach a PDF copy of the original article

Short Essay Topics
Short Essay 1:

• Political, Economic, Legal, and Technological Environment, or
• Social Responsibility, Ethics, and Sustainability

ANSWER

The Economic, Legal and Technological Environment in Daily Living

How a Dog Walking App Leaked People’s Home Lock Codes Accidentally

An app that is used in America to connect dog owners to dog walkers, was reported to have leaked details of its users. The app, Wag, allegedly accidentally revealed lockbox codes of at least 50 users and the home addresses of at least 100 users. This personal information was posted on the app creators’ website. The Wall Street Journal reported that its reporters had gained access to records of more than 100 Wag customers. This information included 50 lockbox codes. They also reported that new personal information had continuously appeared every day, and therefore, the total number of the app users whose information was leaked could be much larger. Wag, however, told the Journal that there was no evidence that the leaked information had been misused, and that it was reaching out to the affected users. None of their homes had been burglarized. It claimed that the posts were due to a technical glitch in their software.

This article exposes issues that come with day to day technological innovations. The dog walking app was a very innovative and creative way of helping dog owners and walkers connect. Technological advancements and innovations have continued to ease everyday living. However, the technical glitch that led to the exposure of personal information of users posed a security threat to the affected people. It is illegal to expose anyone’s personal information that could pose a threat to their property or life. Therefore, proper security features ought to be put in place before the rolling out of such applications. Every technological invention should guarantee the safety of its users and their private information.

References

http://fortune.com/2018/01/09/wag-dog-walking-app-exposed-lock-codes/