Top U.S. Spymaster Warns American Firms About Deals With China

The top U.S. counterintelligence official said American firms need to be cognizant of the national security risks that could arise from selling to Chinese buyers or entering into joint ventures with them.
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-28/top-u-s-spymaster-warns-american-firms-about-deals-with-china?source=Snapzu

4 Most Important Things I Learned From GaryVee

1. Change Happens, Adapt or Perish. 2. Engage with Everyone, But be Authentic. 3. Don’t be Paralyzed by Fear, Failure is the Not the End. 4. Do the Work.
Read more: https://medium.com/crushingit/how-i-gained-50-million-views-after-watching-gary-vaynerchuk-8212d81fa859?source=Snapzu

Nestlé pays $200 a year to bottle water near Flint – where water is undrinkable

Gina Luster bathed her child in lukewarm bottled water, emptied bottle by bottle into the tub, for months. It became a game for her seven-year-old daughter. Pop the top off a bottle, and pour it into the tub. It takes about 30 minutes for a child to fill a tub this way. Pop the top, pour it in; pop the top, pour it in. Maybe less if you can get gallon jugs.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/29/nestle-pays-200-a-year-to-bottle-water-near-flint-where-water-is-undrinkable?source=Snapzu

Essential has sold just 5,000 phones since launch

Essential Products has sold an estimated 5,000 phones since the gadget made its big retail debut in the United States earlier this month, according to estimates from BayStreet Research. That figure would put Essential well below market heavyweights like Apple and Samsung, which typically sell tens of millions of phones per quarter in the United States.
Read more: http://www.fiercewireless.com/wireless/essential-has-sold-just-5-000-phones-since-launch-baystreet?source=Snapzu

The Inside Story of Equifax’s Massive Data Breach

The intruders broke in and then handed off to a more sophisticated team of hackers, the hallmarks of a state-sponsored operation.
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-09-29/the-equifax-hack-has-all-the-hallmarks-of-state-sponsored-pros?source=Snapzu

Julia Reda MEP Likened to Nazi in Sweeping Anti-Pirate Rant

Julia Reda MEP has been targeted in an extremely controversial article published by musician and industry activist David Lowery. In a piece titled 'Why is it Every Time We Turn Over a Pirate Rock White Nationalists, Nazi’s and Bigots Scurry Out?', Lowery suggests that Reda's complaints over copyright restrictions on Anne Frank's Diary are based out of a far-right agenda.
Read more: https://torrentfreak.com/julia-reda-mep-likened-to-nazi-in-sweeping-anti-pirate-rant-170926/?source=Snapzu

Ikea has bought TaskRabbit

The Swedish home goods giant is looking for some digital help from the contract labor marketplace.
Read more: https://www.recode.net/2017/9/28/16377528/ikea-acquisition-taskrabbit-shopping-home-contract-labor?source=Snapzu

The Essential Phone has only sold 5,000 units - but why?

The Essential PH-1 has only sold 5,000 units since its launch, according to a new report. The disappointing figure may come as a shock to many Android fans who have been following the company. Essential has had a massive amount of hype behind it since March when its founder tweeted out a picture of a bezel-less display phone. That founder just so happens to be Andy Rubin. He was one of the four founders of Android before Google bought it and continues to be extremely popular in the industry today.
Read more: http://www.androidauthority.com/essential-phone-5000-sold-803111/?source=Snapzu

Theresa May threatens US with trade war over Bombardier row

Theresa May has threatened a trade war with the US after it slapped punitive tariffs on British-built aircraft, casting doubt on a key plank of her Brexit strategy.
Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/09/27/theresa-may-threatens-us-withtrade-war-bombardier-row/?source=Snapzu

Boeing Super Hornet jet purchase likely to become 1st casualty in possible trade war

After what seems like the first shot of a trade war, the first casualty of the U.S. Commerce Department's ruling against Bombardier could be the Canadian military's purchase of Super Hornet jet fighters. As expected, trade investigators in Washington sided with Boeing, the Chicago-based commercial and defence giant in its fight against Bombardier of Montreal, which has been accused of selling its CSeries passenger jets at below-market cost.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/politics/boeing-bombardier-trade-war-brewster-1.4308734?source=Snapzu

Ads don't work so websites are using your electricity to pay the bills

Pirate Bay and Showtime turned to forcing unknowing visitors to mine cryptocurrency, using computers rather than eyeballs on ads to generate money.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/sep/27/pirate-bay-showtime-ads-websites-electricity-pay-bills-cryptocurrency-bitcoin?source=Snapzu

World's second biggest diamond sells for $53 million

The world's second-biggest diamond has finally found a buyer. After failing to sell at a Sotheby's auction last year, the 1,109-carat uncut stone has now fetched $53 million in a private sale to luxury jeweler Graff Diamonds. The seller, Canada's Lucara (LUCRF), recovered the huge diamond from Botswana's Karowe mine nearly two years ago. It named it Lesedi La Rona, which means "Our Light" in Botswana's Tswana language.
Read more: http://money.cnn.com/2017/09/26/news/diamond-lesedi-la-rona-sold/index.html?source=Snapzu

Equifax CEO suddenly retires following an epic data breach affecting 143 million people

Richard Smith, CEO and chairman of Equifax, abruptly retired Tuesday following a data breach at the credit-reporting service that affected the personal information of 143 million people, according to the company's board. Equifax shares fell 1.6 percent in early trading on Tuesday. They have fallen 27 percent in September after the company revealed the breach.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/26/equifax-ceo-retires-following-an-epic-data-breach-affecting-143-million-people.html?source=Snapzu

Equifax C.E.O. Richard Smith Is Out After Huge Data Breach

Mr. Smith faced intense criticism for a data breach that exposed the personal information of up to 143 million people, as well as Equifax’s response to the crisis.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/26/business/equifax-ceo.html?source=Snapzu

Bitcoin Mining More Profitable Than Drugs and Arms Trafficking in Russia

Russian media has conducted interviews with several representatives of the country’s bitcoin mining industry. The investigation has provided unique insights into an expansive industry that penetrates all levels of Russian society, ranging “from schoolchildren to pensioners”.
Read more: https://news.bitcoin.com/crypto-mining-more-profitable-than-drugs-and-arms-trafficking-in-russia/?source=Snapzu

The History of Sears Predicts Nearly Everything Amazon Is Doing

One hundred years ago, a retail giant that shipped millions of products by mail moved swiftly into the brick-and-mortar business, changing it forever. Is that happening again?
Read more: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/09/sears-predicts-amazon/540888/?source=Snapzu

Court rules that imported solar panels are bad for US manufacturing

This paves the way for a tariff on Chinese solar panels
Read more: https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/22/16351562/solar-energy-international-trade-commission-foreign-trade-lawsuit-suniva-tariff?source=Snapzu

Bitcoin investors should be taxed like any other investor

Despite its name, cryptocurrency isn't just money. It could also be debt or equity and so it should be regulated and taxed in the same way as other finance.
Read more: https://theconversation.com/bitcoin-investors-should-be-taxed-like-any-other-investor-84291?source=Snapzu

Why Do Chefs ‘Give Back’ Their Michelin Stars?

A look at a questionable tradition, from Marco Pierre White to Sébastien Bras
Read more: https://www.eater.com/2017/9/21/16345242/chefs-give-back-michelin-stars?source=Snapzu

You Are the Product

It Zucks! By John Lanchester.
Read more: https://www.lrb.co.uk/v39/n16/john-lanchester/you-are-the-product?source=Snapzu

‘Catch Me if You Can’ Scam Artist Has a Warning for Today’s Consumers

Frank Abagnale Jr., whose exploits inspired the Leonardo DiCaprio movie, says digital technology and social media only make things easier for swindlers now.
Read more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/catch-me-if-you-can-scam-artist-has-a-warning-for-todays-consumers-1506002560?source=Snapzu

Always Believe You’re Good Enough.

Everyone in the world is hoping for one thing. That nobody notices they don’t belong. Everyone in the world suffers from imposter syndrome sooner or later. I can guarantee you, no matter what stage you reach in your life, you’ll be desperately asking yourself how your peers are still ignorant to the fact that you don’t know what the fuck you’re doing.
Read more: https://medium.com/hi-my-name-is-jon/always-believe-youre-good-enough-8495fb17d3e4?source=Snapzu

My 2017 Manifesto

I’m sitting here writing this article and I’m starting to find a little clarity. Starting to understand why this thing is so hard. This game of entrepreneurship. Shit, this game of life. It’s because the real answer is really found when you’re pulling from opposite directions. I’m sitting here wondering and I just return to the same question which is why? Why, why, why?
Read more: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/my-2017-manifesto/?source=Snapzu

How diseases are "sold" in order to sell drugs.

Did you ever wonder why new medications so often debut right after awareness of the condition they treat increases? It is no coincidence. The tactic is called unbranded advertising and “disease awareness” and drug companies spend more on it than they do for regular advertising.
Read more: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/2282946-how-diseases-are-sold-in-order-to-sell-drugs/?source=Snapzu

Uber London licence not renewed

Uber will not be issued a new private hire licence, Transport for London (TfL) has said. TfL concluded the ride-hailing app firm was not fit and proper to hold a London private hire operator licence. It said it took the decision on the grounds of "public safety and security implications". Confirming it would appeal against the decision, Uber said it showed the world "far from being open, London is closed to innovative companies".
Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-41358640?source=Snapzu

Facebook can't hide behind algorithms

If Facebook’s algorithms were executives, the public would be demanding their heads on a stick, such was the ugly incompetence on display this week. First, the company admitted a “fail” when its advertising algorithm allowed for the targeting of anti-Semitic users. Then on Thursday, Mark Zuckerberg said he was handing over details of more than 3,000 advertisements bought by groups with links to the Kremlin, a move made possible by the advertising algorithms that have made Mr Zuckerberg a multi-billionaire.
Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-41358078?source=Snapzu

Turkey's Pladis looks at Nestle's U.S. candy as part of expansion

LONDON (Reuters) - Pladis, the Turkish company that owns Godiva chocolate and McVitie's biscuits, is considering making an offer for Nestle's U.S. confectionery assets, which could be valued at around $2 billion, as part of its international expansion plans.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-turkeys-pladis-looks-at-nestles-us-candy-as-part-of-expansion-2017-9?source=Snapzu

Hedge fund asks climate deniers to put their money where their mouth is

In an appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson challenged former GM executive — and ardent climate denier — Bill Lutz to make a bet. “You take all the scientists who author these papers, get them to pool their money and invest in companies that would benefit from global warming,” Tyson said. “And take all the people who are in denial of global warming, take all their money and invest in companies that would presume there is no global warming. And I would predict [the climate deniers] will all go broke in the next 50 years.”
Read more: https://thinkprogress.org/wisdom-of-the-scientific-crowd-ecde128a064e/?source=Snapzu

World Governments Have Declared War on Bitcoin: John McAfee

The battle lines have been drawn between sovereign governments and the legitimacy of cryptocurrencies, warned anti virus software pioneer John McAfee during the first global blockchain technology event in Hong Kong since China imposed a ban on cryptocurrency sales and trading on exchanges earlier this month. Among core issues in the US$150 billion industry are how nations can apply taxation to cryptocurrency transactions and whether there should be curbs on the ability for bitcoin and other virtual currencies to facilitate global fund flows.
Read more: https://www.thestreet.com/story/14315079/1/bitcoin.html?source=Snapzu

EU paid for a report that concluded piracy isn’t harmful — and tried to hide the findings

Back in 2014, the European Commission paid the Dutch consulting firm Ecorys 360,000 euros (about $428,000) to research the effect piracy had on sales of copyrighted content. The final report was finished in May 2015, but for some reason it was never published– according to Julia Reda’s blog, the only Pirate in the EU Parliament.
Read more: https://thenextweb.com/eu/2017/09/21/eu-paid-report-concluded-piracy-isnt-harmful-tried-hide-findings?source=Snapzu

Acclaimed French chef asks to be stripped of three Michelin stars

One of France’s most celebrated chefs, whose restaurant has been honoured with three stars in the Michelin guide for almost 20 years, has pleaded to be stripped of the prestigious ranking because of the huge pressure of being judged on every dish he serves. Sébastien Bras, 46, who runs the acclaimed Le Suquet restaurant in Laguiole where diners look over sweeping views of the Aubrac plateau in the Aveyron while tasting local produce, announced on Wednesday that he wanted to be dropped from the rankings of France’s gastronomic bible.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/20/sebastien-bras-french-chef-three-michelin-stars-le-suquet-laguiole?source=Snapzu

Insurers Come Out Swinging Against New Republican Health Care Bill

The health insurance industry, which has been cautious about previous bills to repeal the Affordable Care Act, came out sharply against the latest version.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/20/us/politics/insurers-oppose-obamacare-repeal.html?_r=0?source=Snapzu

Bill Blain: "We’ve Heard JPM Traders Bragging In The Pub How Much They’ve Made From Bitcoin"

Will they? Won’t they? I’m not talking about Donald’s playground bluster about nuking North Korea back to the 1950s. Shocking and intemperate. Yes. But, plays to his audience. Of more import are Central banks and how they wriggle out of their current chains. Will the Fed put another nail into QE this afternoon? We think they will announce the end of coupon reinvestment: de-facto normalisation/tightening. Get on with it! US markets are resilient enough to cope – but we really need to see serious spread decompression between the fixed income asset classes.
Read more: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-09-20/bill-blain-we%E2%80%99ve-heard-jpm-traders-bragging-pub-how-much-they%E2%80%99ve-made-bitcoin?source=Snapzu

How Booking.com manipulates you

Many websites and applications these days are designed to trick you into doing things that their creators want. Here are some examples from timewellspent.io:
Read more: https://ro-che.info/articles/2017-09-17-booking-com-manipulation?source=Snapzu

I went undercover in a Toronto factory where a temp worker died. Here’s what I found

More Ontarians are using temp agencies to find work — and these workers are more likely to get hurt on the job. A Toronto Star undercover investigation. By Sara Mojtehedzadeh, Brendan Kennedy. (Sept. 8, 2017)
Read more: http://projects.thestar.com/temp-employment-agencies/index.html?source=Snapzu

The Brain-Machine Interface Isn't Sci-Fi Anymore

This startup lets you control machines with your mind—no implants required. By Steven Levy.
Read more: https://www.wired.com/story/brain-machine-interface-isnt-sci-fi-anymore/?source=Snapzu

The team-building rituals that companies love can actually tear workers apart

After-work drinks and quarterly retreats can split employees into in-groups and out-groups.
Read more: https://qz.com/1080781/the-team-building-rituals-that-companies-love-can-actually-tear-workers-apart/?source=Snapzu

China’s crackdown on cryptocurrency trading – a sign of things to come

The recent crackdown on cryptocurrencies in China is a prelude to the assertion of control over this area by the Chinese authorities.
Read more: https://theconversation.com/chinas-crackdown-on-cryptocurrency-trading-a-sign-of-things-to-come-84014?source=Snapzu

Ray Dalio, founder of the world's largest hedge fund, says 'bitcoin is a bubble'

Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio said Tuesday he is not a believer in cryptocurrencies. "Bitcoin today you can't make much transactions in it. You can't spend it very easily," Dalio said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." "It's not an effective storehold of wealth because it has volatility to it, unlike gold," the hedge fund founder added. "Bitcoin is a highly speculative market. Bitcoin is a bubble."
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/19/ray-dalio-says-bitcoin-is-bubble.html?source=Snapzu

FCC's deregulation of business data lines could mean a price hike

If you operate a small or medium-size U.S. business, you can expect to pay more for broadband services in the near future because the U.S. Federal Communications Commission plans to deregulate providers of business data lines, critics of the proposal say. Users of ATMs, shoppers in stores that use credit card scanners, and mobile phone customers could also see prices go up after the FCC deregulates the so-called business data services (BDS) market. Schools and hospitals also depend on BDS for their broadband service, and prices could rise as much as 25 percent in areas where the FCC removes price caps, critics warn.
Read more: https://www.pcworld.com/article/3190015/internet/fccs-deregulation-of-business-data-lines-could-mean-a-price-hike.html#tk.rss_news?source=Snapzu

US considers shooting down NK missiles that don't pose a direct threat

As tensions continue to ratchet up with North Korea, CNN has learned that the US is considering shooting down a North Korean ballistic missile even if it does not directly threaten the US or its allies.
Read more: http://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/19/politics/us-north-korea-missile-mattis-options/index.html?source=Snapzu

Chinese are already selling face masks as iPhone X security Tools.

Chinese vendors on online marketplace Taobao never resist a chance to peddle their goods. Just days after Apple announced the iPhone X that replaced the home button’s Touch ID for Face ID, Chinese merchants have launched “protective masks” in response to the news. If you’re worried that someone will unlock your phone while you’re sleeping (which …
Read more: http://unshootables.com/chinese-already-selling-face-masks-iphone-x-security-tools/?source=Snapzu

Is Tribalism a Natural Malfunction?

What computers teach us about getting along. By Simon Dedeo.
Read more: http://nautil.us/issue/52/the-hive/is-tribalism-a-natural-malfunction?source=Snapzu

Toys 'R' Us files for bankruptcy in US

The once dominant toy retailer has struggled against larger rivals such as Amazon and Walmart.
Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-41316205?source=Snapzu

Uber Faces FBI Probe Over Program Targeting Rival Lyft

Federal law-enforcement authorities in New York are investigating whether Uber Technologies Inc. used software to interfere illegally with a competitor, according to people familiar with the investigation, adding to legal pressures facing the ride-hailing company and its new chief executive.
Read more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/uber-faces-fbi-probe-overprogram-targeting-rival-lyft-1504872001?mod=e2tw?source=Snapzu

A Heartbreakingly Realistic View of Social Media Marketing

There is a very popular myth in the field of social media marketing that many buy into because it’s a simple way to shift the blame from yourself onto the monetization dynamics of the platforms you use. That myth is the belief that as long as your product, service, or idea is good enough, it will automatically gain massive traction on social media if only you’re consistent with your content output. “Built it and they will come.” In a perfect world this would very well be the case, but as we all know, consumers today are more withholding with their attention than they’ve ever been at any given point in history.
Read more: https://www.reddit.com/r/startups/comments/70q3r4/a_heartbreakingly_realistic_view_of_social_media/?source=Snapzu

Nestle bottles millions of litres of Canadian water — and pays nothing

The price of a litre of bottled water in B.C. is often higher than a litre of gasoline. However, the price paid by the world’s largest bottled water company for taking 265 million litres of fresh water every year from a well in the Fraser Valley — not a cent. Because of B.C.’s lack of groundwater regulation, Nestlé Waters Canada — a division of the multi-billion-dollar Switzerland-based Nestlé Group, the world’s largest food company — is not required to measure, report, or pay a penny for the millions of litres of water it draws from Hope and then sells across Western Canada.
Read more: http://o.canada.com/news/nestle-bottled-water-cost?source=Snapzu

Pepe’s creator is sending takedown notices to far-right sites

Pepe the Frog will no longer be a go-to symbol for the white supremacist far right, if creator Matt Furie has his way. Motherboard reports that Furie’s legal representatives have sent DMCA takedown...
Read more: https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/18/16329348/pepe-matt-furie-legal-takedown-alt-right-the-donald?source=Snapzu

Apple blocking ads that follow users around web is 'sabotage', says industry

For the second time in as many years, internet advertisers are facing unprecedented disruption to their business model thanks to a new feature in a forthcoming Apple software update. iOS 11, the latest version of Apple’s operating system for mobile devices, will hit users’ phones and tablets on Tuesday. It will include a new default feature for the Safari web browser dubbed “intelligent tracking prevention”, which prevents certain websites from tracking users around the net, in effect blocking those annoying ads that follow you everywhere you visit.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/sep/18/apple-stopping-ads-follow-you-around-internet-sabotage-advertising-industry-ios-11-and-macos-high-sierra-safari-internet?source=Snapzu

How workers ended up in cubes—and how they could break free

Propst believed, would be to join the panels at 120º angles. But his customers realised that they could squeeze more people in if they constructed cubes. A rigid 90º connector was therefore designed to join a panel to one, two or three more. Thus was born the cubicle, and Propst came to be known as its creator. He was horrified.
Read more: https://www.economist.com/news/international/21637359-how-workers-ended-up-cubesand-how-they-could-break-free-inside-box?source=Snapzu