Category: data protection

Digital Dribs & DApps!

We have barely scratched the surface with the Internet (from the early eighties) and it is already seemingly being threatened with the competition. A possible replacement by a new phenomenon.

Well, for lack of a better word, “replaced” has connotations of a dying Internet. This is far from accurate. This new phenomenon – fostered by blockchain technology, will change the way we use and consume the Internet as a service.

So, what is this new Internet-like system creating waves online? And why is it making online marketers quiver at the prospect of them losing out on the exponential revenues they have previously enjoyed?

Well, without hyping it up any further, it is called Distributed Applications or ‘DApps’ for short.

A brief history of Apps

Before we delve further into its meaning and use in the cyber world, perhaps some background context is required.

The way we use online or mobile applications software or “Apps” has changed how we consume products and services online. Companies jumped onto the bandwagon when they discovered that we mostly use Smartphones for the Internet.

App developers were then subsequently sought after to create mobile Apps for practically anything. What started as something mainly for gamers moved quickly onto applications for practically any commercial activity.

We now use Apps for our shopping; fitness; traveling; online bookings and banking. Developers now create customized software to help us with practically, anything.

In addition, we now have App stores for every significant tech provider – Microsoft, Google, and Apple to mention a few. This has naturally fattened the pockets of software companies and created an additional stream of income for them.

The ‘catch’ for using mobile apps is that even though it costs you nothing to download, using them still requires you to register with your personal details. You can also do this by linkingyour existing social media accounts.

The benefit to App providers

These Apps, which are integrated with social media services, create a data goldmine for marketers to study and track browsing habits. Through them, marketers can gain valuable insights into your interests and then customize their products/services to sell to you.

The impetus behind a distributed application system is that it serves to distribute plow some of the wealth garnered from your data via application providers back to you.

Data mining has become more lucrative and accessible because of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning. Do you ever notice how after browsing online or having a conversation or a chat application like WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger? You go online later, and you see Ads displaying the items you discussed? Creepy isn’t it? Well, that is the future of Web 4.0 for you!

Staying ‘woke’

Luckily for us, there is a school of knowledgeable and security-conscious programmers who are not ‘giving in’. They help us understand how the Internet has become a cesspool for marketers to harvest our data. Social media platforms, search engine providers, and mobile application providers facilitate them immensely with this.

Image Courtesy of blockgeeks

Imagine getting paid to surf the web for hours. The way you get paid for taking on a survey, partaking in a social experiment, donating an organ or sperm?

This is the way distributed apps are touted to work. They reward you for the use of specific applications (in a peer-to-peer review setting) with cashable tokens. Seems only fair right?

Now you can imagine how companies like Cambridge Analytica would react to having to pay you for their use of your data. They would surely be reluctant and that’s why they preferred to work clandestinely. But if they could pay companies like Facebook for the use of data, why not pay us directly?

Early adoption

Joining the ‘DApps revolution’ is a no-brainer. Those at the forefront of building and supporting DApps will end up with a more substantial chunk of the market.

DApps primarily provide you with the use of payment systems. These are specifically known as Smart Contracts and Proof of Work systems.

There are currently also web-browsers (built as DApps on blockchain platforms such as Ethereum or EOS) that will reward you for merely using their DApps.

For instance, you are rewarded in cashable tokens to surf the net over applications like Google Chrome, or Mozilla Firefox.

It is only a matter of time that this form of Internet-browsing and use of applications becomes the norm.

The Internet revolutionized the way we communicate, socialize, learn, shop, and do business online. DApps however, will determine the way you get compensated for doing the things you love to do online.

11 December 2018
A digital address for everything

The ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT) as the name suggests is basically connecting as many devices online for them to communicate with each other.

If you think that is a far-fetched concept it is nothing new. We have been using it since the advent of GSM, Infrared, GPS, GPRS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and other wireless connections.

To put the concept into further context, your Smartphone/watch, Bluetooth headset, wireless printer, or smart fridge are all components of the ‘Internet of Things’. They all require a sensor or chip to connect or collaborate with each other.

Origins

The term was supposedly coined about a decade ago. This when a company executive discussed an idea which sounded bizarrely unnecessary and over-futuristic at the time.

He advocated for the need for a chip for every electronic device. The initially requirement was for supply chain and automation in the retail industry.

Fast forward to today, and this has indeed come to fruition. We now have smart cars, smart homes and even tracking chips inserted into pets!

So, each component or part of the object is equipped with an individual chip (small processor) with a unique IP address.

The very same IP address used to identify your home modem or Office server.

IoT application

Why would you want that you might ask? Wouldn’t it be useful for devices and machines to work things out by themselves – to solve complex problems before you even become aware of them?

This is in fact how the devices communicate with the central server to relate pertinent information. An example is the use of fuzzy logic: to regulate the temperature in the fridge (to avoid food getting moldy).

It can be used, in addition, to check the amount of water used in a washing cycle in your washing machine.

Another practical use would be to check car tyres pressure and temperature (to avoid overheating and bursting).

Can you then imagine the number of chips that are required for the typical household? For the car, security alarm, fridge, microwave, tumble dryer, TVs, Radios, computers/tablets, lighting, and heating/cooling system? Each would require a unique IP address

IP address shortage

Talks about IoT highlighted the need for more IP addresses and a need to track or generate them. This as it is evident we are running out of ‘normal’ IP addresses known as IP4: 4 denotes the number of billion IP addresses available.

At the birth of the Internet age in the 1980s, no one ever envisioned a time when the world would need more than four million IP addresses. But with the need as mentioned above for the internet of things – that has come to pass.

Without getting too technical, the issue is being resolved with the development of a newer IP system known as the IP6.

The main difference between the two but it is merely that one is on 32-bit system while the newer on 128-bit and that influences merely the length of the addresses.

Again, the technicalities would only matter to the now growing IoT industry and would not affect us as individuals.

Practical uses of IOT

Large companies that need to manufacture a lot of parts for their devices would need to insert an IP address on each piece. From items as trivial as the car side-mirror; to more serious parts like the helmet of a sportsperson engaging in the heavy contact sport.

From an education perspective, the IoT can make learning a lot more fun for kids and young adults. Toy-maker Sphero, for example, has been long making wireless operated toys like its SPRK+(pictured).

The idea is to fuse physical (programmable) robotic toys with digital apps.

This would simultaneously provide entertainment experiences while inspiring tomorrow’s leaders in maths, engineering, and science.

There are discussions to extend this connectedness to human beings. Much like was prophesied in many sci-fi books and George Orwell’s 1984. If there was a ‘rise of the machines’, and Artificial Intelligence was to take over the control of all our devices, we would not stand a chance!

There are also a few new decentralized systems that are even advocating for a fragmented Internet for that very reason (security and privacy). This would enable you to control your little space within the “interconnected” web.

You can thus run a (private) local area network (LAN) within the Internet domain – if that makes any sense.

Blockchain advocates and companies like IOTA and Chinese-based Crypto-firm Tron are pushing the IoT narrative hard. They also want the decentralization of the whole Internet.

It is only a matter of time before this becomes the norm. Companies are now queuing to get the IP6s and have incorporated adding them to the manufacturing processes.

Once the security and privacy issues have been adequately planned and implemented. The pros of the full adoption of IoT will outweigh the cons.

22 November 2018
Get more organised digitally!

One often hears the phrase “technology is your friend” To what extent the friendliness/support is, in being a most effective “companion” to assist you to cope with your daily activities or business plans depends on how you embrace it.

Read more via Get more organised digitally!

28 October 2018
Get more organised digitally!

We often hear the phrase “technology is your friend” To what extent this friendliness is, to help you to cope with your daily activities or business plans depends on how you embrace it.

Life can be chaotic. Which so much to do it is easy to frequently miss important appointments. Delays often come from having to wait till you get to a PC to respond or not remembering contact details. The worst is having to ask someone repeatedly for their number or business cards.

If you often experience that, you are getting it all wrong and definitely need this friend!

The need for emails

Emails are on a progressive, disruptive path to eliminate postal services. They even facilitate and encourage the acceptance of digitally signed documents.
Most financial companies and legal institutions in many developed countries already accept digitally signed documents.

Your digital signature confirms that the information originated from you and has not been altered through encryption. This makes it legally binding.

Naturally, you need special software or Adobe Sign, to digitally sign and attach as a PDF to an email.

Thanks to emails, we can now also easily store and get in touch with our contacts. It could be in the office, lounging around a park, watching your children play; even onboard/at the underground train station.

Additional email tools

Calendar and contacts syncing is a simple tool which is not offered entirely by all domain host providers. It works wonders along with your calendar and scheduler.

If you need a simple CRM tool to just help with email contacts and plug into an existing sales app, you can do so with a useful add-on like Outlook Customer Manager.

There are certainly advantages of decluttering your emails. This helps to alleviate the frustration of unimportant mails getting in the way of the ones you need to access frequently. For that, there is a clutter service offered by Office 365.

Additionally, to avoid retaining important attachments, and clogging up space on your mailbox, you can with a click, save large file attachments directly to your cloud storage.

With all that relevance of emails, it is critical that you source the best one – even if it costs a bit more than the (free) webmail services provided by Outlook (Hotmail), Gmail and Yahoo.

Naturally, with a paid service, you will almost be freed from the scourge of spam and malicious items embedded in documents. In some cases, they are screened even before landing in your mailbox.

More advanced features

Other perks like a ‘catch-all service’, data loss prevention, in place-hold (compliance features), and advanced threat protection. You can add them as essential services to give you an even more peaceful emailing experience.

You can, for instance, use In-Place Hold (Litigation Hold) to place user mailboxes ‘on hold’ and preserve mailbox items permanently.

This feature is especially crucial for those in the financial and legal sectors – requiring emails and its contents to be preserved for a minimum of seven years typically. Security is the central factor that has kept the postal service in business – well at least for now.

Your checklist when shopping for a good email solution:

• A decent-sized mailbox – with archiving ability – 50GB is the new standard size (don’t get short-changed!).

• Should allow you to sync emails, calendars, and contacts onto multiple devices – and it must always work!

• SMTP is now the standard and preferred Email protocol. If you are still on POP3 or even IMAP – run away!

• Customizable domain (a .com or .net or any other you have bought), with the option to add more domains and email aliases. (info@ …sales@ etc).

• Sync to an active directory – to keep your user-profile and allow for ease of single sign-on or extra security features like two-factor authentication. (Prevents unauthorized people from accessing your emails by pairing to your phone via an SMS code).

• Your mailbox (since you are storing contact details or using it along with a CRM or ERP solution) must be GDPR-compatible.

Final thoughts

Finally, a good email hosting service should provide the ability to add innovative features in the future. These include extra archiving space, advanced threat protection, and enterprise voicemail. These are characteristics of a good email solution.

Preparing to use an email solution can be effortless if you have the time. Most software suppliers like Microsoft (Office 365), have support sites with primary training material and “how-tos”.

Check out Microsoft’s Support page to upskill your Office, email, and overall cloud-software aptitude.

24 October 2018
Vocations of the Future

There is a lot of banter, which is backed up by well-research papers on how Automation and Robotics (powered by AI) will replace manufacturing jobs.

Blue-collar jobs are not the only ones however, that face imminent and progressive extinction.

A recent survey report conducted by the World Economic Forum predicts futuristic trends affecting certain jobs in the modern workplace.

Robert Solow predicted decades ago, in his Solow-Swan model, a massive driving force of global growth: technology.

And the evidence is prevalent with the likes of Apple, Google, and Amazon championing stock markets with Billion-dollar market capitalizations. They also create an abundance of jobs globally.

Disruptive technological advances such as AI (Artificial Intelligence); the ubiquitous high-speed mobile Internet (5G); widespread adoption of big data analytics; cloud technology; and the recent Blockchain technology will be the drivers of this job evolution.

Based on the report, by 2022, this job evolution will be firmly in place as it has already.

In a matter of just 4 years, we could have a situation where jobs such as postal service clerks, data entry clerks, and bean-counters (accountants and auditors) would be made redundant.

Impact on services

Software like Microsoft’s Dynamics 365, aims to remove ‘silos’ within customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) processes.

The latter takes over (fully automates) back-office operations such as stock-taking and supply chain management.

Such tasks will be performed via software, reducing the need for more human supervision. Consequently, the focus would be more on managerial roles.

In the sales and customer service realm, technologies like Microsoft’s AI will provide automated insights to guide employees on improving customer experiences.

Furthermore, it may lower support costs by using virtual agents or Chatbots to eliminate in-house AI experts and those writing code. This will result in more redundancies!

On a positive note, newer and more exciting jobs such as data analysts, machine learning and AI specialists, digital transformation experts and in general information system services will be on the rise – up to 135 million globally, according to the Report.

The fields to benefit directly from new technologies would be information technology; information security; innovation; customer services and risk management (financial services).

Impact on finance

Another group of professionals whose nature of work will be affected due to the advent of ‘disruptive technology‘ is financial middlemen. Likewise, smaller banks and money transfer institutions.

Decentralized systems were primarily put in place to eradicate exorbitant fees associated with transferring money across borders.

Cutting them out completely undoubtedly renders them redundant. It is therefore pertinent for them to innovate their products in order to open up sufficient job position.

Read more about the effect of Cryptocurrencies on the banking sector here

Recently, Malta’s finance minister whilst in a private interview during a Blockchain Conference, echoed this. He said that the advent of cryptocurrency has changed financial middlemen into traditional “photo developers”.

“I can see this, just like in photography when you could tell that […] those who process the photos will lose their jobs; a lot of financial intermediaries will be facing the chop in the not too distant future,” says Edward Scicluna.

The good news for governments will be that the trend shows that the jobs created will surpass those lost.

Be proactive and skill yourself accordingly or get the right personnel who can quickly adopt some of the mentioned skills so that you do not fall behind!

7 October 2018
Life hacks using tech

We often do things out of routine without considering if there is an easier way to achieve the same result quicker and even more effectively. In a larger company or organization, this is the job of the business analyst.

What if we applied this to other daily activities and tasks that shape the way we live?

This would give us more time to partake in the things we love.
It’s hard enough for most working-class adults to spend most of their days in the week behind a PC. This is usually followed by hours behind the wheel in traffic or commuting via public transportation.
This makes the task of going shopping or even attending a doctor’s check-up after an 8-hour work stint more of a burden or chore. Worse over if you must queue further to get the service.

This very example came to mind when a relative complained about having to go from one doctor to another. When referred to a specialist they had to then book another appointment by calling that specialist’s practice.

Now granted, this is basically a ´first world problem’. Because having a specialist attend to a back problem after your doctor recommends it during an initial check-up is a luxury. One that third world citizens could only dream of having in the first place!

Problem-solving scenario

So, in the case of the referral to a specialist, a simple unified medical system can resolve this. A CRM database linking all the medical practitioners including their schedules can save you the time taken to arrange the new appointment.
This system would also have a secure high-tech scanning and attachment add-on so that X-rays, scans, diagnoses and the attending doctor’s notes can be attached. All for the attention of the specialist.
The times for the new appointment can be chosen quickly while the patient is at the doctor’s practice. When convenient, you could then go to the specialist directly.

The concept explained

This is one very basic and rudimentary example of how an automated, centralized software solution can help schedule appointments.
To achieve maximum optimization the system would clearly require several tests before implementation.

Too often systems analysts and developers do not consider the end users. The user experience (UX) is the most crucial aspect of software development and should be the first step in building an automated system or it will never achieve its purpose.

It doesn’t have to be used as a national health solution. This is because centrally planned systems, as mentioned in a previous blog, can lead to inefficiencies.
It would need to be localized in order to make the system easier to maintain and be updated with contact details. This especially when information can change on a weekly or monthly basis.

Naturally, and for decades, health insurance companies have utilized card systems to document patient visits to practitioners. This also helps you and practice to easily claim back medical costs.

But this only serves a singular function and is laborious to run. What is being proposed in this blog post is something to resolve this in a more secure and decentralized manner.

Application and security

Cloud security has become a huge requirement and will be a necessity for all businesses and services in the very near future. Europe, for instance, is implementing compliance laws for storage of data under its new GDPR regulation.

Countries like Sweden also have similar compliance laws to handle financial (with a lot of banking going mobile) and medical data stored in the cloud.

So, security would become less of a concern for businesses when it comes to data storage and automated CRM systems in the future.

Shopping and housing convenience

The burden of shopping can also be alleviated with initiatives such as cashless processes. We first saw this introduced in Asia (China) and now adopted in the West through Amazon’s new cashless´ and cashier-less grocery stores.

While shoplifters might not see the innovation in this ‘new method’ of shopping; it saves you time spent queueing to pay and will invariably help resolve the scourge of shoplifting.

It will, however, require more reliance on technology for surveillance, to monitor and track the scanning of the goods and keep a database of records on a server.

This helps you with the inventory management and other back-office processes and is managed by an automated ERP solution (and not a person).
We are still waiting for massive roll-outs of the so-called smart houses equipped with smart chips that help regulate temperature, turn off energy-consuming devices when not in use.

Some are even equipped with fridges that remind you when food is expiring or simply needs to be replaced.

Designing such systems would naturally require careful observation into the various steps needed to reach the desired result. Details in every step from how you go from point A (selecting a product); to point Z.

Point Z being you walking out of the shop with a fully paid item. All without using cash or the need for a cashier.

Tweaking the solution

The system analyst’s job would be to engage or even simulate the processes using different test subjects and not just the best practice.
There is the possibility that you might forget to pay for the milk after checking out of a security area. That could result in an embarrassing scenario for all.

These are just two examples of countless scenarios that can help us benefit from the use of automation and AI.
There are many other subtle examples such as in the motor industry. This includes the use of computers to diagnose a ‘sick car’.

There can be a solution for every bottlenecking problem. Addressing this is now has become a new field of study. Computerization and the use of robotics to handle manual labour and repetitive blue-collar jobs will be new highly lucrative career paths.

Many new start-ups already exist purely to develop system automation.

Welcome to the future!

9 February 2018
Peer-to-peer service

History has taught us that a fully centrally controlled government system fails completely – well, in the long run.

The idea of a communistic system has its merits and could still work in some sectors of our economies. It, however, omits the very thing that was provided to us as human beings – choice.

Knowledge is empowering – but the power to do the things you would like to do effortlessly without fear of error.

This shared knowledge emanates from scientific, biological, or financially proven theories and tests.

They can help you make the right investments. Such as saving money on the best deals, obtaining rights to social benefits, travel to great destinations. Or simply just helping other people achieve their personal and spiritual goals.

Monopolistic behaviour

Those that cling onto knowledge though, serve their interests alone and should not be revered but rather shunned for power-hogging.

Sadly, some governments monopolize access to information, basic services, resources, and even education to create an artificial demand for ´their services’.

This forms the basis of a centrally controlled or outright communistic state.
In business, this is a common practice of a monopoly to control the price of their good or service as they are the only ones providing it.

The quality of that good or service, however, can and will be determined by them and them alone!

Can you imagine then, based on the previous sentence, a situation that only governments have this power to dictate a basic service such as healthcare or education for you?

Scary thought and if you look at most developing countries, the evidence of this is overwhelmingly sad.

But we are not here to talk about the governments as there would be several cases to point out and this is not a political platform.
Case in point, the concept of a centrally controlled system nevertheless is less efficient and prone to failure to disseminate the very items it sets out to provide.

Deploying software by a global firm like IBM, via a centrally stored-located server would be absurd because the infrastructure of the recipient regions or end-users might not be well equipped to handle it.
So one begs to question, why would you do it for social services for instance?

Decentralized systems

Decentralizing a system can improve efficiency because it gives options to get the best quality possible. It also removes power from one or a few providers and shares it equally amongst other stakeholders.

This way all will stand to mutually benefit from a working system indirectly rather than just the state collecting monetary compensation or tax and deciding what to do with it alone.

Centralized systems can learn from the blockchain to efficiently provide services.

Let’s take the now “illegal” peer-to-peer file-sharing and downloading software such as eDonkey/eMule (developed by Microsoft).
Or take BitTorrent for example you could with them, build together any file by downloading “bits” of the file by many connected servers or PCs (peers).

This system leads to faster downloads and allows one to source from the best quality of the available digital bits to get the data to form the e-book, music track, or movie that you were after.

Leaving your download running would enable others to get the files you have already amassed (you reciprocally upload the files). The cycle continues until everyone acquires the same great quality file from the best ‘seeds’.

Downloading from a sole server for the same product, on the contrary, could crash the server.

Let’s not forget the delays due to operational differences in time-zones, or complete failure to download if the file source is corrupted or the file quality is bad.

Application of decentralized systems

Naturally, the entertainment industry put a stop to this because it meant that people could attain their copyrighted material.

Many fines and warnings were dished out to individuals as well as companies hosting the sharing servers.

You can, however, still access them via carefully planned entry gateways to hide your IP address using VPNs. Those of you who are IT experts can use (old-school) backend protocols like FTP.

BitTorrent -> Bitcoin…Torrent -> Tor ..anyone seeing a pattern here?

There is now even a new digital currency designed to help artists curb piracy and reward the artists for their work.
Such protective software is already in the pipeline thanks to blockchain technology.

Decentralizing services such as money transfers in the advent of Cryptomania removes power from regulated financial institutions. They tend to charge high fees for sometimes slow and error-prone services because they can.

Conclusion

So, swiftness and security are a prime reason for the adoption the Blockchain technology. Everything else such as the price of digital alternative coins or ‘altcoins’ boils down to basic supply and demand for it.

Governments and other institutional service providers can take a leaf out of the blockchain technology tree and its true intention.

The aim is to decentralize the provision of a service to give everyone access to it. This will reduce associated costs of using it and improve efficiency!

28 January 2018
Rise of the machines

As a young man born in and living in Pretoria South Africa, multi-billionaire Elon Musk – better known for pioneering the Tesla battery-operated motor concept – was shunned by the Industrial Development Corporation several times.

His innovative ideas were denied financial backing so he moved to the USA for better support. The rest as we all know is history.

The futuristic thinker, however, took a rather skeptical and worrisome handbrake-turn when it came to the topic of artificial intelligence (AI) and its benefits to society.

When a man like that with so much insight into technology warns of its potentially harming effects, it warrants notice. Musk warned that its use could foster ‘the coming of third world war’. We have to for such reasons, delve a little deeper into the topic.

We have rapidly progressed from longer periods of stone, iron, industrial, to that of space, technological/information ages. The world is now apparently fused between the latter three.

Despite skipping a few ‘crucial’ stages, we have now surged into the age of digital automation. This is while sadly still dealing with the ravages of poverty, disease, and irreversible damage to our environment.

Automation & AI usage

Automation is helping business through software like ERPs that take over traditional back-office finance and operations.

In the IT industry, the Internet of things (IoT), cloud services, and general Software as a Service (SaaS) have simplified things for IT managers. You can now just monitor and attend to more pertinent issues and tasks (hopefully not just stream movies and play games on duty).

While seated comfortably, you will be able to now perform tasks such as deploying new software, installing/removing updates on multiple machines/devices simultaneously. All with a push of a few buttons.

Trading bots

In the high-risk investment scene, automation has given traders more room for better research and analysis Thus relieving you from the known stresses and mundane tasks associated with trading.

For many trading houses and brokers, AI has even completely taken over the mundane task of making and executing trades.

Advert

If you haven’t already, read this great book entitled: The Fear Index (thriller by Robert Harris). Though fiction, it illustrates the use of a machine learning tool using algorithms to help a hedge fund company generate billions for its investors.

The use of AI is not without fault. It can also lead to costly system-generated errors like the trading error a few years at Goldman Sachs cost the firm $100 million and other cases.

Other use cases

It can still, on a ‘micro’ level, help free human capital (individuals) from PC-related issues. So things like having stress, headaches, backaches, and lack of time spent with family and friends can be a thing of the past.

In the industrial and manufacturing sectors, the advent of AI creates even more of a fear and a concern. The number (staffing) of redundancies, may increase when it is introduced.

This would require careful planning to ensure the blue-collars that are ‘replaced’, are compensated. More so, they would need to be incorporated into different areas of businesses.

Limits of robotics

Obviously, not every task need to be automated or performed by robots. We (as humans) are still required to check-up, inspect, and perform quality checks for instance.
We can, as a result, deal with inter-personal jobs that require more empathy like in customer and social service.

Human resources or getting into corporate social responsibility (CSI) projects that reach out to communities.

Embracing it

More importantly, policies by governments will need to focus ever so more on job-creation. Governments must now adopt innovative means of creating jobs or foster and supporting entrepreneurship. Projects like those of Mr. Tesla/Mr. PayPal/Mr. SpaceX has created thousands of new jobs.

As for the use of AI in weaponry and military defense systems, the less said the better. When it comes to privacy and security concerns we can only hope that rogue politicians don’t get unregulated access to such technology. In such a case we would only be able to protest and hope not to feature in a real-life James Cameron sequel to Judgment Day.

3 December 2017
A digital force awakens

When it comes to providing means of storing, sending, and receiving money, banks and their affiliated institutions, have enjoyed a monopoly for centuries.

They (especially central banks which allegedly are owned powerful families) have the authority to influence countries and their governments. We will not go into the level of control as this paves the way for conspiracy theories which though not proven – are not farfetched.

So, it’s only expected that when some new and unknown entity threatens their prosperity, they start to react.

Blockchain frenzy

How banks are responding is evident by how they are fervently building their own blockchains. This, however, defeats the purpose of a having decentralized system.

Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies get their appeal not just because they are very secure. But because unlike fiat money, they are not heavily regulated and can be mathematically restricted.

The 21 million unit limit on Bitcoin by default places it closer to the status of gold (which is also not infinite). But what happens when all are mined in 2041?
Bitcoin’s current ‘value’ of over $30 000 (adjusted), could move up again, according to the traditional laws of supply and demand as it becomes rare.

To unlock more value the creators will split it again. The first major splits (forks) gave rise to Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash. Both cryptocurrencies are racing to newer heights daily.

How banks operate

Now back to the banks – they make money from our deposits and these deposits are backed up by our reserve banks.
Reserve banks lend retail banks money which they essentially just print. The banks must ‘turn it’ and pay it back with interest (repo rate).

So, technically we ‘empower’ banks by depositing our money so they can invest the funds in all sorts of mechanisms. Such mechanisms include the credit and loans to you, your businesses, equities, and property.

Then, they also invest in high-risk investment vehicles like currency trading, derivatives (futures). They are essentially the biggest regulated and legal Ponzi-schemes. They also make a significant amount of the daily fees they charge you.

A quick example

Let’s quickly put things into context. A bank with over a million customers transacting daily. Let’s say they charge you a 10 cent (conservative figure) transaction fee for depositing, withdrawing from another bank, or an intra-bank transfer.

They then make 0.10c x 1 000 000 = 100 000 units of the currency on the day. This equates to 1,2 million Euros, Dollars, Rands, or Yen annually. And that is just off your transactional fees!

Then they also charge you monthly service/maintenance fees. Those are to cover the convenience of you having an account and, for services like online banking.

This is what cryptocurrencies can potentially wipe away from banks we all go the digital currencies route. Granted, how you acquire and transfer Cryptocurrencies are not as straightforward as receiving paper money – yet.

That, coupled with the stigma around ‘Cryptos’, means there is still a barrier to entry for the ‘open-source’ monetary system.

Banks will try and bring about their own blockchains to address security concerns around making transactions. For them, however, it would still be business as usual when it comes to the charges.

Birth of Fintech

Some newer financial institutions, however, are already progressing in the favour of you and me – one such is the European based N26 Bank.

We often end up paying for things all month without even having to go to an ATM. It works as a traditional bank would, however, allows the (smart) card to be used as a credit card (backed by Mastercard) would.

This allows you to quickly purchase goods online, book events, flights ticket, and accommodation. Basically, all things you still can’t do with your debit card.

In countries like Sweden and Estonia, card and digital systems have been a thing for a long time now.

Some of these Fintechs are adopting or partnering with Cryptos companies to deliver their services. One such as the relationship the one between a German bank and the crypto Ripple.

Click image to purchase Ripple here

It would be interesting to see what governments and financial institutions do to ‘protect’ their payment systems. Likewise, it will be equally fascinating to observe how they adapt in general to the new digital era upon us.

25 November 2017
Connect with the world faster

It is quite hard to understand why anyone would bother to ask (sometimes silly) questions these days when answers lie within the tips of our fingers – literally.

Back in the day, we used to have the ordained task of trekking to school or public libraries, or in some cases, rely on the local nerd to help answer questions and grasp difficult concepts.

Most of you don’t realize it, but we carry information boxes via our smartphones and tablets daily. It is easy, however, to get bombarded by misinformation and what is now dubbed ‘fake news’.

This is why it’s important for you to be able to identify credible sources when conducting research or looking for quick answers.

Information overload

One source of information that we subconsciously consume daily is social media. Thanks to the advent of the Internet, news, and information can reach us within milliseconds.

We can now tune into local news broadcasts only to get things that are specific to our areas of interest.

A quick and ill-prepared online search for a diagnosis, however, can lead to you discovering that you only have three days to live.

Worse yet, you might even “uncover” an imminent evil ploy to destroy the world and have us living underground or under the ocean.

Not all such theories, however, are far-fetched. Soon we will be seeing flying cars and man-manned drones such as the EHANG 184.

And whether rumour of fact, these quick news snippets get us thinking and prompts further research into more credible sources.

Uses of social media

Your football clubs, politicians and musicians are all actively using them to break new signings, announce new albums or push new policy or campaign objectives.

In addition, most, if not all companies, banks governmental institutions and even religious organizations now have a presence on social media. They use it to aggressively promote their brands or agenda.

So, you see, ignoring the news and social media completely these days is the equivalent of retreating to a cabin in the woods or cave. You would be shutting yourself completely from family and the rest of the world.

A social media detox is probably not a bad thing to do. We often get overly bombarded by information. However, skipping a week can leave you feeling as though you just emerged from the stone ages!

Here is a quick guide to the mainstream information sources that you can use as starting points for your research.

Google:

The biggest search engine and while it generates more results (quicker than other search engines ) – it also naturally, carries a lot of misinformation.

Google specifically has great features such as the voice-activated ‘OK Google‘ feature. It is quite responsive and good if you can’t be bothered to type but need voice-activated quick responses.

You can quickly get the latest football scores, the next flight to Tokyo, or the latest stock price of Oil or Bitcoin.

Wikipedia:

Always a quick reference guide (commonly used here). Bear in mind that their entries are put together by ordinary people.

So while fairly accurate, you should cross-reference information there especially when it comes to dates and events.

The website, however, gets reviewed/verified regularly and is therefore still quite a practical ‘go-to’ source for you to get quick facts. Be wary of the usage of short ‘Wikis’ though.

Investopedia:

For credible and simple to understand finance-related terms concepts on the go along with related news and great blog. They even have a great simulated stock trading game that you can enjoy.

Twitter:

Brandishing the iconic blue bird logo, Twitter is quick, instant, and addictive to some (no names mentioned).

Twitter is the best platform enabling you to announce and share information quickly via your mobile devices. News often breaks on it often before mainstream can media can announce/publish it.

It’s even quite common for news anchors to quote the tweet handle of a politician or celebrity when delivering news these days.

Facebook:

Launched as the first real (public) social media platform. It was designed to connect university/college peers. It has since grown to be the one source of finding your old flames, colleagues, family.

Authorities and companies are known to have used it to find out criminals or veto job candidates.

The platform was even allegedly used as a source for political campaigns and meddling with outcomes of a certain major presidential election.

It has, since its inception in 2004, been a place where many applications such as gaming application developer Zynga have made millions by capitalizing on our addiction to mobile games.

Facebook also has its other uses. It serves as a large marketplace to sell things, sends instant messages (with video-calling), and provides us with security alerts in times of terror attacks and natural disasters.

LinkedIn:

This app is important but often overlooked source of company information, recruitment, and career-building website. Though it looks similar to Facebook, it is more career-oriented and a great source for recruiters to head-hunt find you online.

LinkedIn gives you an extra professional ‘leg-up’ and even enables you to quickly convert your profile into a well-structured PDFed CV.

So useful, that it was acquired by Microsoft late last year. It is a powerful resource for their CRM solutions to be able to track individuals, companies, and decision-makers.

Instagram:

This has become a lot more than a place to post pictures of your dog´s gourmet dinner. This picture-based app has a fully-fledged marketing engine backed up by hashtags like Twitter. Like Whatsapp, it also now belongs to Facebook.

It has become a necessary tool for both, individuals and businesses and of course, celebrities like Kim Kardashian.

Instagram took over, in terms of popularity, the likes of similar older picture sharing platforms such as Photobucket or Flickr.

WhatsApp:

Owned by Facebook (if you didn’t know). This phone and the desktop-based app got their edge by taking over the SMS function from mobile operators.

We don’t send SMSes anymore. And if you still do, it’s usually because your phone is too old – or you are up to something shady! 🙂

Blackberry (R.I.P) started this idea with the BBM Messenger. But like others that tried and failed using exclusivity, not everyone wanted a Blackberry just to use that feature.

Enter WhatsApp with the ability to use your mobile phone number rather than the device itself to set it up. And just like that, it snatched up the whole market!

Running off Wi-Fi or your mobile data, you can instantaneously share videos, links, and pictures.

You can use it to host – or rather – facilitate group events like the planning of a surprise party, a birthday party. It can help you also get serious things done. You can collaborate on assignments, prepare a presentation, or (for start-ups on a low budget) launch a marketing campaign.

The funniest thing is how we now have people walking with more authority – with the title of “WhatsApp group admin”.

Snapchat:

This animated short video-making application is more for the youth but you can also use it for enterntainment. Snapchat is used mostly by celebrities like DJ Khaled – who is often viewed as its ‘ambassador’. He even owns shares in the company.

It also has also recently surged in popularity (number of users) and earned a place with some of the business powerhouses on the NYSE.

20 November 2017

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