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Forbes
01-05-2025
- Automotive
- Forbes
The Car Worthy Of Your Digital Trust
Trust is an ephemeral, amorphous descriptor of consumers' behaviors, which in days of old would've ... More been described generically by "quality" but now has multiple words to describe it. Thirty years ago, the word 'trust' was invoked in automotive realms only when gauging the vehicle's overall quality. Yes, reliability or quality were consistently amongst the top five drivers of purchasing decisions in 1995 (along with price, safety, brand, and styling), but there weren't multiple definitions of trust and few quantifications beyond JD Power's Initial Quality Survey (IQS) or recalls. Then in 1995, the mass-produced, connected car became a reality with the launch of OnStar, and both the opinion of trust and the nomenclature expanded. In a recent study by Perficient, manufacturers of connected products ranked trust as the absolute lowest of influential factors for a customer's purchase decision, whereas consumers ranked it the highest, and commercial users ranked it the second highest. 'It's alarming that the manufacturers and their customers don't value trust in the same way,' summarizes Jim Hertzfeld, the Area Vice President for Strategy at Perficient. And just like the number of words describing snow in Inuit and Yupik (a.k.a. 'Eskimo'), the societal focus on automotive trust is birthing a combination of prefixes to articulate nuances about how the noun feels. A few possible prefixes defined herein shall explain a portion of the perplexing landscape: Fail-forward (trust), Cyber (trust), Personal (trust) and Nightingale (trust). MARCH 2025: The OTA & Software Updates Guide graphs the global software reflash capability versus ... More the frequency it's exercised, thereby demonstrating a difficult balance between consumer experience, trust, safety and technology enablement. Genesis is the only brand in the corner marked 'Safe & Trusted'. In a now famous, previously-internal corporate mantra, Mark Zuckerberg (CEO and co-Founder of Facebook), coined the phrase 'Move fast and break things.' To some extent, this has been the mentality of Silicon Valley's influence on software development over the past 5-10 years: don't worry over pesky defects since more and more vehicles – just like cellphones – can reflash all of the software post-production and, therein, fix any launched mistakes. Fail forward. This Over-the-Air (OTA) capability of reflashing is arguably the most confusing of the trusts since it invokes one of two opposing reactions from consumers: faith in software prowess (e.g., the automaker has impressive development capabilities that will defend me) or misgivings about bad behavior (e.g., laziness of upfront rigor via 'We'll fix it later' mentality). 'There's still a wide span of capabilities in the marketplace for Over-the-Air updates and conscious choices to be made on how frequently each automaker chooses to exercise it,' states Jeffrey Hannah, Chief Commercial Officer of SBD Automotive, an independent automotive technology research and strategy firm that tracks such automotive reflashing. 'This is really an evolving area of confidence which sits between the manufacturer and end consumer.' 'We have seen a noticeable uptick in initial quality problems, especially in software,' states SBD's North American Director, Alex Oyler, 'It is enabling bad behavior. What's happening below the surface there is that [automakers] are trying to increase the cadence of product development to launch new products, but they haven't been able to simplify the complexity out of their business.' The global digital footprint continues to be hacked around the world with increasing regularity, yet ... More cyber trust remains an expectation of customers. The most ephemeral of the earned faiths is cybersecurity trust since all parties understand that new threats evolve every day, that any well-funded hacker can penetrate even the securest of designs, and that global automotive attacks continue to rise. And yet the customer's expectation is quiet, bulletproof protection. To sustain that confidence, the automaker must pivot by utilizing that same reflashing capability. 'You are no longer necessarily building a vehicle for all of what it shall be able to do for its entire life,' states Bill Mazzara, the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Chairman of the Vehicle Electrical and Hardware Security Taskforce. 'Instead, you're now building for [intended, future functionality] one day. We're headed towards a world where products will get updated, grow, and live their life. Of course, good intent never leads to actual security. Hackers will hack you for your faults in implementation rather than your cult of intent.' Consumers have an inherent, unspoken assumption that corporations will safeguard their private ... More information, however historically this has not been universally true. The most obvious trust issue is 'Will the corporations be good stewards of my personal information?' For instance, one recent vulnerability discovered within twelve brands permitted employees and possibly hackers to understand exactly where a vehicle has been over the past year within the accuracy of a parking space. Some 2024 vehicles from BYD, a leading Electric Vehicle (EV) automaker in China, had internal SIM cards that could transmit audio from inside the vehicle (e.g., the Atto 3) without the driver's knowledge. And a portion of OnStar's service that enables an insurance discount based upon drivers' habits for safe behavior shall be discontinued in 2025 since numerous privacy complaints, lawsuits, and a Federal Trade Commission ban (for providing precise geolocation data and driving behavior without adequate, affirmative consent) have made the business prohibitive and likely strained trust with some General Motors's customers. These are just a few examples from the past year, let alone the last thirty. On the positive side, digital information has the ability to provide an additional safety value. OnStar had a long-standing ad campaign called 'Real Stories' – and still has a devoted website – which featured customers' real-world accounting for technology saving their lives. Additional, innovative post-crash services have been birthed using digital information to improve the outcomes of the crash's victims. Even from a preventative standpoint, a whole sector of product development called Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS) relies upon digital information going to and from the cloud to improve maps, algorithms, responses, etc. Yes, akin to Florence Nightengale, the social reformer, statistician and founder of modern nursing, the vehicle's flow of information can provide a heathier outcome and, therein, improve the digital trust. This discourse probably confuses and frustrates the reader even more. 'Which ONE vehicle can I trust? How do I parse through this to make a buying decision?' I'd love to give you the decoder ring or point you to the window sticker's 5-star rating for trust. But they don't exist. And it would be outdated tomorrow. Here's my best advice: watch the number of software recalls. If a brand has to keep cleaning-up its messes, it obviously hasn't figured out how to prevent the messes.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Save big on Canadian brands during Amazon's Big Spring Sale — 25 best deals on grocery, garden, home and more
Amazon Canada's Big Spring Sale is on now through Monday (March 31), which means it's prime time to stock up on key categories, including household items, technology, lawn and garden, personal care, and more. Many Canadian shoppers have a desire to buy from Canadian brands, so we did the leg work for you and rounded up the best Canadian brands featured in Amazon Canada's Big Spring Sale, including food and drink, vitamins and supplements, household products and kitchen goods, lawn care and gardening, and much more. Scroll through to see which deals are worth snapping up this week. Best home and kitchen deals Best health and personal care deals Best grocery and gourmet food deals Best beauty products deals Best toys, books and music deals Best office supplies deals Shop Canadian storefront Whether you're looking for a snack or a quick breakfast option, Honey Bunches of Oat never misses. This almond-flavoured one is nearly half off, and reviewers like the price. Get ahead of your Easter shopping with this 30-pack of Smarties in limited edition pastel colour. Perfect for Easter egg hunts, baskets, or sharing!This Quebec-based retailer is a leader in plant-based products, and shoppers love the smell of this dish soap. These unscented, compostable bags are ideal for countertop compost bins. Shoppers like the easy drawstring closure. Shoppers say this garlic powder is "big on flavour" and "very useful" when it comes to cooking. The larger 525 gram container means it will last a while, even in busy kitchens. This bottle comes with 60 capsules to stimulate healthy hair and nails. Many reviewers say they are "amazed" by their hair growth and nail strength. This gentle, dermatologist-recommended moisturizer is "non-greasy" and "absorbs quickly" according to Amazon shoppers. This natural almond butter by Canadian brand Yupik is unsweetened, with no added sugar. It's also gluten-free and kosher, making it great for snacking, baking, and spreading. Another option to stock your spice cupboard with, this cajun seasoning is "cost effective" and "very delicious" according to shoppers. This large format two-litre refill of hand soap will last a while. Plus, it smells like sweet apple, with notes of cucumber and earl grey. Amazon shoppers say the formula doesn't dry out their hands. Made for indoor and outdoor plants, this Canadian fertilizer helps flowers, vegetables, succulents, and more thrive. Reviewers say the liquid fertilizer keeps plants "healthy and thriving." If you're looking for a low-maintenance ground cover for your lawn or garden, this pack of white clover seeds can cover 1,000 square feet. It's meant to boost soil health and attract pollinators, like bees and butterflies. This 30-pack of chocolate chip breakfast bars are a crowdpleaser, given that they're gluten-free and nut-free. Amazon shoppers appreciate that they are low in sugar, with only 7 grams per bar. This functional mushroom coffee brand is made with chaga and lion's mane mushrooms and no added sugars. Reviewers say the flavour is "great." This leave-in hair product targets frizz-prone hair while protecting against heat tools. Reviewers say the spray left their hair "pin straight" and "super shiny." Keep your medicine cabinet stocked with this two-pack of isopropyl rubbing alcohol, which comes equipped with a free spray bottle attachment. This variety pack of 19 wildflower seeds includes a mix of perennial and annual seeds, and it covers up to 1,000 square feet. Plus, it's specifically designed for the Canadian climate! These Omega 3 liquid gels come with 30 soft gels with 1,000 mg per pill. Reviewers say the supplements are "high quality." This alkaline water pitcher filters out contaminants and adds minerals. The result is "crystal clear" water that "tastes great," according to reviewers. This pineapple mango superfood powder is made in Canada with natural ingredients, including spirulina, kale, spinach, sweet potato, mushrooms, broccoli, and fruits like acai and apple. Backed by nearly 4,000 reviews, this bone broth powder is a high protein alternative to traditional bouillon cubes intended for drinking on its own or adding to meals. Plus, it's sourced from cage-free chickens and from added hormones and antibiotics. Grill enthusiasts will love this five-pack set of spice blends, including savoury steak, better burger, backyard BBQ rub, cajun creole, and Jamaican jerk. Reviewers like the flavour combinations and say it's "not high on sodium." Boost your daily intake of greens with this powder, ideal for adding into smoothies or drinking mixed with water. Reviewers note the powder "tastes good" and "mixes well." This six-pack set of laundry detergent is formulated to be safe for babies. It's made with 98 per cent naturally sourced ingredients and dermatologically tested. This Canadian-made eight-piece set from Meyer is a great starter kit, complete with three pots, one pan, and a steamer insert, all made from quality stainless steel.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alaska Natives want the US military to clean up its toxic waste
In June 1942, Japan's invasion of the Aleutian islands in Alaska prompted the U.S. military to activate the Alaska territorial guard, an Army reserve made up of volunteers who wanted to help protect the U.S. So many of the volunteers were from Alaska's Indigenous peoples — Aleut, Inupiak, Yupik, Tlingit, and many others — that the guard was nicknamed the 'Eskimo Scouts.' When World War II ended and the reserve force ceased operations in 1947, the U.S. approached the Indigenous Yupik people of Alaska with another ask: Could the Air Force set up 'listening posts' on the island of Sivuqaq, also known as St. Lawrence Island, to help with the intelligence gathering needed to win the Cold War? Viola Waghiyi, who is Yupik from Sivuqaq, said the answer was a resounding yes. 'Our grandfathers and fathers volunteered for the Alaska territorial guard,' she said. 'We were very patriotic.' But that trust was abused, Waghiyi said. The U.S. military eventually abandoned its Air Force and Army bases, leaving the land polluted with toxic chemicals such as fuel, mercury, and polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, that are known as 'forever chemicals' because they persist so long in the environment. The contamination was largely due to spilled and leaking fuel from storage tanks and pipes, both above ground and below ground. More chemical waste came from electrical transformers, abandoned metals and 55-gallon drums. Now, Waghiyi is the environmental health and justice program director at the Alaska Community Action on Toxics, an organization dedicated to limiting the effects of toxic substances on Alaska's residents and environment. Last week, the organization filed a complaint to the United Nations special rapporteur on toxics and human rights, in partnership with the U.C. Berkeley Environmental Law Clinic. Their complaint calls for the United Nations to investigate how military waste on Sivuqaq continues to violate the rights of the people who live there, such as the right to a clean and healthy environment and Indigenous peoples' right to free, prior, and informed consent to what happens on their land. 'By exposing the Yupik people of Sivuqaq to polluted drinking water sources, air, and soil, and by contaminating local native foods; by causing pervasive human exposure to hazardous chemicals through multiple routes; by toxifying the broader ecosystem; and by not cleaning up contamination sufficiently to protect human health and the environment, the U.S. Air Force and Army Corps of Engineers violated human rights long recognized in international law,' the complaint says. This submission from Alaska is part of a larger, global effort to raise awareness of military toxic waste by the United Nations. The U.N. special rapporteur on toxics and human rights is collecting public input on military activities and toxic waste until April 1. The information collected will be used in a report presented to the U.N. General Assembly in October. The two shuttered bases in Sivuqaq, Alaska, are now classified as 'formerly used defense,' or FUD, sites, overseen by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and more than $130 million has been spent to remove the contamination. John Budnick, a spokesman for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Alaska, said the cleanup is considered complete but that the agency is reviewing the site every five years 'to ensure the selected remedies continue to be protective of human health and the environment.' 'We have completed the work at Northeast Cape, but additional follow-up actions may result from the monitoring phase of the Formerly Used Defense Sites Program,' he said. The last site visit occurred last July and an updated review report is expected to be released this summer. The federal Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, similarly concluded in 2013 that an additional EPA cleanup wouldn't significantly differ from what the Army Corps of Engineers is doing and declined to place the sites on the EPA's list of hazardous waste cleanup priorities. A 2022 study found that so far, federal cleanup efforts have been inadequate. 'High levels of persistent organic pollutants and toxic metals continue to leach from the Northeast Cape FUD site despite large-scale remediation that occurred in the early 2000s,' the authors concluded. The persisting pollution has garnered the attention of Alaska's state Dept. of Environmental Conservation which oversees the cleanup of contaminated sites. Stephanie Buss, contaminated sites program manager at the agency, said her office has asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to do additional cleanup at Northeast Cape. 'These active contaminated sites have not met closure requirements,' she said. The second former base, Gambell, was classified as completed but still lacks land use controls, she noted. 'DEC takes community health concerns seriously and will continue to provide oversight of the conditions at its active sites in accordance with the state's regulatory framework to ensure an appropriate response that protects human health and welfare,' Buss said. That same 2022 study found that 89 percent of the fish around the Northeast Cape base contained mercury exceeding the levels the EPA deemed appropriate for people who rely on subsistence fishing. 'All fish sampled near the FUD site exceeded the EPA's PCB guidelines for cancer risk for unrestricted human consumption,' the researchers further found. Waghiyi said the contamination displaced 130 people, and has left her friends and family with a lasting legacy of illness. 'It's not a matter of if we'll get cancer, but when,' Waghiyi said. Her father died of cancer. Her mother had a stillborn child. Waghiyi herself is a cancer survivor and has had three miscarriages. 'We feel that they have turned their back on us,' Waghiyi said of the U.S. military. 'We wanted our lands to be turned back in the same condition when they turned over.' The U.S. military has a long history of contaminating lands and waters through military training and battles sites, including on Indigenous lands. Citizens of the Navajo Nation in Arizona and Yakama Nation in Washington continue to raise concerns about the ongoing effects of military nuclear testing on their lands and health. In the Marshall Islands, fishing around certain atolls is discouraged due to high rates of toxicity due to nuclear testing and other military training. On Guam, chemicals from an active Air Force base have contaminated parts of the islandʻs sole-source aquifer that serves 70% of the population. Last year, a federal report found that climate change threatens to unearth even more U.S. military nuclear waste in both the Marshall Islands and Greenland. In 2021, the Navy in Hawaiʻi poisoned 90,000 people when jet fuel leached from aging, massive underground storage tanks into the drinking water supply after the Navy ignored years of warning to upgrade the tanks or remove the fuel. The federal government spent hundreds of millions of dollars to remove unexploded ordnance from the island of Kahoʻolawe, a former bombing range in Hawaiʻi, but the island is still considered dangerous to walk on because of the risk of more ordnance unearthing due to extensive erosion. The complaint filed last week by the Alaska Community Action on Toxics calls for the United Nations to write to U.S. federal and state agencies and call upon them to honor a 1951 agreement between the U.S. government and the Sivuqaq Yupik people that prohibited polluting the land. The agreement said that the Sivuqaq Tribes would allow the Air Force to construct surveillance sites to spy on the Soviet Union, but they had four conditions, including allowing Indigenous peoples to continue to hunt, fish and trap where desired and preventing outsiders from killing their game. Finally, the agreement said that 'any refuse or garbage will not be dumped in streams or near the beach within the proposed area.' 'The import of the agreement was clear: The military must not despoil the island; must protect the resources critical to Indigenous Yupik inhabitants' sustenance; and must leave the island in the condition they found it, which ensured their health and well-being,' the Alaska Community Action on Toxics wrote in their complaint. 'This is a burden we didn't create,' Waghiyi said. This story was originally published by Grist with the headline Alaska Natives want the US military to clean up its toxic waste on Mar 19, 2025.
