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05.22.19 telecommunications

U.S. government eases up on Huawei with 90-day exemption

Huawei can continue to function normally, for now.
Image: FRED DUFOUR/AFP/Getty Images

The Trump administration is temporarily easing its ban on Huawei.

In an announcement on Monday, the U.S. Department of Commerce said it would be giving the Chinese tech giant a 90-day exemption from trade restrictions, thanks to a Temporary General License (TGL).

Last week, Huawei was added to the department’s entity list, which bars the company from buying U.S. parts and components without U.S. government approval, citing national security concerns regarding its telecommunications equipment.

The TGL, effective Monday, will allow Huawei users to continue receiving software updates on their phones, while the company can continue to purchase parts from U.S. suppliers.

SEE ALSO: Why Trump’s Huawei ban could cripple the company

“The Temporary General License grants operators time to make other arrangements and the Department space to determine the appropriate long term measures for Americans and foreign telecommunications providers that currently rely on Huawei equipment for critical services,” Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said in a statement. 

“In short, this license will allow operations to continue for existing Huawei mobile phone users and rural broadband networks.”

The ban prompted Google to revoke Huawei’s Android license, while chipmakers Intel and Qualcomm reportedly froze supply of its products to the Chinese tech giant. In a statement, Huawei reassured customers it would continue to receive support — despite the row. 

“Huawei will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products, covering those that have been sold and that are still in stock globally,” the statement reads.

“We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order to provide the best experience for all users globally.”

WATCH: Jeff Bezos unveils new ‘Blue Moon’ lunar lander

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/huawei-temporary-relief-ban/

05.16.19 telecommunications

The Huawei Mate X Is the Coolest Folding Phone Weve Seen Yet

The U.S. – Huawei war is heating up.
Image: Kevin Frayer / Stringer / getty images

The U.S. government is already prohibited from using Huawei’s telecommunications equipment. Soon, the same might be true for U.S. companies. 

According to a Reuters report Wednesday, president Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order that would bar U.S. companies from using telecommunications equipment made by companies which pose a national security risk. This would pave the way for an effective ban for companies on doing business with Huawei, and potentially other Chinese companies such as ZTE. 

SEE ALSO: There’s no stopping Huawei’s smartphone growth

The report, which cites three unnamed U.S. officials familiar with the matter, says the order has been under consideration for more than a year, but has been delayed several times — and it may get delayed again. 

And while the order reportedly won’t name any specific countries and companies, it’s tailored towards Huawei, which the U.S. government deems to be a spy threat (and which Huawei has vehemently denied).

The U.S. started a soft ban on Huawei equipment around December 2017, when a group of U.S. lawmakers sent a letter warning about Huawei’s role in Chinese “espionage.” In January 2018, U.S. carriers shunned Huawei’s newly-launched flagship, the Mate 10 Pro. And in August 2018, president Trump signed an executive order banning U.S. government agencies from purchasing or using telecommunications equipment from certain Chinese technology companies, including ZTE and Huawei. In December, Huawei CFO Wanzhou Meng was arrested in Canada on suspicion of violating U.S. sanctions concerning Iran. And the U.S. has been trying to coax other countries to avoid using Huawei’s 5G equipment, with Australia, New Zealand and Japan following suit. 

The new order, if enacted, won’t change much for big wireless carriers, which aren’t using Huawei equipment, Reuters says. But it will affect small, rural carriers, some 25 percent of which use either Huawei or ZTE equipment in their networks. 

The order would also further intensify the trade war between China and the U.S., which has been heating up in recent days. 

Meanwhile, Huawei continues trying to clear its name, especially in countries which have been reluctant to impose a ban, including Germany and the UK. On Tuesday, The Guardian reported that Huawei would be prepared to sign a “no-spy agreement” with the British government. 

WATCH: The Huawei Mate X Is the Coolest Folding Phone We’ve Seen Yet

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/trump-order-huawei-ban/

04.15.19 Credit Cards

You can now pay for your fried chicken with a smile because credit cards are so 2016

Treat. Yo. Self.
Image: Mark Lennihan/AP/REX/Shutterstock

Never underestimate the power of single people buying themselves stuff. 

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba reported its highest individual sales day ever on Singles Day, an informal holiday dedicated to people who aren’t in relationships. 

SEE ALSO: 7 in 10 people in Southeast Asia scrambled to buy on ‘Singles’ Day’ via their mobiles

Singles Day is on 11/11 (see all those “1”s? they symbolize being alone) and has become in recent years a bigger Chinese shopping day than Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Alibaba was a pioneer in offering discounts on the holiday, and their sales are promoted with a live TV show advertising the discounts available on the website. 

This year, the sale brought in $30 billion for Alibaba, compared to $25 billion in 2017 and $17.8 billion in 2016. 

One wonders if the marketing is getting better or if there are just way more people looking for a Single’s Day treat in these lonely times. 

WATCH: You can now pay for your fried chicken with a smile because credit cards are so 2016

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/alibaba-singles-day-sales-record/

09.23.17 Telecom

Hands On: This is the Apple Watch’s most important update yet

Image: karissa bell/mashable

Apple just upped its smartwatch game in a huge way.

The Apple Watch Series 3 is the biggest and most consequential update to date. By adding LTE connectivity, Apple has delivered an upgrade that will completely change how you use the device.

SEE ALSO: Apple’s biggest announcement won’t be the iPhone 8, but HOW you use it

Earlier iterations of the Apple Watch, and frankly, most other smartwatches, have been hamstrung by their dependency on your phone for data. By completely untethering the watch from your iPhone, it’s not a completely different story. 

Prior to today’s unveiling there was some speculation as to whether Apple would significantly change up the design with Series 3. Not only did Apple not change the form factor of its watch, they managed to keep the case size nearly identical even with the additional LTE radio and SIM.

Image: KARISSA BELL / Mashable

The only difference is that the case is now slightly thicker. The company says it’s the equivalent of about two sheets of paper — but it’s not noticeable that I could see.

The most noticeable difference is the red dot on the Digital Crown, which doesn’t actually do anything other than let people know you’re wearing the latest Apple Watch, which is, of course, the point. 

Speaking of colors, the Series 3 also comes in a few new finishes: a new shade of pinkish gold and a gray ceramic. Both are nice, if somewhat predictable, additions. 

The new gold finish.

Image: karissa Bell/mashable

Gray ceramic.

Image: karissa Bell/mashable

Naturally, there are a load of new band styles and colors to go with the new watches. The woven nylon bands now come in new patterns, and there’s a new sport band made of soft nylon that promises that is much more adjustable than the existing sport band.

New bands and colors aren’t why you’re going to want to upgrade your Apple Watch, though. You’re going to upgrade because LTE connectivity completely changes what you can do with it.

The new sport band is more adjustable so it can fit closer to your wrist.

Image: karisa Bell/mashable

Yes, you can send text messages and make phone calls from your wrist even when your iPhone is at home. But it also means you can ask Siri to call you an Uber or a Lyft, stream music, and use any other Apple Watch-enabled app. 

All this comes with one important caveat, though: You’ll have to fork over extra money to your carrier each month for your watch. And even though carriers tend to charge significantly less for smartwatch data, handing even a little more money over to telecom companies just plain sucks. 

If you can get past that, though, there are other reasons to upgrade.

The latest version of watchOS also comes with new fitness tracking features, like the ability to track high intensity interval training. There’s also a built-in altimeter, which allows the watch and watch apps to better track your elevations — a huge update for skiers and snowboarders. 

There are also a load of upgrades to the heart rate monitor. Now, the watch’s heart rate monitor can track your heart rate over time and, when paired with the Health app on the iPhone, surface all your past heart rate data.

As Apple pointed out during its keynote, this has big implications for how people monitor their health, since they can better track changes in their heart rate over time. 

WATCH: If you wear an apple watch, you’re an a**hole

Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/09/12/apple-watch-series-3-hands-on/

09.23.17 Merchant Services

With the iPhone 8 and iPhone X, are consumers caught in the middle?

Today’s retail launch of the Apple iPhone 8 and 8 Plus is a crucial test for Apple’s riskiest iPhone strategy.

For the first time, Apple introduced its latest iPhone upgrades while simultaneously teasing something better coming soon — what, by Apple’s own admission, is “the future.”

SEE ALSO: Here are the first photographer-shot iPhone 8 pictures

Apple’s iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are, based on my review and what I’ve seen elsewhere on the web (and even in teardowns), “S” series devices in full-number-update clothing. Except for the glass back, the handsets maintain the iPhone 6 design introduced in 2014. Apple swapped out the A10 Fusion chip for the incredibly powerful A11 Bionic CPU, but left the screen and cameras largely unchanged.

I really like the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, but the changes come directly from Apple’s “S” playbook.

There’s nothing wrong with any of this, and I really like the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, but the changes come directly from Apple’s “S” playbook: Upgrades instead of an overhaul, so the number stays the same to signal the subtler nature of the changes.

Instead of delivering the iPhone 7S (and 7S Plus), though, Apple gave them the full-number update treatment and simultaneously introduced the iPhone X (which, to remind, is pronounced “ten”). With its aggressive redesign and cutting-edge technology like the TrueDepth camera module, edge-to-edge OLED display and retirement of the home button, the iPhone X earns the name. It’s the true apex iPhone and easily the most coveted product in Apple’s iPhone lineup.

On Friday, the day Apple put the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus on sale in retail stores (after a few days of online store pre-sales) I started reading reports of sparse crowds at Apple Stores. In London, there were more Apple employees in the store than queued up iPhone 8 buyers, and it appears to be a very similar picture in the U.S. To be fair, iPhone retail launch events have been in decline since the iPhone 6 launch.

At the same time, I launched a little online poll:

People want the X.

Image: lanc eulanoff

Granted the results aren’t exactly scientific, but the sentiment is clear: More than half the people responding are sitting on their hands and waiting until the sexier iPhone X ships in November, even after numerous reports said supplies could be so low that some people won’t get the smartphone until next year. 

What if, I wondered, Apple made a terrible mistake?

This strategy of offering the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus first, while the real update, one that some believe is prohibitively expensive, looms just a few weeks later, is an unusual choice. In fact, it could squeeze Apple from both sides. iPhone consumers usually want the shiniest, new thing, but they don’t want to pay an arm and a leg (The argument could be made they they’ve been doing so for ages, but the loss of carrier subsidies and the psychographic impact of a $1,000 price should not be underestimated).

Could iPhone consumers feel caught in the middle between the phone they really want, but can’t afford, and the more reasonably priced device that doesn’t excite them because it’s not Apple’s ultimate iPhone?

Looked at this way, this bold iPhone strategy could be Apple CEO Tim Cook’s first big misstep… or another stroke of brilliance.

One iPhone for all

Ten years ago, we had one iPhone to choose from. Even as Android competitors started introducing a wider array of handsets and the early, large-screen devices that, at the time, few (certainly not Steve Jobs) believed would be successful, Apple maintained its one (small-screen) handset strategy

That strategy persisted until 2013, when Tim Cook unveiled the iPhone 5C alongside the iPhone 5S. Suddenly, Apple’s new phone lineup doubled in size. It set the stage for the company’s first big-screen iPhone, the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus, which launched in 2014 next to the 4.7-inch iPhone 6. 

Personally, I loved this shift. It acknowledged changing smartphone tastes and started to give people design and price options. 

Today, we have a lineup of eight iPhones that range in price from the $349, 4-inch, iPhone SE to the $999, 5.8-inch, iPhone X. There’s a lot of choice in there and I have no doubt that consumers welcome this. However, the core iPhone user, the person who bought the first iPhone as a status symbol and has upgraded like clockwork to every new device each year is possibly facing a dilemma.

This bold iPhone strategy could be Apple CEO Tim Cook’s first big misstep…or another stroke of brilliance.

If they bought the iPhone 7 last year, are they planning on buying the iPhone 8? Probably not. It certainly wasn’t my recommendation. So that means they wait for the iPhone X.

As Mashable Senior Tech Analyst Raymond Wong pointed out to me: This is potentially a “win-win” for Apple. Consumers who don’t buy the cheaper iPhone 8 or 8 Plus, will just wait for the expensive iPhone X.

He may be right, but what if anemic iPhone X supplies in 2017 mean that most people are waiting or buying their iPhone X in 2018?

“So what?” you might respond. Apple still makes the money, right?

Yes, but what does the Apple’s first quarter look like if demand for the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus is low (we have yet to hear about pre-sale numbers, but there have been zero reports of delivery delays on pre-sales, a possible sign of soft demand) and tens of millions of customers wait for iPhone X in 2018?

Apple’s first quarter, the one that includes holiday sales, has looked amazing for almost a decade precisely because of the iPhone, which sells anywhere from 40 to 75 million units in the first three months after launch. Those sales are driven by the Apple’s hottest new device and, in this situation, that isn’t the iPhone 8.

Things could still work out in Apple’s favor, especially if they just collect all the pre-orders for the iPhone X, put those sales on the 2017 Q1 books and then let people wait for delivery until next year when they can make enough of the 5.8-inch handsets.

Alternatively, Apple could benefit from the unusually high number of upgraders ready to buy new phones. Samsung told me earlier this year that some 50 million consumers were at the end of the 18-month smartphone ownership cycle. They hope to sweep a lot of them up in the Galaxy S8/S8+ and Note 8 launches. But they’re up for grabs for Apple, too, which could sell them any one of eight different iPhones.

I’m confident Apple will sell millions of new iPhones, but if most them end up being the iPhone X, the question of when those sales happen starts to look really murky. Will they still be meaningful if many happen after the Samsung Galaxy S9 is a reality? Or iPhone 11/iPhone X2 rumors start to mount?

How the world — and Apple’s customers — respond to a protracted iPhone X launch is anyone’s guess.

Watch: Secrets of the Steve Jobs Theater

Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/09/22/could-apple-risky-iphone-8-and-x-strategy-backfire/

09.20.17 Credit Cards

China’s biggest tech CEO makes a grand entrance at a stadiumas Michael Jackson

You probably wouldn’t see Tim Cook doing this anytime soon.

Jack Ma, Alibaba CEO and Asia’s richest man, turned up at his company’s 18th anniversary birthday bash dressed as Michael Jackson.

SEE ALSO: The guy who started DJI becomes Asia’s youngest tech billionaire

He first rode onstage in a black motorcycle, before getting off and striking a number of poses, in a black and gold outfit similar to Jackson’s iconic Dangerous World Tour suit.

Image: weibo

Image: WEIBO

But because he was wearing a mask, the stadium of 40,000 Alibaba employees only broke into surprised applause when he stepped forward and took off the bejewelled accessory. What an entrance.

Watch the whole performance:

At the end of the opening sequence (which included Ma’s deputies marching onstage in Beyoncé’s “Formation” style) Ma put on a black helmet, and rode his motorcycle into a cage, which then hoisted him into the ceiling.

People watching the live stream of the party on Weibo were rapt.

“Not bad, an admirable effort,” said one.

“Okay, I’m applying for a job at Alibaba,” another user commented.

“Formation” style

Image: WEIBO

Why Jack Ma is Asia’s richest man

Alibaba is often referred to as China’s Amazon, running the biggest B2B marketplace, as well as the consumer retail juggernaut, Taobao.

Remember that last year in November, Taobao sales on its Singles’ Day shopping event (China’s version of Black Friday) moved $14.3 billion in merchandise in 15 hours.

Consider that in comparison, Black Friday last year saw $4.45 billion in spending.

The stadium in which Ma addressed his 40,000 employees.

Image: weibo

Riding high on Alibaba’s success, Ma addressed the crowd, celebrating Alibaba’s status as the world’s sixth-largest company in terms of market capitalisation.

The company has 54,000 employees globally.

Image: WEIBO

WATCH: You can now pay for your fried chicken with a smile because credit cards are so 2016

Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/09/12/jack-ma-michael-jackson/

09.15.17 Merchant Services

The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus pre-orders start right now

Apple's iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus
Image: Apple

The moment has arrived: You can now pre-order Apple’s iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus. 

If you haven’t been paying attention, those are not very close relatives with the radically new, huge-screened iPhone X; instead, they have a lot more in common with the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. 

SEE ALSO: If you own an iPhone 7, you absolutely should not buy an iPhone 8

So, what’s new? Well, besides the brand new gold/pink color, the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus have better cameras compared to their predecessors. They also sport Apple’s new A11 Bionic processor, they have wireless charging, and the speakers are a little bit louder. 

The design was slightly changed — the new phones have a glass back now — but the form factor is the same as the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. 

The iPhone 8 starts at $700 for the 64 GB model, while the iPhone 8 Plus starts at $800 for the 64 GB model.

You can pre-order both devices right now from Apple’s online store, with the shipping date being Sept. 22., though some models are listed as shipping in 1-2 weeks. 

WATCH: The iPhone X is here—and we are drooling

Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/09/15/iphone-8-pre-order/

09.12.17 expense manager

A Donald Trump tweet knocked $6 billion off Amazon’s value

Image: alex wong/Getty Images

Donald Trump knocked $6 billion off of Amazon before most of the country was awake.

In a tweet sent at 6:12 a.m. EST, Trump claimed Amazon was “doing great damage to tax paying retailers,” resulting in the loss of jobs.

Amazon is doing great damage to tax paying retailers. Towns, cities and states throughout the U.S. are being hurt – many jobs being lost!

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 16, 2017

SEE ALSO: The number of tweets Donald Trump has sent since becoming president is downright shocking

That immediately sent Amazon shares down sharply, resulting in a decline of around $6 billion of the company’s market capitalization in a matter of minutes.

Image: Google finance

Such is the power of Trump’s tweets.

The move isn’t life threatening for Amazon, which is still worth in excess of $460 billion. It does, however, highlight growing concern that Trump may be willing to target Amazon, which has already stirred rumblings about the need for greater regulation to limit the company’s growing power.

Amazon began to draw Trump’s ire in late 2015 due to CEO Jeff Bezos’s ownership of the Washington Post, which aggressively reported on the Trump campaign.

Trump went after Bezos, claiming that his ownership of the Post was so that he could reduce Amazon taxes. This wouldn’t work, since the Post and Amazon are two entirely separate companies.

The @washingtonpost, which loses a fortune, is owned by @JeffBezos for purposes of keeping taxes down at his no profit company, @amazon.

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 7, 2015

That was just the beginning. Since then, Trump has on three other occasions launched tweets at Amazon, including the time the president threatened Amazon with an ‘internet tax.‘

The #AmazonWashingtonPost, sometimes referred to as the guardian of Amazon not paying internet taxes (which they should) is FAKE NEWS!

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 28, 2017

Trump’s latest tweet on Wednesday appears to have been spurred by a Washington Post editorial published Tuesday night entitled “The nation can only weep,” which calls out Trump’s response after Charlottesville.

“That car in Charlottesville did not kill or wound just the 20 bodies it struck. It damaged the nation. Mr. Trump not only failed to help the country heal; he made the wound wider and deeper,” the Post editorial wrote.

WATCH: Neil deGrasse Tyson’s nephew drops the mic on cultural appropriation

Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/08/16/donald-trump-amazon-tweet/

09.06.17 banks

WhatsApp launches new business features for customer service messages

WhatsApp is rolling out some new business-friendly features.
Image: brittany herbert/mashable

WhatsApp is now open for business(es).

The Facebook-owned chat platform just announced that it will test some new features designed specifically for business-to-customer messaging, following up on the rumors that it would expand on its offerings.

The new features include the closed pilot of a new WhatsApp verification program, which tags corporate accounts with green check marks just like Facebook’s verified business Pages, and a whole new WhatsApp Business app.   

SEE ALSO: How to use WhatsApp on your computer to message more

The Business app will launch for free as a means for WhatsApp to test out its new initiatives with small companies, but it’s not clear exactly what types of services it will offer outside of general customer service communications.

WhatsApp is also planning on launching an “enterprise solution” for large companies with international presences (think big banks, airlines, etc.) so they can better connect with their customer bases for direct updates on statements, delivery confirmations, and other communications. 

Importantly, the service will give WhatsApp another opportunity to monetize, which has been a challenge for the messaging-heavy platform since it was acquired by Facebook. Chief Operating Officer Matt Idema told the Wall Street Journal that WhatsApp will charge a fee for the enterprise solution, but admitted that “We don’t have the details of monetization figured out.”  

WhatsApp, with its daily user base of over a billion people, could become an integral point in customer service initiatives, especially in areas where it’s already being used for that purpose. The new Business features might mean that corporate accounts will start sliding into your DMs — but it was inevitable for the platform to bring in some money on its own.   

WATCH: An army of robots planned, designed, and built this 3-story house from the ground up

Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/09/05/whatsapp-for-business-enterprise-service-apps/

09.06.17 mobile wallet

HBO hack ransom note: Watch the video, set to Game of Thrones music

HBO is at the center of a massive cyberattack putting 1.5 terabytes of valuable intellectual property and private information at risk. Now the hackers who purportedly executed the attack are back to brag about it.

The hackers who dumped unreleased HBO show scripts, videos, internal documents, emails, and more last week have returned with a second batch of data containing even more sensitive information.

SEE ALSO: Remotely hacking ships shouldn’t be this easy, and yet …

Mashable was able to obtain a portion of the new documents, and they appear to be real. We’ve reached out to HBO to confirm the legitimacy of the files and will update when we hear back.

The second leak includes purportedly leaked scripts and full seasons of various HBO shows, including Curb Your Enthusiasm and Ballers, in addition to more scandalous material like what appears to be HBO CEO Richard Plepler’s contact list.

Image: Mashable

But perhaps the most perplexing is a roughly 5-minute long video ransom note set to the Game of Thrones soundtrack included in the dump. In the video, hackers claim to have reproduced the ransom message sent directly to HBO CEO Richard Plepler demanding money for the stolen data.

“Our demand is clear and Non-Negotiable: We want XXXX dollars to stop leaking your Data,” the video message says. “”HBO spends 12 million for Market Research and 5 million for GOT7 advertisements. So consider us another budget for your advertisements!”

Our best guess is the “XXXX” included throughout the video is to serve as a redaction of the ransom amount asked for by the hackers.

Later the video text says, We often launch two major operations in a year and our annual income is about 12-15 million dollars…You pay our 6 month salary in bitcoin and we get away from your map.” That would make a ransom of $6-7.5 million.

Update 8/8/17 (12:11 p.m. ET): An HBO spokesperson sent Mashable the following statement in response to the video:

HBO believed that further leaks might emerge from this cyber incidentwhen we confirmed it last week. As we said,the forensic reviewis ongoing. While it has been reported that a number of emails have been made public, the review to date has not given us a reason to believe that our e-mail system as a whole has been compromised.We continue to work around the clock with outside cybersecurity firms and law enforcement to resolve the incident.Meanwhile, ourdedicated employeescontinue to focus on deliveringthe high quality of entertainment and service for which we are known.

Update 8/8/17 (12:26 p.m. ET): Here is full text of the ransom message purportedly sent to HBO CEO Richard Plepler:

Dear Richard Plepler;

I am Mr. Smith and I have the honor to inform you, on behalf of my colleagues, that we successfully breached into your huge network.

We are glad to say that in a complicated cyber operation, infiltration to your network accomplished and we obtained most valuable informations. (1.5 Terabyte)

We confess that HBO was one of our difficult targets to deal with but we succeeded. (It took about 6 months).

By penetrating your Internal Network and other related platforms, we obtained your highly confidential Documents, IT related data, Scripts and etc. these data dump, as you will see, contains HBO’s Various Contracts, Mutual Agreements, Human resources, internal structure, International affiliates, Business strategies, international Marketing, IT infrastructures, producing films & Series (with very detail info!), budget detail for major operations, how you sell and how much!, various strategic insights in every aspects, confidential research, internal letters & Tax Evading Proofs! & Nielsen’s Dirty Job! & etc.

Also, we obtained full scripts and cast list of your (and our) very popular TV series; Game of thrones S7.

You concealed GOT7 very carefully so we can’t find it due to lack of time although we are so close. Instead, we produced some tiny mini-series of GOT 7 for you which be able to shock the entire world!!!

What we got from GOT 7 not only put an end to fate of this season but also corrupts your idea and efforts to season 8.

Don’t hesitate to search, we obtained enormous amount of Full scripts and full length films and series which will be broadcast in upcoming months! We put our logo “HBP Is Falling” on all of them for future possible release !!! We are hackers for accept our apology for amateur mixing!

Now, we have your precious data which costs you millions of dollars: Insecure2, The Deuce S1, Barry S1, Room 104 S1, Ballers S3, Vice Principals S2, Steven Spielberg Documentary, A world in disarray, Tour de Pharmacy, Deffiant Ones and etc.

We noticed that HBO seriously keeps its work products, Inventions, raw materials and etc by various security measures and confidentiality, so it’s obvious for us (and you), by revealing such data what will confront your empire.

Leakage will be your worst nightmare; your competitors will know about your current & future strategies, your inner circle inside HBO & senior staff will be thrown into chaos, your views specially fans became very upset and they blame you rather than us!, downfall in stocks will be predictable and so on. As you are in the business from decades, you yourselves will be full aware of catastrophic consequences …. So make a wise decision!

HBO is pioneering in TV programming worldwide and doesn’t want to lose this situation. More than that, HBO is promoting democracy, women rights, freedom and justice in the world and losing this leadership will be painful and catastrophic.

We are your fans as are many other ordinary people. We know that HBO walked a long way to reach current situation. By Analyzing Vivienne Eisenberg’s profile, we noticed how difficulty way you go to be the first in the market…. Our motives isn’t political nor financial. (Even we hate trump like other Americans do) Its like a game for us, we enjoy to get data. Money isn’t our main purpose.

(my colleagues argue with me about details given to you and length of this letter, but as there will be very few emails between us, I must assure you about what we have, what will be confronting you and what should be paid to settle down everything!!)

We honestly share what we got with you and frankly bring you our demand. We are whitehat hackers and it’s very shameful if you compare us with some noisy & amateur blackhat ones like Darkoverload. You will see in future steps in our operations that we fulfill any promises made and any given word.

We don’t want to endanger HBO’s situation nor causing to lose its reputation. We want to be your partner in a tiny part of HBO’s huge income.

HBO is an important part of Time Warner’s vast array of networks and productions businesses and your estimated annual sale in 662 million dollars in one fiscal year. As all of us know “Very well”, This number is official crap and some-how wrong. By analyzing your financial records, we see billions rather that millions, may be some tax evading proofs, so what? It doesn’t matter, we want only XXXX dollars. In your opinion, is this a greedy number for saving your 1.5 Tb Confidential data from being released?

HBO spends nearly 100 million to produce GOT6 and spends lots of money for series like Insecure, Ballers, The Deuce, Barry, Room 104 and …. . Now we have final scripts and final video files of them. HBO spends 12 million in 2017 for Market Research and 5 million for GOT7 advertisements. So consider us another budget for your advertisements!

Our demand is clear and Non-Negotiable: we want XXXX dollars to stop leaking your Data.

I know (as witnessed in our other operations) that a greedy CEO or an Idiot one who doesn’t understand the new era of cyberspace or a fucking, Full of Pride, FBI fat-ass agent, tells you Don’t pay them, How trust them? What if they release the data even they have been paid? By paying money, you keep them in the circle!

The answer is simple: we are white-Hat. You must trust us. The HBO is our 17th Target. Only 3 of our past targets refused to pay and were punished very badly and 2 of them collapse entirely.

How are you able to stop a group like us that spends about 400-500,000 dollars in a year to buy 0days exploits? We often launch two major operations in a year and our annual income is about 12-15 million dollars. We are serious enough to do our business, the main questions is this: How much is your seriousness to keep your empire on its feet in a NEW BRAVE WORLD?

Don’t call us nasty Hackers, we are IT professionals, consider what is done to you as a huge pentest.

For building mutual trust and confidence, we send you, our entire arsenal! (Except on package for ;last possible Leak which surprises not only you but entire world!). We don’t play with you so, you in return, don’t play with us. You only have 3 days to make decision so decide wisely.

You pay our 6 month salary to bitcoin and we get away form your map. As we witnesses in other cases, Fucking FBI or other police enforcements, teach you couple of outdated trick to play with us and buy time. It doesn’t work with us.

We set a time line for you in 7 weeks of GOT 7 and you pay the money in the way we say. I repeat again, don’t play with us, its only your decades of dignity and heavy efforts that will be played with.

If you pay, both of us will be glad, and every one goes to his work. If NO, then we are still happy, we release the entire collection and set an example of Idiot and old-fashioned collapsing player in the field for our future targets. So you will be the loser and we are still in the field!

You must understand that we are in the new world. You cannot ignore players like us. HBO must adopt itself with new circumstances. Doing so, set you straight forward and Lucky. by ignoring this new era, the first victims will be your reputation and your empire.

There are several disputes between by colleagues about your possible reactions. It’s like betting. Some of them (by analyzing some of your CEO and their attitudes) tell me that you don’t pay. I and some others, being optimistic, will count on your true & wise decision. It’s up to you!

Some final quotes:

  • First of all declare your surrender! We only communicate with Richard. Send an email and declare it frankly that you accept our terms.

  • You have 3 days for analyzing the data and the damages it brought and etc. its natural. Forget about 4th date for negotiate. In 4th day, we begin to release….

  • Do the bitcoin job quick. Some banks in USA have problems in exchanging bitcoin and caused trouble in past. We don’t accept sentences like: we want to pay but banks are lazy and don’t cooperate. Its your problem. Give some bucks, they do like slaves.

  • Look at below chart every often. It is leakage schedule. We are man of our words. If you like, try us. We release what be declared as written in chart.

  • We know a lot about your promoting strategies for your series and other stuff. Thanks to your endless efforts in this field, our leakage will be very time consuming and step by step. We will use your communicating ways to spread the content to entire world. For example your huge list of journalists who promote you, will be the ones that spread our words. Nice try like Zoe Barnes in House of Cards! Some of them ambitious and like to go upward so spreads well!

  • We want a clean operation, if any word got to press or others, then we consider it as breach of contract and despite our chart (step-by-step leakage) we release the entire data at once.

  • Don’t go to FBI or other fucking IT Idiots. They are so busy or shoe makers! If you have strong enough IT infrastructures, we can’t get your data. In this situation, It’s worthless for begging security from them. We are far enough to catch (Catch me If you can!). This is your empire that is shaking and collapsing. I know that you don’t listen to this advice, its natural. But remember, by confronting any danger, we ignore the chart and release the data at once.

  • We will write only 1 extra letter for declaring bitcoin transfers. There will be no “Tom & Jerry” game!

  • There are 2 mottos. Which one is remembered?

Winter is Coming HBO is Falling

OR

Winter is Coming HBO is standing & Everlasting !

As Architect said in Matrix II: “the problem is choice!”

Good luck to HBO

WATCH: Rogue deer tackles innocent man in a parking lot

Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/08/08/hbo-hack-video-ransom-note/

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