A new edition of Tech Times' Weekly Wrap focuses on last week's top stories in the tech world, with Amazon Zoox's self-driving development now seeing a probe because of its unexpected braking. On the other hand, the massive Snowflake data breach involved Ticketmaster user data that the hackers stole from the company.
Lastly, there was also the dubious and fraudulent Apple Store scam, in which fake iPhones were swapped via a warranty return process, giving them real ones in the process.
Amazon Self-Driving Zoox Face Probe for Unexpected Braking
Amazon's new self-driving technology, Zoox, is now facing a federal probe from regulators after a recent accident it caused after unexpectedly braking on a road. The Zoox robotaxis caused a massive crash after its unexpected braking, which led to it getting rear-ended by motorcycle riders who sustained minor injuries from the incident.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) requested various items as part of its investigations, including the vehicle's mileage driven with the autonomous software, the number of self-driving hard braking instances, and information about the incidents.
California's DMV approved Amazon's Zoox to operate in Foster City and San Francisco to test its self-driving technology.
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Snowflake Data Breach: Ticketmaster User Data Stolen
Cloud storage platform Snowflake recently revealed that hackers were accessing its systems, which led to a massive data breach that affected 400 companies it is in partnership with. Ticketmaster was among those affected, with the cybersecurity incident putting its user data in the crosshairs of the bad actors.
A cybersecurity firm, Hudson Rock, shared its discovery of this recent hack on Snowflake. It communicated with the hacker, who allegedly claimed they accessed Ticketmaster and Santander Bank data. The hacker then revealed that Snowflake was the source of this access, further claiming that this was possible thanks to an employee's login credentials via a ServiceNow account.
The threat actors could also bypass Snowflake's sign-on provider, Okta. The breach attempted to extort Snowflake for $20 million in exchange for the stolen information.
Apple Store Fraud: Fake iPhones Swapped
US authorities recently caught a massive Apple Store fraud scheme involving five Chinese nationals, leading to the arrest of the suspected criminals behind this long-term scam. The hackers caused Apple as much as $12.3 million in losses by swapping fake iPhones through a warranty procedure and then receiving the real Apple smartphone.
The scam started in December 2015 and lasted until March 2023, during which time as many as 16,000 fake iPhones were returned to Apple Stores in various locations, including Beverly Hills, Irvine, Pasadena, and Sherman Oaks.
During those times, scammers would complain about malfunctioning devices and return them to the stores, with Apple replacing their devices as if they matched the identification numbers from its warranty. These fake iPhones came from China and other countries and then shipped to the US for suspects to use in the scam.
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