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The British government is examining how to clear and compensate hundreds of post office counter managers punished for accounting errors resulting from computer glitches - "We're dealing with it and we want to put it right. The money has been put aside. What we're looking at now is how we can speed up the process," Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told reporters on Monday during a visit to Accrington, in the north of England. The Prime Minister confirmed that the Justice Minister, Alex Chalk, and the Secretary of State for the Economy, Kevin Hollinrake, will meet this afternoon to discuss a strategy. Some politicians have suggested that all wrongly convicted people should be cleared collectively through legislation to unlock compensation. More than 700 branch managers were accused of fraud, theft or falsification of accounts by the British Post Office between 1999 and 2015 when, in reality, it was a computer glitch. It was later discovered that the discrepancies in the accounts were caused by the computer system installed by the Japanese company Fujitsu, whose problems the Post Office sought to omit. For years, the state-owned company claimed that the Horizon software was reliable and forced the branch managers to reimburse the accounting deficits. The scandal was already well known, but it has been in the news again in recent days following the success of a miniseries broadcast on television by ITV, which tells the story of the campaign for justice by some of those affected. One of the law firms representing those affected has revealed that it has been contacted by at least 50 more in recent weeks. The four-part series "Alan Bates vs the Post Office" portrays the battle led over two decades by one of the Post Office's former managers to expose the truth and exonerate wronged postal workers. London's Metropolitan Police revealed on Friday that it is investigating whether the company committed fraud by taking the money obtained following these accusations and wrongful convictions. On the other hand, Fujitsu officials are also being investigated for false testimony and obstruction of justice, but in fact there have been no arrests in four years. In December 2019, a Supreme Court judge ruled that the computer system contained a series of "flaws, errors and defects" and that there was a "significant risk" of causing deficits in the accounts of postal agencies. Since then, 93 convictions have been overturned, but only 30 of these people have received full and final compensation and no one from the Post Office or other companies involved has been arrested or criminally charged. Three different financial compensation schemes have been set up over the years, resulting in the payment of more than 150 million pounds (174 million euros). A public inquiry launched in 2020 is due to be completed this year, and should reveal details about what is considered one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in the UK. The original article via Observador can be read here.

According to a recent announcement, Chinese regulators have stated that Tesla China is recalling more than 1.6 million vehicles due to problems with the steering software and door locking systems. This recall affects a number of Tesla models, including the popular S, X, 3 and Y, as well as more than 7,000 imported vehicles. On the other hand, the good news for owners of these vehicles is that the company plans to solve these problems through remote software updates, meaning there is no need for these vehicles to be assessed at a repair center. Through remote software updates, Tesla is able to simplify the recall process and provide a convenient solution for its customers. Problems with the steering software and the door locking system are major concerns for vehicle safety. The steering bug can affect the vehicle's ability to respond to the driver's commands, thus posing a risk of loss of control. Similarly, the problem with the door locking system could compromise the security of the vehicle, leaving it vulnerable to unauthorized access. Vehicle owners have been advised to stay informed and follow Tesla's instructions to initiate the necessary updates. The original article via Global Village Space can be read here.

According to a statement, Apple said it would update the iOS 17 operating system, which iPhone 15 devices run on, to fix a bug responsible for these devices overheating. The US giant is also working with developers to make changes to applications that "overload the system". The fix for this software error, which has since been released, was made via a software update sent to the affected iPhones: "This update provides important fixes; security updates and resolves an issue that may cause the iPhone to heat up more than expected," according to the update alert. Instagram, owned by Meta Platforms, has made changes to its social media app in order to prevent these overheating problems on the new iPhone with iOS 17. Other apps, such as Uber and the video game Asphalt 9, are still in the process of releasing their updates, according to Apple itself. The "iPhone 15 Pro Max heats up very easily. I'm just browsing social media and it's on fire," said one user in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter). The Wall Street Journal reported last month that the iPhone 15 Pro Max heated up to 112 degrees Fahrenheit (approximately 44 degrees Celsius) when performing processor-intensive tasks, such as gaming, and when it was being charged. It is not uncommon for new iPhones to heat up unusually during the first few days of use or when they are being restored with backup information stored in the cloud, problems that Apple has already pointed out to users. The devices can also heat up when using applications such as video games and augmented reality technology that require a lot of processing power, but the heating problems with the iPhone 15 models have gone beyond these typical situations. The original article via CBS News can be read here.

In England, an electronic sign in Norwich, where the "Wroxham" road meets the "Sprowston" road, was affected by a bug that alerted drivers to roadworks more than 160 kilometers away. The sign, which was in place for several days, has since been switched off. According to Norfolk County Council, the problem was caused by a software issue. According to the local authority, the sign should have been displaying information about works at the Heartsease traffic circle, which is less than three kilometers away, and instead informed drivers of a road closure overnight in the Leicestershire village, preventing them from reaching Melton Mowbray - "This is a software issue with our contractor, who is trying to resolve the issue," said a spokesperson for the council. The original article via the BBC can be read here.

McDonald's ice cream machines are notorious for their frequent breakdowns, and iFixit, an American repair company, is working to make them easier to repair. In a video released last Tuesday, iFixit, known for its consumer electronics disassemblies and repair guides, took apart a McDonald's ice cream machine to investigate the cause of its frequent breakdowns. According to the same video, at the time of its publication, it was estimated that at least 34% of ice cream machines were broken in New York state alone. According to the US company's analysis following this video, McDonald's ice cream machines have overly complicated error codes. This, coupled with an exclusive repair contract between McDonald's and the machine's manufacturer, Taylor, creates a heavy reliance on service technicians, making the process both costly and time-consuming. The company Kytch had already developed a device that translated error codes into simple instructions for repairing ice cream machines, but McDonald's quickly squashed this initiative, citing unproven "safety risks", according to Elizabeth Chamberlain, iFixit's repair specialist. In this context, the iFixit team decided to "take the law into their own hands" due to the limitations imposed by US copyright law. In the published video, Elizabeth Chamberlain, iFixit's director of sustainability, expressed the team's desire to create a device similar to Kytch's that could read the error codes of these machines, however, they are unable to do so due to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), and the software that is blocking access to the machines. Thus, iFixit and Public Knowledge have requested an exemption from the law for this purpose, similar to the one they have obtained for other products, and have therefore asked Congress to reintroduce the Freedom to Repair Act. The continuation of the original article via The Times of India can be read here.

An attack on several Norwegian government ministries has forced US federal agencies to fix an Ivanti software bug. The bug in question is a flaw related to an authentication bypass in Ivanti's Endpoint Manager Mobile (EPMM) device management software, formerly known as MobileIron Core. The US company has issued patches for this vulnerability, and the Norwegian government revealed that the flaw had been exploited in an attack that affected 12 of its ministries. In this context, the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has added this bug to its catalog of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV). In an alert issued, CISA stated that "these types of vulnerabilities are frequent attack vectors for malicious cyber actors and pose significant risks to the federal enterprise". Identified as CVE-2023-35078, the authentication bypass bug received the maximum possible CVSS rating of 10, with Ivanti warning its customers that it was essential that they patch their software immediately. According to Ivanti, this bug allowed unauthorized access to the solution's restricted functionality or resources, allowing threat actors to "potentially access users' personally identifiable information and make limited changes to the server". CISA also learned that this software bug allowed unauthenticated access to specific API paths - "An attacker with access to these API paths can access personally identifiable information (PII) such as names, phone numbers and other mobile device details for users on a vulnerable system." The Norwegian authorities did not say whether the data had been exfiltrated during the attack on their ministries, however they did say that the country's Data Protection Authority had been notified, which indicates that there may be concerns that the information has been stolen: "This vulnerability was unique and was discovered for the first time here in Norway," said Sofie Nystrøm, Director General of Norway's National Security Authority. "If we had published information about the vulnerability too early, it could have contributed to its abuse elsewhere in Norway and the rest of the world. The update is now widely available and it is prudent to announce what kind of vulnerability it is," she added. The continuation of the original article via SC Magazine can be read here.

In England, a ferryboat has suffered a breakdown caused by a software problem. The vessel, which runs between Cowes and East Cowes, on the Isle of Wight, has since been taken out of service, and according to Cowes Island Council itself, the ferry is to remain so, to be replaced by another service. This is an important means of transport for the residents of this region, as when this means of transport is inoperative, it forces a 12-mile (19 km) detour through Newport.This ferry cost more than 3 million pounds and its breakdowns and problems have been a constant since it entered service in 2017. The continuation of the original article via the BBC can be read here.

In the United States, more than 4,000 El Paso Electric (EPE) customers have not received their monthly bills due to a bug. The problem, which has been present for the last four months, has mainly affected the customer service system. Resolutions to the problem are already underway, and the company expects the system to be fixed by the end of this month, said George De La Torre, spokesperson for EPE. According to Karmen Mayorga, also a spokesperson for the US company, most of the affected customers are voluntarily paying estimated amounts for their monthly bills until the problem is properly resolved. It is estimated that around 50 affected customers have not been paying their bills and the company's customer service representatives are contacting them to make payment arrangements. In addition, employees of the Texas-based company are asking customers who have not received these bills to use their previous ones to estimate the amount they should pay each month, so that they don't have a bill that is too high when the system works properly again, added Mayorga, who added that this is not a revenue problem for the electricity distribution company - profits in 2022 amounted to more than 113 million dollars. The continuation of the original article via El Paso Times can be read here.

In India, South Korean giant Kia has been forced to recall more than 30,000 vehicles due to a software error located in the digital instrument panel. Due to this bug, more than 30,000 units of the Carens MPV model manufactured between September 2022 and February 2023 will have to be inspected and receive a software update in order to correct the problem. According to a statement issued by the company, the recall campaign has been initiated to inspect for any potential errors in the cluster's initialization process that could cause it to go blank. Kia India also adds that it will contact the owners of the vehicles concerned directly to inform them about this voluntary recall campaign. In October 2022, more than 44,000 units of the same MPV model were recalled, also to fix a possible problem with the software, but related to the airbag control unit. The continuation of the original article via Auto News can be read here.

Ao analisar as actuais tendências de automação e a forma como estas continuarão no futuro, é importante lembrar que a qualidade de qualquer produto de software depende da qualidade dos seus testes de software. Este é uma parte integrante do processo de desenvolvimento de software, e nos últimos anos, tornou-se mais fácil, mais fiável e mais abrangente para os testadores de software fazerem o seu trabalho.Este artigo discute as principais tendências actuais que moldam os testes de software, bem como prevê aquelas que continuarão no futuro. Inteligência Artificial e Aprendizagem Automática A Inteligência Artificial (IA) deixou a sua marca proeminente no mundo digitalizado de hoje. De acordo com o site Statista, prevê-se que o mercado de software de IA cresça rapidamente nos próximos anos, atingindo cerca de 126 mil milhões de dólares até 2025.Para melhorar os processos de teste, as tendências de teste de software incorporam tecnologias de inteligência artificial e de aprendizagem automática. Um algoritmo de IA, por exemplo, gera casos de teste, e as técnicas de ML são utilizadas para identificar padrões e anomalias nos dados de teste. Utilização de Testes IoT para Dispositivos e Sistemas Inteligentes À medida que a popularidade da “Internet das Coisas” aumenta, os testadores de software estão a mudar para os testes IoT – uma rede de objectos físicos interligados que lhes permite recolher e trocar dados.À medida que o número de dispositivos IoT aumenta, os testes funcionais e os testes de segurança tornaram-se essenciais para confirmar que estes dispositivos estão a funcionar sem esforço. O seu objetivo é verificar se os dispositivos e sistemas IoT funcionam como esperado. Teste de RPA A RPA, automação de processos robóticos, é uma tecnologia de software que proporciona uma forma fácil de criar, implementar e gerir robôs de software que imitam as acções humanas quando interagem com sistemas digitais. Permite, assim, que os humanos se concentrem em tarefas de maior valor, libertando-os da execução de tarefas repetitivas.Os testes automatizados de RPA garantem que estes sistemas estão a funcionar eficazmente e cumprem os requisitos dos utilizadores: melhoram a eficiência, reduzem os custos e diminuem os erros. Além disso, como os sistemas RPA são utilizados nos sectores da saúde e das finanças, a necessidade de eficácia e fiabilidade dos mesmos aumentou. Testes em Vários Dispositivos para uma Automatização de Testes mais Inteligentes Toda a gente tem vários dispositivos ligados uns aos outros a toda a hora, tais como smartphones, tablets, computadores portáteis e dispositivos domésticos. Por conseguinte, os testes em vários dispositivos são efectuados para garantir que a aplicação funciona eficazmente em cada dispositivo ligado.Os testes multidispositivos garantem que a aplicação funciona corretamente em termos de tamanho, forma e sistema operativo. medida que aumenta a utilização de vários dispositivos, aumenta a oportunidade de efetuar testes em vários dispositivos. Existem muitos serviços de testes de automatização de controlo de qualidade que oferecem testes em vários dispositivos para testar vários dispositivos e navegadores em simultâneo, reduzindo o tempo e o esforço globais necessários para os testes.Além disso, os serviços de teste de aplicações móveis garantem que a aplicação móvel é compatível com todos os dispositivos e sistemas operativos. Teste de Blockchain para Maior Segurança e Desempenho Blockchain é a última tendência da década, com a crescente popularidade da moeda digital e das NFTs, a maioria das empresas começou a adotar a tecnologia. Junto com sua crescente popularidade, o blockchain traz ameaças à segurança.Hoje em dia, a cibersegurança tornou-se uma questão global, pelo que, para garantir a segurança da sua aplicação baseada em blockchain, os testes de blockchain são essenciais. Estes garantem que a sua aplicação está segura e que os produtos são fiáveis, localizando e resolvendo diversos problemas, tais como: questões de compatibilidade, violações de segurança ou qualquer outro aspeto que afecte a sua funcionalidade. Assim, muitas empresas baseadas em blockchain insistem em fazer com que a sua aplicação seja testada com testes de blockchain para melhorar a segurança e o desempenho. Transformar os Testes de Automatização com Chatbots Os chatbots são ferramentas sofisticadas que conversam com os clientes sobre qualquer uma das suas questões a qualquer hora do dia. Para além de interagirem com os clientes, tratam dos pedidos e fornecem todas as informações de que estes necessitam. A sua integração com a inteligência artificial e a linguagem natural ajuda as empresas a facilitar a interação com os consumidores. Com os testes de automatização, os chatbots podem melhorar e otimizar o processo de teste. Os chatbots aceleram facilmente o processo de teste, uma vez que automatizam as tarefas de rotina, permitindo que os testadores se concentrem em tarefas importantes. Testes de Dados Os negócios online estão fortemente dependente dos dados, por conseguinte, a realização de testes de dados com automatização e ferramentas específicas permite aos testadores lidar com a complexidade dos grandes volumes de dados. Os testes de dados incluem a verificação de condutas de dados e a aplicação de processamento que tem uma grande quantidade de dados em vários formatos, armazenamento de dados, consumo, processamento, modelação e visualização.Os testes de dados garantem a qualidade, a exatidão e a consistência, e com o crescimento da indústria, a maioria das empresas quer garantir a autenticidade dos dados, tornando os testes de dados um fator crescente nos testes automatizados. A continuação do artigo original via EuroSTAR Huddle pode ser lido aqui.