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Former Olympus executives plead guilty in accounting fraud trial
Three executives from troubled imaging giant Olympus have pleaded guilty to artificially boosting the company's true value in 2007 and 2008 by concealing losses in financial statements. Former chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, ex-auditor Hideo Yamada and former VP Hisashi Mori were charged with fraud in the scandal, which was brought to light last year by ex-CEO Michael Woodford. He was fired by the Olympus board for blowing the whistle, but reportedly received a large settlement for his troubles. The company has since confessed to cooking the books as far back as the '90s to hide investment losses, and revealed in 2011 that it had a billion dollars less in value than previously stated. That, along with the poor performance of its camera division, has forced Olympus to seek a partner or raise capital to survive.
The extremes of technology customer service: how common sense and empathy create unmatched loyalty
Allow me to explain how two discussions started off in very similar ways, and ended... shall we say, differently. This is me, attempting to muster any sort of pleasantness in my voice at some ungodly hour of the morning on a Google Voice connection from Dubai back to the US: "Hey! I'm having to cut a trip short due to an emergency back home. I actually purchased a trip protection plan when I checked out online -- would it be possible to provide a refund for this flight now that I need to cancel it?" From here, I was told that this was too vague. That I would need medical proof of an injury or illness, and that if it were a pre-existing condition -- something like reoccurring cancer -- that simply wouldn't do. Oh, and if it's a home emergency, you'll need proof from your home insurance company that your abode is "uninhabitable." "So... I'm basically hosed here? This trip protection plan doesn't really protect very much, does it?" "... Do you want to file the claim?" "No. That's okay. Thanks for your time." It doesn't have to be this way.
Officers' Quarters: Five ways to spot scam guilds
Every Monday, Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership. He is the author of The Guild Leader's Handbook. Internet scams are nothing new. They're as old as the Web itself. MMOs have opened up new channels for scammers to operate, and WoW is no exception. As we approach the launch of Mists, unscrupulous players may try to take advantage of the influx of players by setting up fake guilds. This week, one reader wants to share a scam story from her server in the hope that it won't happen to others. Let's take a look, and then examine how you can spot one of these scam guilds before it's too late. Greetings, The following was posted to our server forums. I was hoping that maybe, with names redacted, you might address this in a future officer's quarters: Edited by [name] on 9/6/12 4:22 PM (PDT) [Player 1], [Player 2] and how to scam Guildies and Maximize Profit. We all know by now the sad story of what happened to . According to legend, [Player 2], booted everyone from the guild, took everything out of the guild bank, leaving a lot of members confused and wondering about what happened to their guild and their friends. Blizzard did nothing. Fast forward to the present day, we have [Player 2] bragging about his exploits and his mount in general chat / trade, flaunting the results of his ill gotten wealth and guess what? Blizzard still does nothing. was a guild created by [Player 1], promising members fast progression and offering PVP, raiding and a stable community. Recruiting was fast and furious, with [Player 1] and his alts spamming general/trade all hours of the day, and baiting players of all levels to join what would be a huge guild with progression in every aspect of the game. Under that promise, the guild expanded fast, never quite achieving the kind of raiding success that would make it noteworthy in that category (3/8 HDS), but still sucessful enough to garner a sizable amount of members. All seemed well for a while.
EVE Evolved: Making your first billion ISK
A lot of the people I introduce to EVE Online ask about the possibility of playing for free by buying game time codes with in-game ISK. It's a legitimate way to turn EVE into a free-to-play game, but the rising price tag of a 30-day PLEX can make it seem as if only veteran players can afford to do it. New players typically scrape together just a few million ISK by the end of their free trial periods, making the 500 million per month required to pay via PLEX seem like a tall order. With the right guidance, a new player can actually pull in over a billion ISK in his first month or two of play and quickly become able to afford a PLEX each month. Farming missions requires a bit of time investment but can pull in 20-30 million ISK per hour once you're set up, and exploration and salvaging can lead to some unexpected big hauls. There are also plenty of newbie-friendly corps that run group activities, and those who aren't interested in grinding to their first billion ISK might try their hands at trading or turn to a life of crime. It's all possible in the sandbox. In this week's EVE Evolved, I give some practical tips on making your first billion ISK, from scraping together the seed capital to buy your first big ship to reliable farming methods and some more underhanded methods.
EVE Evolved: Sandboxes make the best stories
Every MMO has stories to tell, some written by developers and told through quest content and others created by players through everyday gameplay. Themepark MMOs lead every player through the same fictional story and give no real control over the outcome, but I have to wonder whether the effort invested in that story is even worth it. MMOs are meant to have long-term replayability, and a linear story is new only the first time you play through it. After a while, players find themselves skipping dialogue, ignoring quest text, and grinding yet another character to the endgame. In contrast, sandbox MMOs tend to eschew their own storylines in favour of letting players make it up as they go along. Sandbox MMO EVE Online has spawned some incredible tales and videos over its lifetime, with stories of political goings-on, wars, and record heists hitting the news every year without fail. EVE stories usually also appeal to many people who don't even play the game, an effect uncommon in other MMOs. It's not often that the in-game exploits of a themepark MMO guild will reach the media or generate the same level of interest as a big EVE story, so what is the magic sauce that makes stories from EVE so appealing? In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at some of the best stories and videos from EVE Online and ask why EVE continues to grip us with its stories and themepark MMOs don't.
Apple cracks down on app-ranking manipulation
Apple's facing a growing problem on its App Store platform: ranking manipulation. While a lot of the spotlight areas are curated by humans, the rankings are generally not. Instead, computer-driven algorithms determine where each app falls in the various rankings for the store and each section. Ranking position can often mean the difference between making or losing money for a lot of developers. As a result, there are ways for developers to manipulate those rankings, ranging from the generally acceptable (asking customers to rate the app highly if they like it), to the not-so-much (hiring networks of computers to log in and download or leave ratings for an app). Some of this manipulation is essentially an open secret for developers. In fact, there are even companies devs can hire (again, some more credible than others) that will promise a certain ranking or claim to improve sales. It's been a constant challenge for Apple to crack down on devs who are using unsavory techniques without interfering with those employing acceptable means. More than a few innocent apps have been caught in the crossfire, either by being banned from the App Store for behavior they say they didn't do, or by having their rankings hurt by changes in the algorithm. As this long GamesBeat post says, Apple's methods for determining rankings aren't clear at all, and that fact can hurt developers. There's no easy way out of this one. Apple wants to keep its algorithm hidden, just to try to keep the rankings as objective as possible. But there will always be devs who try to crack it open, and companies ready to prey on the App Store rules to scam a few bucks from hopeful developers. In the end, the best way to climb the rankings is to have a great and popular app. People will always try to dodge that requirement, and Apple will continue to try to stop them, with good and bad results. But for developers with talent and the knowhow to make good, noticeable apps, the hope is that the App Store will always find a way to get them seen (and bought) by consumers.
Gaming Kickstarter canceled after audience outs shady practices
The Internet itself isn't an inherently evil or benign device; what gives it morality is the intention of its users, such as Seth Westfall. Westfall (or so he calls himself) began a Kickstarter for Mythic: The Story of Gods and Men, an RPG from Little Monster Productions to rival World of Warcraft and Skyrim, built by a team of former Activision Blizzard developers. The project asked for $80,000 and it had raised $5,000 until, three days ago, it was canceled. Little Monster didn't say why it was canned, but backers accused the whole thing of being fake.Potential donors did some research before forking over their money to Mythic, and they declared that most of the artwork was stolen, Little Monster Productions didn't exist outside of Kickstarter's universe, pictures of its offices belonged to another company, and that even the rewards were word-for-word copied from The Banner Saga's Kickstarter. By the time the apparent scam spread to Reddit, Mythic was doomed.Little Monster Productions responded to scam claims on the Mythic comments page: "It seems we have been subjected to false claims of ownership right to our concepts. The game itself is well in progress and is NOT a scam of any kind. Thank you for understanding. If you have any furthur questions please feel free to ask." The Little Monster Productions Kickstarter account has since been deleted.As the $80,000 funding goal wasn't reached, those who contributed to the $5,000 donation pool won't lose any money, but we hope they did gain a bit of caution.
Cryptic Studios issues security warning in response to database breach
Cryptic Studios, purveyor of Champions Online, Star Trek Online, and the upcoming Neverwinter, has just posted an ominous security warning on its official site. Its new security procedures have recently detected that hackers gained unauthorized access to a user database back in December of 2010. According to the studio, The unauthorized access included user account names, handles, and encrypted passwords for those accounts. Even though the passwords were encrypted, it is apparent that the intruder has been able to crack some portion of the passwords in this database. All accounts that we believe were present in the database have had the passwords reset, and customers registered to these accounts have been notified via e-mail of this incident. While Cryptic does not believe additional information (like player names and credit card numbers) was taken, it advises vigilance all the same and warns against phishing scams. We'll keep you posted as we learn more. (Thanks to Geoff for the tip!)
EVE Evolved: Five scams to avoid
Anyone who's familiar with EVE Online will have heard stories of the game's criminal underworld, from devastating corporate infiltration to the daily grafting of common con artists. Most players will never perpetrate a scam, but those who do are constantly coming up with new tricks to part you from your hard-earned ISK. For every genuine smooth-talking con-artist who comes up with new schemes and socially engineers his way to a fortune, you'll find dozens of copycats who flood popular chat channels with scams they've seen perpetrated in the past. On an average day, over 90% of the chat in Jita's local channel is people posting copycat scams, with legitimate offers completely drowned out. There may not even be anyone at the helm with these scams, as a script could easily paste the scam message every few minutes for an entire day. Not confined to Jita, these scams are often replicated across all of the game's main trade hubs and popular mission-running systems. Knowing how these scams work is the first step to protecting yourself from making an expensive and extremely embarrassing mistake. In this week's EVE Evolved, I explain the trick behind five of EVE's most common copycat scams and how to protect yourself from them.
Seven tips to help you avoid counterfeit apps in the App Store
There are several recent examples of unsavory titles slipping through the cracks of Apple's approval process. Apps like counterfeit Pokemon apps and a cloned beer timer app have made it into the walled garden of the iOS App Store. Instead of relying on Apple to be a safety gate, iOS owners need to be more vigilant when purchasing apps. Before you hit that "Buy App" button, you should follow these handy tips to help you steer clear of counterfeit and knockoff apps. If you have any tips of your own, please share them in the comments. Read the description The quality of the description is one sign that an iOS app is counterfeit. If the description reads like it's written by a six-year-old, then you should probably walk away from the app. Either the developer doesn't care enough to write a decent description or the description is a mass-produced, poorly-translated piece of prose from an overseas scam factory. Look at the comments on an app Customers who buy an app and then discover it's a scam are vocal. They will leave scathing comments that make it clear the app is a fraud. This will work to your benefit as you can learn a lot about the developer and the app from even as little as five to ten comments. If there are no comments, then you'll need to use some of our other tips to dig a little deeper into the developer's history and the reputation of the app. Scan the App Store Be sure to search the App Store before you buy an app to make sure it is the correct one. As we pointed out last week, some copycat apps are so brazen they will steal the underlying code, the name and the icon of the original app with minimal changes. Misspellings of popular titles or closely worded app titles like "Angry Birdy" are also red flags. Spend a few minutes comparing the app icons, looking at the product images, and carefully reading the description. If you're not sure which version is the right one, then you'll have to do some detective work to identify the legitimate developer. Does the developer have a history? If you find an app you want to buy, then look at the developer's history to make sure he or she is legitimate. Experienced developers will have multiple apps in the app store and each will have comments. You can see a list of the developer's apps on the left hand side of the iTunes window underneath the app requirements. Some scammers will release one app they hope will fly under Apple's radar and grab a thousand downloads before it disappears. At 99 cents a pop, all it takes is a couple hundred downloads for the developer to make his or her money back on the developer's fee. If someone can easily recoup the developer's fee, there's not much stopping them from signing up for another account and doing it all again when their app gets the boot. Another warning sign is a developer who has dozens and dozens of apps. Quality apps take a long time to write, and an indie developer with many apps could be a scam factory producing garbage or counterfeit apps. This isn't a hard and fast rule as some apps, like wallpaper collections or simple games, lend itself to multiple versions. Likewise, there are new developers who only have one app. Because this tip may penalize reputable developers, you should use it along with the other tips. If the developer has a poorly written description, a title whose name is a misspelling of a popular title and 175 published apps, then you may want to think twice about your purchase. When was the app updated? Once an app is approved, most scammers won't take the time to update a title. They are in the App Store only to make money and aren't interested in the process of developing and improving their title. You can find the date of the last update and the app version number underneath the "Buy App" button. You can also search a site like App Shopper which will list all the version and price changes made to the app. Is there a face behind the name? If a developer has a support link in iTunes, then click on it and see if they have a website. A serious developer will have a support page to connect with their users and make it easy for people to contact them. They will also likely be on Twitter, Google+ or Facebook. If there's no contact information or a broken link, then you should think hard about clicking that purchase button. Crowdsource and search, search, searchIf you're still not sure, then search the Internet, ask on forums and send out a call on Twitter or Facebook. Find out if anyone has experience with the app or the developer. Chances are someone, somewhere will have an opinion about either the app of the person behind it.
Fake Pokemon Yellow ends up on iOS App Store
A fraudulent version of the Game Boy Color classic Pokemon Yellow has somehow made it through Apple's approval gauntlet and wound up on the App Store. Published by "Home of Anime" with Daniel Burford listed as the author, the "game" runs for $0.99 and has a one-and-a-half star rating after 1,352 reviews. According to said reviews, the app crashes after the title screen and cannot actually be played.As if the simple existence of a Pokemon game on the App Store weren't enough of a red flag, the listing's screenshots aren't even from Pokemon Yellow, they're actually from Pokemon Fire Red/Leaf Green. The app's description also contains unattributed "press quotes" and a statement that "all trademarks and copyrights are owned by their respective owners," because everyone knows that admitting your copyright infringement absolves you of all responsibility, right? We've reached out to Apple for comment.Editor's Note: My faulty, old-man brain confused the fact that Pokemon Yellow launched with a Poke-themed Game Boy Color, with it actually being a Game Boy Color game (which it was not). I've exploded an Electrode in penance.
Former Olympus chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa comes down from the mount, into police custody
If you've been following the latest camera industry accounting scandal, then you're probably well aware that all is not well at Olympus. The Japanese company took its latest blow today when former chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa was arrested in Tokyo on suspicion of having falsified financial statements. The Tokyo prosecutor's office released a statement saying that two other former execs were also brought into police custody, including Hisashi Mori, a former executive vice president, and Hideo Yamada, a former auditor. Olympus is also faced with the possibility of being delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange -- the decision has been deferred awaiting further evidence. So what does all this mean for the scandal-ridden camera maker's position in the industry? Little, perhaps, from a consumer perspective, considering that Olympus has continued to announce and ship new products, including the well-received EM-5. The fate of its former executives, however, is less auspicious.
Company turns to bribery for 5 star Amazon reviews
In a world where word of mouth and the judgment of the hive mind is worth more than any ad or the ruminations of many professional reviewers, companies will do just about anything to ensure a strong rating on outlets like Amazon. It's clear that dummy accounts simply aren't the way to go, but what about bribing your existing customers? Apparently VIP Deals thought that route was perfectly acceptable and offered rebates to people who rated their products on Amazon. Now, the offer letter (which you can see at the more coverage link) doesn't explicitly ask for a five star review, but it is strongly suggested that the company expects one in exchange for receiving the product for free -- in this case, a leather Kindle Fire case. VIP's reviews and its products have all since been booted from Amazon, but it certainly raises plenty of questions about the ease with which some companies are able to game the system and how a reputable outlet can protect its customers from ratings scams. Hit up the source for the full story.
Canadian customers get lumps of clay instead of iPads
Vancouver, B.C. resident Mark Sandhu bought a new iPad 2 for his wife for Christmas, but when she opened the box, she found a tablet of another kind: a big chunk of clay. Sandhu took his purchase back to Canadian retailer Future Shop and complained, but the store initially thought he was trying to run a scam on them. It's only after Sandhu contacted CTV, and after more cases of "clayPads" started showing up in Vancouver-area Future Shops and Best Buys, that Sandhu finally got compensation in the form of a full refund and a replacement iPad 2. This isn't the first time we've heard of a scam like this, unfortunately. Cases involving bricks or other items inserted into iPod boxes and then returned for full refunds have happened several times in the past, with unsuspecting retail clerks simply returning them to shelves and selling the iBricks to customers down the road. One particularly effective scam I saw when I worked retail security a few years back was when a scammer would buy both a 1 GB and 4 GB iPod nano, then return the 1 GB nano in the 4 GB box. The differences between the two units were too subtle for most returns desk clerks to notice, but the price gap was wide enough for scammers to turn a tidy profit this way. According to CTV, 10 fake clayPads have been found in the Vancouver area so far. If you live in Vancouver and are planning to buy an iPad from anywhere other than an Apple Store, we'd suggest you shoot an unboxing video when you first open your purchase; if you "win" the lottery and wind up with a clayPad instead of an iPad, at least the video should be proof enough that you're the scammed and not the scammer.
iPads replaced with clay, sold to unsuspecting Canadians
That fuzzy sensation we get when unboxing a new toy gadget is the fuel that keeps us going at Engadget. A feeling a few unlucky Canadian's were deprived of, after buying what they believed to be an iPad 2 actually turned out to be a slab of clay. In a calculated scam, crooks purchased real iPads, replaced them with terra-cotta tablets, then returned them to the store in re-sealed boxes. The fakes then found their way back on to the shelves, and into customer's baskets. It was Mark Sandhu who first reported the incident after gifting his wife something a little too slate-like on Christmas Eve. Initially Future Shop wouldn't refund Sandhu, possibly believing him to be the scammer; it was only after taking the story to CTV, and up to ten other cases coming to light -- including some from Best Buy -- that the retailer took the claim seriously. Future Shop has since issued a refund, and given Mark a real iPad 2 for his troubles. Next time, he might want to try an official retailer -- or not.
Seagate teams with Monster for staggeringly overpriced Momentus XT upgrade kits
Too lazy to pop your existing HDD out in favor of a Momentus XT solid state hybrid drive? There's a Monster for that. In what has to be one of the poorest partnership decisions of the new millennium, Seagate has decided to hitch its wagon to a company famous for scamming customers, suing small businesses and charging a fortune for things that... well, shouldn't cost a fortune. Here at CES, Seagate and Monster Digital are introducing the Dakar series of upgrade kits, which will be offered with 750GB and 500GB models of Seagate's Momentus XT drive at suggested retail prices of $289.99 and $269.99, respectively. For those keeping count, the drives alone will run you around $100 (500GB) and $185 (750GB), which means that you're paying well over a Benjamin for the following: software (not needed; download cloning apps for free), cables (a couple of bucks on Monoprice), an instructional video (Monster should actually pay you to watch this) and a screwdriver (you have ten -- just look). Great product launch, guys. Just great.
Fake Apple billing email is circulating
Not surprisingly, scammers are targeting Apple customers with a fake phishing email asking them to update their account billing information. People who are new to Apple and probably received their first Mac or iOS device during the holiday season are particularly vulnerable to this scam. This group of customers would not be surprised to receive an email from Apple shortly after they signed up for iTunes for the first time. According to Intego, the email has the same silver coloring as Apple's website and includes the Apple logo to make it look authentic. If you click on the link within the email, you'll travel to a website that closely resembles Apple's website. Of course, there's a login on the fake page that'll steal your Apple ID and password if you make the mistake of logging into the site. On the next page, there's a form that'll steal your credit card information if you willingly submit this information to the fake site. The only way to tell that this email is a scam is to look closely at the URL contained in the email. The link in the email says "store.apple.com", but the underlying URL directs you to page named "apple.htm" on a server that does not belong to Apple. Depending on your email client, you only have to put you pointer over the link to see a pop-up box that'll expose this fake web address. A real link to Apple's website will end in "apple.com" and not some random name or number like the one shown above. To be extra cautious, you should avoid clicking on links in an email and go directly to Apple's website by typing in "store.apple.com" into your web browser. Once you've manually logged into your Apple account, you can then update your billing information, if necessary. [Via CNET]
Olympus' Tokyo offices raided over accounting scandal
Eke. A nearly-century old outfit is currently giving up office space to Japanese prosecutors, who today moved in on Olympus' Tokyo facilities in a raid surrounding an ongoing accounting investigation. According to reports from The Wall Street Journal and Reuters, the scandal involves many billions of dollars -- "irregularities" that have raised serious concerns about the outfit's handling of funds. It's bruited that the company has been running a scheme to conceal over $1.5 billion in investment losses, and we're told that the raid should pass right on through Olympus' headquarters and into the "homes of executives involved in the cover-up." All of this follows an admission last month that the firm had used "inflated payments made in acquisitions in recent years," and while it remains unclear what all of this means for its future, there's no doubt a few dark months are ahead as things sort themselves out. So much for looking pretty for the camera, eh?
Behind the Mask: Are grab bags a scam?
Everyone's heard of the "gift box" phenomenon. It's a common theme in F2P MMOs to release an item that doesn't have guaranteed contents and instead has a random selection from a pool of items. Sometimes there are rare bonus items inside; other times there are things the buyer didn't really want. Champions Online has taken its second foray into this territory with the Service and Cursed Grab Bags, a pair of C-Store items that grant a chance at a variety of tradable goodies. Gift box items sell to a variety of people. Some find the idea of chance more fun, and others absolutely must have the rare items and will spend lots of money trying to get them. Are the grab bags a scam, though? After the jump, we'll look at just why that is and hopefully give you enough information to come to your own conclusion.
The Daily Grind: What MMO will never see the light of day?
MMO veterans probably remember DAWN, an "MMO" planned by Glitchless, which famously spawned the a company is at steak! meme before anyone called them memes. DAWN promised more features than any MMO had ever seen: permadeath, reproduction, player police and prisons, home construction, enforced roleplaying. You name it, Glitchless claimed it'd be in the game. And it would have likely been an amazing sandbox... if it hadn't been a scam meant to fool the gullible. We've all come across games that scream vaporware, even if the developers aren't exactly in on the joke. Today, we want to know what MMO out there has you convinced it'll never actually launch, and why. Is it because of dodgy developers biting off more than they can chew? A skittish publisher with a track record for early cancellations? A naive or dated pricing scheme, graphics set, or understanding of the competition? Whatever the reason, tell us: What upcoming MMO will never see the light of day? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
