Category: Business

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CRIMES WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES: EXPLORING THE METAVERSE AS A CRIMINAL FRONTIER

A Note by Doyeon Oh

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A conception of digital worlds in the form of virtual and augmented realities has been a science-fiction vision since the 20th century.[1] As of 2023, that vision has become more than just a reality.[2] Established tech giants like Meta and Google are already taking the next step in developing the “metaverse”—a universal platform promising a fully immersive real-life experience within a network of multiple virtual worlds.[3] Theoretically, the metaverse will allow users, or their “avatars,” to live, work, and socialize as they would in the real world.[4] Casual users may think of it as a “digital playground;” others may see potential business opportunities.[5] Ideas of its use are limitless and exciting,[6] and the metaverse hype seems more than deserving.            

However, this exciting prospect brings forth a dangerously overshadowed issue: violent crimes.… Read the rest

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Our Broken System: Modifying the U.S. Pharmaceutical Regulatory Scheme to Decrease Surging Prescription Drug Prices

By Dan Gutt

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The pharmaceutical industry’s societal purpose is to improve the health of the citizenry. However, the industry is beginning to fail that purpose by producing expensive prescription drugs, which are becoming inaccessible to the average person. Pharmaceutical prices began to spike in 2014, and there is no evidence that this trend will abate in the future. The causes of this phenomenon stem from several factors: expensive patented drugs, a reduction in the supply of generic drugs, and the pharmaceutical industries large marketing and sales expenditures. In summation, this is a complex problem that cannot be solved by a single solution, nor can it be solved by cost covering measures. Instead, innovative solutions that target the root causes of spiking pharmaceutical prices need to be applied. Examples of these solutions include governmental bulk-buying power, longer patent terms, referencing pricing for patented drugs, and improved FDA … Read the rest

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Data Breaches: Is anyone responsible?

By: Robert Vickers

With seemingly increasing frequency, news reports reveal data breaches involving personal data stored on commercial data servers.  In some cases, the victims intentionally stored the data on the servers, while in others it was not the victims who stored the data, but a commercial entity, storing information about their customers.  Whether or not users or the company uploaded the data kept on company servers, who holds the responsibility for keeping the data safe?

One of the more recent newsworthy breaches involved cloud storage: the recent celebrity nude photo hack against Apple’s iCloud service[1] that has generated intense publicity[2].  Despite some early news reports alluding to yet another flaw in an online service, Apple claims that the blame for the inadvertent exposure of celebrity data does not lie on Apple[3].  Instead, hackers attacked individual accounts from which they could deduce user names, passwords, … Read the rest