BUGS and FAULTSBUGS and FAULTS

Mercury software bugMercury software bugMercury software bugMercury software bug

Syntax error in software DO I=1.10 .... DO I=1,10 Luckily the software mistake was detected

before the moon flights.

Syntax error in software DO I=1.10 .... DO I=1,10 Luckily the software mistake was detected

before the moon flights.

Ariane 5Ariane 5 Missile failure. The launcher veered off its flight path

broke up and exploded. The incident occured 37 seconds after the

launch.

Human mistakesHuman mistakes

Falklands war. February 10 83.

The Exocet sank the sheffield boat. Missing report of an incoming missile Satellite phone was used at the time so the

radar could not be used

Wrong diagnosticsWrong diagnostics 99 years old man. Highly abnormal white blood cell count. The computer reported of a normal white

blood cells count. The computer reported values for an infant

child. The prefix 19 was ignored by the computer

(1889 => 1989).

99 years old man. Highly abnormal white blood cell count. The computer reported of a normal white

blood cells count. The computer reported values for an infant

child. The prefix 19 was ignored by the computer

(1889 => 1989).

Bad facilitiesBad facilitiesBad facilitiesBad facilities UK 1982. 1000 cancer patients were given radiation

doses 10%-30% less than required for a period of 10 years

Unnecessary correction factor was entered by the system administrator.

UK 1982. 1000 cancer patients were given radiation

doses 10%-30% less than required for a period of 10 years

Unnecessary correction factor was entered by the system administrator.

Medical DataBase mistakesMedical DataBase mistakes

Germany 1987 A woman got wrong information about

incurable syphilis she had passed to her children.

She murdered both children and tried to kill her self.

Germany 1987 A woman got wrong information about

incurable syphilis she had passed to her children.

She murdered both children and tried to kill her self.

Emergency problemsEmergency problems

1989 Sun-Francisco - A death of a 5 years old child.

The system truncated the last digit in his street number.

The ambulance didn’t arrive on time.

1989 Sun-Francisco - A death of a 5 years old child.

The system truncated the last digit in his street number.

The ambulance didn’t arrive on time.

Billing and SkewingBilling and SkewingBilling and SkewingBilling and Skewing Electrifying bills

– A Tampa couple was build $4,062,599,57 (monthly payment)

– The original bill = $146,76 Water bills

– Water bill for $22,000 (one million gallons)– Mistake in the replacement of the meter

Electrifying bills– A Tampa couple was build $4,062,599,57

(monthly payment)– The original bill = $146,76

Water bills– Water bill for $22,000 (one million gallons)– Mistake in the replacement of the meter

IRS Over billingIRS Over billing

September 1990 TexasWoman was billed $67,000 After a year she received a $1 billion bill “Accurate” calculation of interest

September 1990 TexasWoman was billed $67,000 After a year she received a $1 billion bill “Accurate” calculation of interest

1 1 3 1 1 3

Jail SecurityJail SecurityJail SecurityJail Security Computer sets prisoners free

– Los Angeles Jail August 25 1987 Jailed Cocaine dealer freed by email.

– Access to the jail computer system. Santa Fe jail computer system control of

security was down (7 prisoners escaped)

Computer sets prisoners free – Los Angeles Jail August 25 1987

Jailed Cocaine dealer freed by email.– Access to the jail computer system.

Santa Fe jail computer system control of security was down (7 prisoners escaped)

Computer New JusticeComputer New JusticeComputer New JusticeComputer New Justice Dutch computer system sets criminals free

and arrests innocent people. San Joaquin County jail doors were

unlocked.– A release of 120 dangerous inmates.

Computer system jailed jailers for 10 hours and released few prisoners due to a 5 minute outage(Oklahoma jail).

Dutch computer system sets criminals free and arrests innocent people.

San Joaquin County jail doors were unlocked.– A release of 120 dangerous inmates.

Computer system jailed jailers for 10 hours and released few prisoners due to a 5 minute outage(Oklahoma jail).

The lotteryThe lotteryThe lotteryThe lotteryAutonomic computer

– Let users fill the numbers beyond the time permitted

– 6 man won the lottery price

Autonomic computer– Let users fill the numbers beyond the

time permitted

– 6 man won the lottery price

Computing errorsComputing errorsComputing errorsComputing errors

Fortran in German– In German Device & Unit are the

same word

– writing to unit 6 gives standard output

– Writing to device 6 overwrites the disk.

Fortran in German– In German Device & Unit are the

same word

– writing to unit 6 gives standard output

– Writing to device 6 overwrites the disk.

Accidental financial lossesAccidental financial lossesAccidental financial lossesAccidental financial losses

The Bank Of NY had 32 billion dollars overdraft.– Overflow of a 16 bit counter was not checked .– Self borrowing of 24 billion dollars to cover

itself.– self payments of 5 million dollars interest per

day.

The Bank Of NY had 32 billion dollars overdraft.– Overflow of a 16 bit counter was not checked .– Self borrowing of 24 billion dollars to cover

itself.– self payments of 5 million dollars interest per

day.

Hi-tech theater controls

The rotating stage for the American premiere of Les Miserable failed :

the turntable could be operated only at full speed, which was much too fast to be safe

The Amsterdam Opera had installed a modern computer-controlled door system. Unfortunately, the doors did not work properly, and people were locked inside.

Ambient Interference

Interference from electronic or other signals is

a nasty problem because it is difficult to

prevent and is difficult to diagnose when it

does occur.

Garage doors for openers

Years ago, signals from Sputnik, the first

Soviet orbiter, opened and closed garage

doors as it went overhead.

Automobile microprocessor interference

There have been numerous reports on

microprocessor-controlled automobile control

systems being sensitive to electromagnetic

interference, particularly from nearby

citizen's-band transmitters. Effects have

included the sudden speeding up of cars on

automatic cruise control.

Particle Escalator and FishingParticle Escalator and Fishing

The calculation of a huge particle escalator in the states did not agree with measurments

A programmer noticed that the problem where especially bad when his father goes fishing

The solution?

Spelling correctors often suggest inappropriate corrections.

Spelling checker for a Unix system failed to recognize the word Unix

Microsoft Word failed to recognize Microsoft word.

Yes, But I'm Not Dead!

Computer databases have created the

mistaken impression that someone was dead,

with various consequences.

Checks bouncedForman Brown wrote in

the Los Angeles Times that his bank was

rejecting his checks with a deceased stamp,

the Social Security Administration had

stopped depositing checks into his account,

and Medicare objected to paying bills 6

months after his alleged death. His death had

been erroneously recorded.

Refund blocked

Judi Sommer in Vancouver (at 40 years of

age) was prevented from receiving a tax

refund from Revenue Canada, which

insisted she was dead. Her social insurance

number had been inadvertently reported,

instead of her deceased mother's.

But what if you really are dead?

The death of a reclusive 51-year-old Dutch man was masked for 6 months because all of his bills were being paid automatically.

The 1990 death of an elderly Swedish woman went unnoticed for 3 years for the same reason.

Beware of name similarities

Donny Ray Boone spent 41 days in jail in Florida because of a confusion with a similarly named individual .

Two people named Shirley Jones had different birthdays, heights (6 inches apart) and weights (70 pounds apart). The wrong one was arrested despite the obvious disparities, while the real suspect was already in jail .

Name-and-Address Problems

Mail addressed to SWITZERLAND was routed to a nonexistent town in North Dakota, Switzerla ND.

Mail to WEST GERMANY was sent to West Germa NY.

Mail to DEUTSCHLAND was sent to DEUTSCHLA ND

ToysRUsToysRUs

ToysRUs Disasters (1999-2000)ToysRUs Disasters (1999-2000)

$2M (14%) net loss due to performance problems $4M spent to increase performance $1.5M in civil penalties for Federal mail-order

rule violations with late merchandise shipping (missed promised Christmas deliveries)

$9M (75%) net loss due to decline in on-line sales

eBayeBay

eBay Disaster (1999)eBay Disaster (1999)

21 hour outage. $5M net loss. 11% drop in share price. 1.2M daily website visitors lost bids. Outage occurred as eBay was readying

itself for an open house for Wall Street analysts.

Victoria's SecretVictoria's Secret

Victoria's Secret Disaster (1999)Victoria's Secret Disaster (1999)

Annual Spring Fashion show on the internet crashed as millions of viewers tried to log on.

Advertised during Super Bowl XXXIII to attract the maximum number of customers.– Super Bowl XXXIII advertisement cost $1.6M for 30

seconds worth of air time. The computers were configured to handle from

250K to 500K simultaneous viewers. The web site went down as 5M viewers tried to log on.

The first large-scale live video event attempted on the internet.