Incident: Map Function Failure on Met Office Windows Phone 8 App

Published Date: 2017-05-31

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident with the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application occurred between December 28 and midnight on December 31, as mentioned in Article 59484 [59484]. Therefore, the software failure incident happened in December 2013.
System 1. Met Office Windows Phone 8 application [59484]
Responsible Organization 1. The Met Office, as the provider of the official Met Office weather application for Windows Phone 8, was responsible for the software failure incident [59484].
Impacted Organization 1. Users of the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application were impacted by the software failure incident [59484].
Software Causes 1. The software cause of the failure incident was a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 platform that impacted the map function of the Met Office weather application, causing it to stop working [59484].
Non-software Causes 1. The known bug on the Windows Phone 8 impacting the map function of the Met Office app [59484].
Impacts 1. The software failure incident impacted the map function of the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application, causing it to stop working between December 28 and midnight on December 31, 2013 [59484].
Preventions 1. Conducting thorough testing before releasing the application to identify and address bugs, such as the known bug affecting the map function on the Windows Phone 8 application [59484]. 2. Implementing a robust monitoring system to quickly detect and respond to any issues that arise, allowing for timely fixes and updates to prevent prolonged service disruptions [59484]. 3. Providing clear communication to users about the known bug and its impact, along with instructions on how to mitigate or work around the issue until a permanent fix is implemented [59484].
Fixes To fix the software failure incident where the map function of the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application stops working between December 28 and December 31, the following actions could be taken: 1. Release a software update specifically addressing the bug affecting the map function on Windows Phone 8 devices [59484].
References 1. The Met Office official website [59484]

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization (a) The software failure incident related to the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application's map function bug impacting its functionality has occurred within the same organization before. The article mentions a known bug on the WindowsPhone8 that affects the map function of the Met Office app, causing it to stop working between December 28 and December 31. This indicates a recurring issue within the Met Office's application [59484]. (b) There is no information provided in the articles about the software failure incident happening at other organizations or with their products and services.
Phase (Design/Operation) design (a) The software failure incident related to the design phase is evident in Article #59484, where it mentions a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 version of the Met Office weather application. The bug specifically impacts the map function of the app, causing it to stop working between December 28 and December 31. This issue is attributed to a design flaw introduced during the development of the application, affecting its functionality [59484]. (b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase is not explicitly mentioned in the provided article.
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) within_system: The software failure incident mentioned in Article 59484 is within the system. The article specifically states that there is a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 application of the Met Office weather app, impacting the map function only. This bug is causing the map function to stop working between December 28 and December 31, with full functionality expected to be restored from January 1, 2014. This issue is internal to the software system itself, indicating a within-system failure [59484].
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions (a) The software failure incident in Article 59484 was due to a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 which impacted the map function of the Met Office app, causing it to stop working. This bug was a contributing factor introduced without human participation, as it was a technical issue within the software itself [59484]. (b) The article does not mention any contributing factors introduced by human actions that led to the software failure incident.
Dimension (Hardware/Software) hardware (a) The software failure incident mentioned in Article 59484 is related to a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 version of the Met Office weather application. This bug impacts the map function of the app, indicating a contributing factor originating in the hardware (Windows Phone 8) rather than the software itself. (b) The software failure incident in Article 59484 is specifically mentioned as a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 version of the Met Office weather application. This bug affects the map function of the app, indicating a contributing factor originating in the software itself.
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) non-malicious (a) The software failure incident mentioned in Article 59484 is non-malicious. The failure is attributed to a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 which impacts the map function of the Met Office app, causing it to stop working. This bug is not described as being introduced with malicious intent but rather as a technical issue affecting the functionality of the application [59484].
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) poor_decisions (a) The software failure incident mentioned in Article #59484 was due to a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 version of the Met Office weather application. This bug specifically impacted the map function of the app, causing it to stop working between December 28 and December 31. This issue was a result of a poor decision in the software development process that led to the malfunction of the map feature during that period. The bug was a contributing factor introduced by a poor decision, resulting in the failure of that specific functionality [59484].
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) development_incompetence, accidental (a) The software failure incident mentioned in Article 59484 is related to a known bug in the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application that impacts the map function. This bug is likely a result of development incompetence, as it was introduced during the development process due to a lack of professional competence by the developers or the development organization. The bug causes the map function to stop working between December 28 and December 31, affecting the normal 5-day map view. This indicates a failure in the development process that led to the bug affecting the functionality of the application [59484]. (b) The software failure incident in Article 59484, where the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application experiences a bug impacting the map function, could also be considered as a failure introduced accidentally. It is possible that the bug was not intentionally added but was a result of unintentional errors or oversights during the development process. Accidental introduction of bugs can occur due to various reasons such as miscommunication, lack of proper testing, or human error during coding [59484].
Duration temporary The software failure incident described in Article #59484 was temporary. The article mentions a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 application of the Met Office weather app that impacted the map function only between December 28 and midnight on December 31. It specifies that during this period, the map function would be unable to display the normal 5-day map view, but the standard 5-day Weather view was unaffected. Full functionality was expected to be restored from January 1, 2014. This indicates that the software failure was temporary and limited to a specific timeframe [59484].
Behaviour crash (a) crash: The software failure incident mentioned in Article 59484 is related to a crash. The article states that there is a known bug on the Windows Phone 8 version of the Met Office app, which impacts the map function and may cause it to stop working between December 28 and December 31. This indicates a failure due to the system losing state and not performing its intended functions [59484].

IoT System Layer

Layer Option Rationale
Perception None None
Communication None None
Application None None

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence delay, non-human (a) death: There is no mention of any deaths resulting from the software failure incident in the provided article [59484]. (b) harm: There is no mention of any physical harm caused to individuals due to the software failure incident in the provided article [59484]. (c) basic: There is no mention of people's access to food or shelter being impacted by the software failure incident in the provided article [59484]. (d) property: There is no mention of people's material goods, money, or data being impacted by the software failure incident in the provided article [59484]. (e) delay: The software failure incident caused a delay in the functionality of the map feature of the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application between December 28 and December 31, with full functionality expected to be restored from January 1, 2014 [59484]. (f) non-human: The software failure incident impacted the map function of the Met Office Windows Phone 8 application, affecting the display of the 5-day map view [59484]. (g) no_consequence: The article does not mention any real observed consequences of the software failure incident [59484]. (h) theoretical_consequence: There is no discussion of potential consequences that did not occur due to the software failure incident in the provided article [59484]. (i) other: There are no other consequences of the software failure incident mentioned in the article [59484].
Domain information (a) The failed system in the incident was the Met Office weather application, which provides weather forecasts [59484]. This system is related to the industry of information as it is involved in the production and distribution of weather-related information.

Sources

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