Incident: Kindle Leather Cover Malfunction Causes Kindle Lock-Up Issue

Published Date: 2011-05-16

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident with the Kindle Leather Cover causing Kindle malfunctions and lock-ups happened last year [5815]. 2. Published on 2011-05-16 07:00:00+00:00. 3. The incident likely occurred in 2010.
System 1. Standard Kindle Leather cover [5815]
Responsible Organization 1. The entity responsible for causing the software failure incident in this case was Amazon, specifically due to the design flaw in their non-lighted Kindle Leather cover that was causing Kindles to malfunction and lock up [5815].
Impacted Organization 1. Customers who purchased the non-lighted Kindle Leather cover from Amazon were impacted by the software failure incident as it caused their Kindles to malfunction and lock up [5815].
Software Causes 1. The software failure incident was caused by the metal hooks on the standard Leather Kindle case becoming conductive to electricity once the paint chips or wears off, leading to the Kindle malfunctioning [5815].
Non-software Causes 1. The metal hooks on the standard Leather Kindle case were painted, and speculation suggests that once the paint chips or wears off, it makes the hooks conductive to electricity, causing the Kindle to malfunction [5815].
Impacts 1. Customers experienced Kindle malfunction and lock-ups due to the defective Leather Cover, leading to inconvenience and potential data loss [5815]. 2. Amazon had to remove the non-lighted Kindle Leather cover from the market, affecting their product lineup and sales strategy [5815]. 3. Customers had to contact Amazon customer support for assistance, indicating a strain on customer service resources [5815]. 4. Amazon provided a $60 credit to affected customers for purchasing the Kindle Lighted Cover, resulting in financial implications for the company [5815].
Preventions 1. Implementing thorough quality control measures during the manufacturing process to ensure that the hooks on the standard Leather case are properly insulated and do not become conductive over time [5815]. 2. Conducting comprehensive testing and analysis of the product design to identify any potential vulnerabilities or weaknesses that could lead to malfunctions in the Kindle device [5815]. 3. Providing clear and detailed instructions to customers on how to safely use and maintain the Leather cover to minimize the risk of electrical conductivity issues [5815].
Fixes 1. Amazon could release a software update to address the malfunction caused by the defective Leather Cover [5815].
References 1. Dave Zatz at zatznotfunny.com [5815]

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization (a) In the provided article, it is mentioned that Amazon had a problem with its Leather Cover causing the Kindle to malfunction and lock up. This issue led to customers experiencing their Kindles going haywire. Amazon acknowledged the problem and took the cover off the market, replacing it with the Kindle Lighted Leather cover. This indicates a software failure incident within the same organization (Amazon) involving their product (Kindle) [5815]. (b) The article does not provide information about similar incidents happening at other organizations or with their products and services.
Phase (Design/Operation) design (a) The software failure incident in the article is related to the design phase. The problem with the Leather Cover for Kindle causing malfunctions and locking up the device was attributed to the design flaw in the hooks that secure the case to the Kindle. The metal hooks on the standard Leather case were painted, but once the paint chipped or wore off, it made the hooks conductive to electricity, leading to the Kindle malfunctioning. This design flaw was identified as the root cause of the issue [5815]. (b) The software failure incident in the article is not directly related to the operation phase or misuse of the system.
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) The software failure incident described in the article is within_system. The issue with the Leather Cover causing the Kindle to malfunction and lock up is attributed to the metal hooks on the standard Leather case becoming conductive to electricity once the paint chips or wears off. This conductive nature of the hooks then causes the Kindle to malfunction, indicating an internal system issue [5815].
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions (a) The software failure incident in the article is related to non-human actions. The problem with the Leather Cover causing the Kindle to malfunction and lock up was attributed to the metal hooks on the standard Leather case becoming conductive to electricity once the paint chips or wears off. This conductive property of the hooks then led to the Kindle malfunctioning, indicating a failure introduced without human participation [5815].
Dimension (Hardware/Software) hardware (a) The software failure incident in the article is related to hardware. The problem with the Kindle malfunctioning and locking up was attributed to the metal hooks on the standard Leather case becoming conductive to electricity once the paint chips or wears off. This hardware issue caused the Kindle to malfunction, leading to the software failure incident [5815].
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) non-malicious (a) The software failure incident described in the article does not seem to be malicious. It appears to be a non-malicious failure related to a design flaw in the Kindle Leather Cover causing the Kindle to malfunction and lock up. The issue was attributed to the metal hooks on the standard Leather case becoming conductive to electricity once the paint chips off, leading to the Kindle malfunctioning [5815].
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) unknown The software failure incident described in Article 5815 does not directly relate to poor or accidental decisions. Instead, it focuses on a hardware issue with the Kindle Leather cover causing malfunctions in the Kindle device.
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) unknown The article does not provide information about the software failure incident being related to development incompetence or accidental factors.
Duration temporary The software failure incident described in the article is temporary. The issue with the Leather Cover causing the Kindle to malfunction and lock up was addressed by Amazon by taking the cover off the market and offering a replacement option with the Kindle Lighted Leather cover [5815]. This indicates that the failure was due to contributing factors introduced by certain circumstances (the use of the standard Leather cover) but not all circumstances.
Behaviour crash, other (a) crash: The software failure incident described in the article is related to a crash. The Kindle Leather cover was causing the Kindle to malfunction and lock up, leading to the system losing its state and not performing its intended functions [5815]. (b) omission: The article does not mention any failure related to the system omitting to perform its intended functions at an instance(s). (c) timing: The article does not mention any failure related to the system performing its intended functions correctly, but too late or too early. (d) value: The software failure incident does not involve the system performing its intended functions incorrectly. (e) byzantine: The article does not describe the failure as the system behaving erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. (f) other: The behavior of the software failure incident in this case is related to a hardware issue with the Kindle Leather cover causing the Kindle to malfunction, which is not explicitly covered by the options provided.

IoT System Layer

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

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence property (d) property: People's material goods, money, or data was impacted due to the software failure From Article #5815, it is mentioned that customers who had the defective standard Leather Cover for their Kindle experienced malfunctions and lock-ups with their devices. This issue was attributed to the metal hooks on the cover becoming conductive to electricity once the paint chipped off, causing the Kindle to malfunction. As a result, affected customers had to contact Amazon customer support, and Amazon eventually stopped selling the non-lighted Leather cover, offering affected customers a credit to purchase the Kindle Lighted Cover instead. This indicates that people's material goods (Kindle devices) were impacted by the software failure incident.
Domain sales [5815] The software failure incident reported in the article is related to the sales industry. Amazon faced a problem with its Leather Cover for the Kindle, which was causing malfunctions and lock-ups in the devices. This issue led to Amazon discontinuing the non-lighted Kindle Leather cover and offering replacements with the Kindle Lighted Leather cover instead. The malfunction was attributed to the metal hooks on the standard Leather case becoming conductive to electricity once the paint chipped off, leading to Kindle malfunctions. This incident highlights a failure in a product related to the sales industry, specifically affecting Amazon's Kindle accessories.

Sources

Back to List