Incident: Mapping Data Glitch in Nokia Maps Affects Israel and Cyprus

Published Date: 2012-11-12

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident with Nokia Maps not displaying the majority of country and city mapping information for Israel and Cyprus happened in November 2012 [16052].
System 1. Nokia Maps 2. Mapping data for Israel and Cyprus 3. Flickr's geotagging feature
Responsible Organization 1. Nokia Maps [16052] 2. Flickr
Impacted Organization 1. Flickr - The software failure incident impacted Flickr as it was unable to display mapping and geotagging information for Israel and Cyprus due to the lack of mapping data provided by Nokia Maps [16052]. 2. Online services relying on Nokia Maps - Other online services that rely on Nokia Maps for mapping data were indirectly impacted by the glitch affecting the mapping information for Israel and Cyprus [16052].
Software Causes 1. Inadequate mapping data provided by Nokia Maps for Israel and Cyprus, leading to missing street, city, and country mapping information [16052]. 2. Discrepancy between the mapping data available on Nokia Maps and the data from the open-source service Leaflet, which sources data from OpenStreetMap that includes complete mapping information for Israel and Cyprus [16052].
Non-software Causes 1. Lack of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus due to political issues and neutrality concerns, as mentioned by Nokia Australia in their response to CNET Australia's request for comment [16052]. 2. Delay in offering maps for Cyprus and Israel due to ongoing efforts to refine and improve Nokia Maps continuously, aiming for the highest quality standards [16052].
Impacts 1. The software failure incident with Nokia Maps not displaying the majority of country and city mapping information for Israel and Cyprus had a significant impact on online services such as Flickr, which rely on this mapping data for geotagging images [16052]. 2. Users trying to geotag their images in Israel and Cyprus on Flickr were unable to do so effectively due to the missing mapping and geotagging information on Nokia Maps [16052]. 3. The lack of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus on Nokia Maps affected the user experience for customers using Nokia's mapping services on Windows Phone 8 devices, potentially leading to frustration and inconvenience [16052]. 4. The incident raised concerns among customers, as highlighted by queries on Nokia's support forums in previous years regarding the absence of mapping data for Israeli roads [16052]. 5. The software failure incident also brought attention to the discrepancies between the mapping data provided by Nokia Maps and other open-source services like OpenStreetMap, where Cyprus and Israel were properly mapped with full street, city, and country information [16052].
Preventions 1. Conducting thorough testing and quality assurance processes before releasing the mapping data for Israel and Cyprus could have potentially prevented the software failure incident [16052]. 2. Implementing a more robust data validation process to ensure that all countries, cities, and streets are accurately represented in the mapping data could have helped in avoiding such glitches [16052]. 3. Regularly monitoring and updating the mapping data to ensure that it remains accurate and up-to-date could have preemptively addressed any missing information issues in countries like Israel and Cyprus [16052].
Fixes 1. Update the mapping data for Israel and Cyprus in Nokia Maps to include all necessary street, city, and country mapping information [16052]. 2. Ensure that the mapping data provided by Nokia Maps aligns with the data available on open-source platforms like OpenStreetMap to avoid discrepancies and missing information [16052]. 3. Implement a thorough quality control process to verify the accuracy and completeness of mapping data for all countries and regions supported by Nokia Maps [16052].
References 1. Israeli photography website Megapixel.co.il [16052] 2. CNET Australia [16052]

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization, multiple_organization (a) The software failure incident related to missing mapping data for Israel and Cyprus has happened before within the same organization, Nokia. Customer queries on Nokia's support forums highlighted the lack of mapping data for Israeli roads in 2010 and 2011 [16052]. (b) The incident of missing mapping data for Israel and Cyprus has also affected other organizations or services. For example, the glitch in Nokia Maps impacted online services like Flickr, which relies on Nokia Maps for mapping and geotagging information. The article mentions that Flickr has missing mapping and geotagging information for Israel, and Cyprus does not even appear on the map [16052].
Phase (Design/Operation) design, operation (a) The software failure incident related to the design phase is evident in the lack of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus on Nokia Maps, affecting services like Flickr [16052]. This issue was first noticed by an Israeli photography website, which reported missing mapping and geotagging information for Israel. The glitch was attributed to the fact that only three major cities in Israel were cited on the map, with all street information missing. Similarly, Cyprus lacked mapping information, with only a few place names appearing on the map. This discrepancy was highlighted as OpenStreetMap, an open-source service used by Flickr, displayed full street, city, and country mapping data for both Israel and Cyprus. Nokia Maps, which powers mapping services for Windows Phone 8 devices, was responsible for this lack of mapping data, despite its claim of having maps available for over 190 countries and regions. (b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase can be seen in the customer queries on Nokia's support forums regarding the lack of mapping data for Israeli roads in 2010 and 2011 [16052]. This indicates that users were experiencing issues with the operation or usability of the mapping service provided by Nokia Maps. Additionally, the fact that Flickr uses an open-source service called Leaflet for its interactive maps, which pulls data from OpenStreetMap, suggests that the operation of the mapping service was impacted by the discrepancies in mapping data between different platforms.
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) within_system: The software failure incident related to the lack of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus in Nokia Maps appears to be within the system. The glitch was first noticed by an Israeli photography website, and it was reported that only three major cities in Israel were cited on the map with all street information missing. Similarly, Cyprus lacked mapping information, with only a few place names appearing on the map. This issue seems to be originating from within the Nokia Maps system itself, as other services like OpenStreetMap display full mapping data for both countries [16052].
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions (a) The software failure incident in this case appears to be related to non-human actions. The glitch in Nokia Maps that caused the majority of country and city mapping information for Israel and Cyprus to be missing was not directly attributed to human actions but rather to a technical issue within the mapping data itself. The lack of mapping data for these countries affected other online services like Flickr, which rely on accurate mapping information provided by Nokia Maps [16052].
Dimension (Hardware/Software) software (a) The software failure incident related to hardware: - The article does not mention any hardware-related contributing factors that led to the software failure incident reported in Nokia Maps not displaying the majority of country and city mapping information for Israel and Cyprus [16052]. (b) The software failure incident related to software: - The software failure incident reported in the article is attributed to a glitch in Nokia Maps, which resulted in missing mapping and geotagging information for Israel and Cyprus. This glitch affected online services like Flickr, which rely on Nokia Maps for mapping data [16052].
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) non-malicious (a) The software failure incident related to the lack of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus in Nokia Maps and affecting services like Flickr does not seem to be malicious. There is no indication in the articles that the glitch was caused by any intentional actions to harm the system. It appears to be a non-malicious failure likely stemming from technical issues or data inaccuracies. [16052]
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) poor_decisions (a) The intent of the software failure incident related to poor_decisions is evident in the incident involving Nokia Maps not displaying the majority of country and city mapping information for Israel and Cyprus. Despite the availability of mapping data for these countries on other platforms like OpenStreetMap, Nokia Maps failed to provide comprehensive mapping information. This failure can be attributed to poor decisions made by Nokia in terms of mapping data coverage and quality control [16052].
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) development_incompetence (a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is evident in the lack of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus on Nokia Maps, affecting services like Flickr [16052]. Despite using an open-source service called Leaflet, which pulls data from OpenStreetMap showing complete mapping information for both countries, Nokia Maps fails to display the necessary data. This indicates a failure in professional competence in providing accurate and up-to-date mapping information for these regions. (b) The accidental nature of the software failure incident is highlighted by Nokia's response to the mapping data issue in Israel and Cyprus. Nokia Australia stated that they are committed to neutrality and impartiality regarding political issues, and they are continuously working on refining and improving Nokia Maps to make maps available in as many countries and regions as possible [16052]. This suggests that the lack of mapping data for these countries was not intentional but rather an unintended consequence of the mapping service's development and maintenance processes.
Duration temporary The software failure incident reported in Article 16052 seems to be temporary rather than permanent. The incident involves a glitch in Nokia Maps that resulted in the majority of country and city mapping information for Israel and Cyprus not being displayed. Nokia Maps, which provides mapping services for Flickr, was found to have missing mapping and geotagging information for Israel and Cyprus. The glitch was first noticed by an Israeli photography website, and it was reported that only three major cities in Israel were cited on the map, with all street information missing. Similarly, Cyprus lacked mapping information, with only a few place names appearing on the map. Nokia responded to the issue by stating their commitment to continuously refining and improving Nokia Maps to make maps available in as many countries and regions as possible. They expressed confidence in being able to offer maps for Cyprus and Israel in the coming months, indicating that the software failure incident was temporary and efforts were being made to address the mapping data issues in these countries [16052].
Behaviour omission, other (a) crash: The software failure incident described in the articles does not involve a crash where the system loses state and does not perform any of its intended functions. Instead, the issue is related to missing mapping data for Israel and Cyprus on Nokia Maps, affecting services like Flickr [16052]. (b) omission: The software failure incident can be categorized as an omission, where the system omits to perform its intended functions at an instance(s). Specifically, the mapping data for Israel and Cyprus is missing on Nokia Maps, leading to incomplete information for users of services like Flickr [16052]. (c) timing: The software failure incident is not related to timing, where the system performs its intended functions correctly but too late or too early. The issue here is the absence of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus, impacting the usability of online services relying on this data [16052]. (d) value: The software failure incident does not fall under the category of a value failure, where the system performs its intended functions incorrectly. The main issue highlighted in the articles is the lack of mapping information for Israel and Cyprus on Nokia Maps, affecting services like Flickr [16052]. (e) byzantine: The software failure incident is not characterized by a byzantine behavior, where the system behaves erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. The primary issue is the missing mapping data for Israel and Cyprus on Nokia Maps, leading to incomplete information for users of online services [16052]. (f) other: The software failure incident can be described as a data inconsistency issue, where the mapping data available on Nokia Maps does not align with the data provided by other mapping services like OpenStreetMap. This discrepancy results in incomplete mapping information for Israel and Cyprus on Nokia Maps, affecting the functionality of services like Flickr [16052].

IoT System Layer

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

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence unknown (a) death: People lost their lives due to the software failure (b) harm: People were physically harmed due to the software failure (c) basic: People's access to food or shelter was impacted because of the software failure (d) property: People's material goods, money, or data was impacted due to the software failure (e) delay: People had to postpone an activity due to the software failure (f) non-human: Non-human entities were impacted due to the software failure (g) no_consequence: There were no real observed consequences of the software failure (h) theoretical_consequence: There were potential consequences discussed of the software failure that did not occur (i) other: Was there consequence(s) of the software failure not described in the (a to h) options? What is the other consequence(s)? The software failure incident regarding the lack of mapping data for Israel and Cyprus in Nokia Maps did not result in any direct consequences such as death, harm, basic needs impact, property loss, or non-human entity impact. The incident mainly revolved around the issue of missing mapping information for the mentioned countries, affecting services like Flickr [16052].
Domain information (a) The software failure incident involving Nokia Maps not displaying mapping information for Israel and Cyprus impacted online services such as Flickr, which rely on accurate mapping data for geotagging images [16052]. (l) The incident also highlighted the lack of mapping data for Israeli roads in previous years, as mentioned in customer queries on Nokia's support forums [16052].

Sources

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