| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident having happened again at one_organization:
The software failure incident at Mt. Gox involving the theft of a significant amount of bitcoins by hackers was not the first time such an incident occurred. In June 2011, Mt. Gox was hacked for the first time, with attackers stealing the equivalent of $8.75 million [24890].
(b) The software failure incident having happened again at multiple_organization:
The article mentions that other bitcoin companies had also been hacked and lost customer funds, with most of them simply folding after such incidents. This indicates that similar software failure incidents related to hacking and loss of funds had occurred at multiple organizations within the bitcoin industry [24890]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase can be seen in the article where it is mentioned that Mt. Gox, the world's largest bitcoin exchange, had serious issues in its software development environment. The article states that Mt. Gox didn't use any type of version control software, a standard tool in professional software development environments. This lack of version control meant that any coder could accidentally overwrite a colleague's code, leading to potential errors and conflicts in the system [24890].
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase is evident in the article where it is highlighted that Mt. Gox had only recently introduced a test environment. Prior to this, untested software changes were pushed out to the exchange's customers, which is not a practice seen in professionally run financial services websites. Additionally, there was only one person, Mark Karpeles, who could approve changes to the site's source code. This bottleneck in the approval process meant that some bug fixes, including security fixes, could languish for weeks, impacting the operational efficiency and security of the system [24890]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident at Mt. Gox was primarily due to contributing factors that originated from within the system. The articles highlight various internal issues such as poor management, neglect, raw inexperience, lack of version control software, untested software changes being pushed out to customers, and a messy source code [24890]. These internal factors ultimately led to vulnerabilities in the system that were exploited by hackers, resulting in the disappearance of a significant amount of money from the company's accounts. The lack of proper oversight, control, and maintenance within the system played a crucial role in the software failure incident. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox was primarily due to human actions rather than non-human actions. The articles highlight how poor management, neglect, and raw inexperience within the company, particularly attributed to the CEO Mark Karpeles, played a significant role in the failure [24890]. The lack of proper management practices, such as the absence of version control software, untested software changes being pushed out to customers, and delays in approving code changes, all point to human actions contributing to the software failure incident. Additionally, the distraction caused by side projects like The Bitcoin Cafe further diverted attention from addressing the real issues faced by the company [24890]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox was primarily due to contributing factors originating in software rather than hardware. The articles highlight various software-related issues such as poor management, neglect, inexperience, lack of version control software, untested software changes being pushed out to customers, messy source code, and delays in approving code changes. These software-related factors significantly contributed to the failure of Mt. Gox as a bitcoin exchange [24890]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
malicious, non-malicious |
(a) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox was primarily malicious in nature. The incident involved hackers stealing a significant amount of money from the exchange, with $460 million apparently stolen by hackers and another $27.4 million missing from its bank accounts [24890]. Additionally, a leaked Mt. Gox document revealed that hackers had been skimming money from the company for years, resulting in a total loss of 850,000 bitcoins, more than $460 million [24890].
(b) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox also had elements of non-malicious failure. The company was described as having poor management, neglect, and raw inexperience, with the CEO, Mark Karpeles, being more of a computer coder than a chief executive [24890]. The company's lack of basic business practices, such as not using version control software and having a messy source code, contributed to the failure [24890]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions, accidental_decisions |
(a) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox can be attributed to poor decisions made by the CEO, Mark Karpeles, and the company's management. The article highlights that Mt. Gox was a messy combination of poor management, neglect, and raw inexperience. Karpeles, who was more of a computer coder than a chief executive, was described as being distracted from his technical duties when they were most needed. The company lacked proper management practices, such as using version control software, which is a standard tool in professional software development environments. Additionally, the article mentions that there were serious red flags at Mt. Gox, including the absence of a test environment for software changes and the fact that only Karpeles could approve changes to the site's source code, leading to delays in implementing bug fixes and security fixes [24890].
(b) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox also involved accidental decisions or unintended consequences. For example, the article mentions that the company's founder, Jed McCaleb, repurposed the Mtgox.com domain as a bitcoin exchange without initially intending to do so. This accidental decision led to the creation of a platform that eventually became the world's most popular bitcoin exchange under Karpeles' ownership. Furthermore, the article describes how Karpeles was strangely nonchalant about a previous hack in 2011, indicating a lack of concern or awareness about the potential consequences of security breaches. These accidental decisions or oversights contributed to the vulnerability of the platform and ultimately led to the significant loss of funds due to hacking incidents [24890]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence, accidental |
(a) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox can be attributed to development incompetence. The company lacked basic professional software development practices such as version control software, which led to issues like accidental overwriting of code by different coders [24890]. Additionally, the company had a disorganized approach to software development, with only one person, Mark Karpeles, being able to approve changes to the site's source code, causing delays in implementing bug fixes and security updates [24890].
(b) The software failure incident at Mt. Gox also had accidental elements. For example, the initial idea of turning Mt. Gox into a bitcoin exchange was not planned by the original owner, Jed McCaleb, but was a result of repurposing the domain from a trading site for game cards to a bitcoin exchange [24890]. Additionally, the company faced unexpected challenges such as federal agents seizing funds due to regulatory issues and being sued by a former business partner, CoinLab, which contributed to the company's downfall [24890]. |
| Duration |
permanent, temporary |
The software failure incident related to the Mt. Gox exchange can be categorized as both permanent and temporary.
(a) Permanent Failure:
The software failure incident at Mt. Gox can be considered permanent due to contributing factors introduced by all circumstances. The company faced a series of issues such as poor management, neglect, inexperience, lack of version control software, untested software changes being pushed out to customers, and a messy source code [24890]. These systemic issues contributed to the eventual collapse and bankruptcy of the exchange.
(b) Temporary Failure:
On the other hand, the software failure incident can also be seen as temporary as there were specific circumstances that led to the failure. For example, the company was hacked multiple times, with the second hack resulting in the disappearance of a significant amount of money controlled by the company [24890]. Additionally, there were delays in withdrawing funds, legal issues, and distractions like the Bitcoin Cafe project that diverted attention from addressing the core issues [24890]. These specific events and decisions contributed to the temporary nature of the failure.
Therefore, the software failure incident at Mt. Gox can be viewed as a combination of both permanent and temporary failure aspects. |
| Behaviour |
crash, omission, value, other |
(a) crash: The software failure incident at Mt. Gox can be attributed to a crash as the system lost state and failed to perform its intended functions. The article mentions that Mt. Gox stopped paying out customers in bitcoins, citing a flaw in the digital currency, and protesters turned up outside its offices, questioning its solvency [24890].
(b) omission: The software failure incident also involved omission as the system omitted to perform its intended functions at instances. For example, the article highlights that Mt. Gox had serious red flags such as not using version control software, which led to the possibility of accidental overwriting of code by coders and untested software changes being pushed out to customers [24890].
(c) timing: There is no specific mention of timing-related failures in the software incident at Mt. Gox in the provided article.
(d) value: The software failure incident did involve a failure related to the system performing its intended functions incorrectly. For instance, the article mentions that Mt. Gox had weaknesses in its system, leading to the disappearance of a significant amount of money controlled by the company [24890].
(e) byzantine: The software failure incident did not exhibit behaviors related to a byzantine failure in the provided article.
(f) other: The software failure incident at Mt. Gox also involved other behaviors such as poor management, neglect, lack of experience, distraction of the CEO, and a messy combination of factors contributing to the collapse of the exchange. Additionally, the article mentions that the source code was described as a complete mess, indicating a lack of proper software development practices [24890]. |