Millions of SideKick Users Lose All Data

Monday, October 12, 2009

The personal data of millions of users of the T-Mobile Sidekick, made by the Microsoft subsidiary Danger, was lost permanently last week in a server failure.

Posted by AuntieSocial at 01:32 PM | 44 COMMENTS | permalink | Comment on This Entry

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AuntieSocial

major trouble

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That's embarrasing.

#1 | Posted by mysterytoy at 2009-10-12 07:30 AM | Reply | Flag:

So what is TMobile planning to do to make this up to their customers?

#2 | Posted by Hagbard_Celine at 2009-10-12 07:40 AM | Reply | Flag:

So what is TMobile planning to do to make this up to their customers?

#2 | Posted by Hagbard_Celine

Nothing. They all have contracts.

#3 | Posted by jackass at 2009-10-12 09:44 AM | Reply | Flag:

RAID collapses are things of beauty aren't they?

#4 | Posted by NerfHerder at 2009-10-12 02:02 PM | Reply | Flag:

Somebody in IT is in trouble. Being in healthcare IT, just wait until all doctors are paperless with electronic medical records.

#5 | Posted by Pirate at 2009-10-12 02:24 PM | Reply | Flag:

So what is TMobile planning to do to make this up to their customers?

#2 | Posted by Hagbard_Celine

I'm sure somewhere in their fine print they have a disclaimer stating that the end user is responsible for maintaining any and all personal data, as everyone I know in IT does.

In other words: tough shit.

Although, if they were smart they'd offer some sort of compensation, if they want any chance of keeping these customers, after their contracts run out.

#6 | Posted by Whatsleft at 2009-10-12 02:39 PM | Reply | Flag:

Being in healthcare IT, just wait until all doctors are paperless with electronic medical records.

Never going to happen. Medical laws recognize that paper and ink is much harder to change than a computer screen is. The field I work in is 100% computer (sleep medicine) and we still use paper patient folders for everything and I do mean everything.

#7 | Posted by kanrei at 2009-10-12 02:41 PM | Reply | Flag:

I'm more stunned by the fact that they still make the sidekick.

#8 | Posted by COMMONSENSE at 2009-10-12 02:49 PM | Reply | Flag:

I'm more stunned by the fact that they still make the sidekick.

#8 | POSTED BY COMMONSENSE

The original Sidekick was a failing platform until Paris Hilton's Sidekick was hacked and her entire address book was leaked.

Sidekick sales skyrocketed after that.

Sometimes I don't understand the masses.

#9 | Posted by Shmoopty at 2009-10-12 03:07 PM | Reply | Flag:

#9 | Posted by Shmoopty

Shmoopty???

Sort of like poopy only it's something you stepped into?

#10 | Posted by coyote at 2009-10-12 03:23 PM | Reply | Flag:

microfeces assfucks their customers?

Say it aint so..

#11 | Posted by Shawn at 2009-10-12 03:31 PM | Reply | Flag:

"Never going to happen. Medical laws recognize that paper and ink is much harder to change than a computer screen is. The field I work in is 100% computer (sleep medicine) and we still use paper patient folders for everything and I do mean everything.

#7 | Posted by kanrei "

Dude, trillions of dollars are traded electronically every year with no paper backup. Do you think they might be able to handle medical records? The problem is not having a proper failover site and disaster recovery. Nowadays all data is mirrored across SANs and geography.

There is a ridiculously higher order of risk for your doctor's office burning down and losing your files than it will be for electronic records to be lost.

the medical field has a horribly antediluvian attitude when it comes to IT that is born out of ignorance and obstinance, not caution.

#12 | Posted by furio at 2009-10-12 03:43 PM | Reply | Flag:

People driving Suzuki Sidekicks lost all their Data?

Why were they carrying all of it in their trucks?

#13 | Posted by frankf55 at 2009-10-12 03:56 PM | Reply | Flag:

Hello Everyone! Its like we are one big family!
I was having service issues with tmobile on my BB Pearl flip and after issue after issue the TMoblie Rep asked to call me back on my home phone to do some tech test. so when they called me back they told me that there has been a huge issue with the flips and began to sell me on a SideKick the newest one and She made it sound like "THE GREATEST THING SINCE SLICED BREAD" I told her how important receiving my data was to me and that aslong as there will be no issues with that(cause I was having none with my BB) I would buy the SideKick. They took a big discount off and made me feel like I was making a great "INFORMED" choice.
Well the side kick arrives and so does issues. 3 1/2 weeks ago I receved it and there were problem off the start. I had to keep calling them about emails not coming thru txt and so on. Everytime they would give me reps who seemed dumbfound about the darn situation!
I finally told them to just tell me if they were having server issues and I would give it time. The rep finally admitted they were and I said ok they told me things should be fine by the next day or call back. Well they were not and most of you out there already know the story from hear and probly got an T-Shirt; everytime I would call they ask for your number then a msg would tell you about this new found issue. now this is week 2 into the ordeal. so after 3 1/2 + probly (lost count) I decided to go back to my BB Flip and I tell you it was liberating. But I waited a few days cause Sidekick finally stop thinking the public was stupid and sent all of us a txt via their "working tmobile email" that due to the issue they would be crediting all customers for 1 months data service. So I keep it on for 3days more to get my credit then quicly switch back to my Berry.
They know they should really be ashamed of this situation dupeing customers like this. I think everybody should switch to a diffrent device and let Sidekick feel it in their pockets cause thats the only real place they understand.

twitter.com

#14 | Posted by 1Armonelli at 2009-10-12 04:04 PM | Reply | Flag:

Uh. Seriously? T-Mobile doesn't have a freaking data backup plan? Restore a tape or 200?

#15 | Posted by unklegwar at 2009-10-12 04:09 PM | Reply | Flag:

Why were they carrying all of it in their trucks?

#13 | Posted by frankf55
How gay do you have to be to call a sidekick a truck?

#16 | Posted by freechoice at 2009-10-12 04:34 PM | Reply | Flag:

12 | Posted by furio

I think you missed my point. The laws forbid paperless medical records. The reasoning is that data can be altered, but pen and ink cannot. You would be amazed at all the rules and regulations that are in place when it comes to what can, what cannot, and exactly how something must be included in a file.

#17 | Posted by kanrei at 2009-10-12 04:43 PM | Reply | Flag:

I can't believe these people didn't back up their own data... and on that note, I think I will take and extra backup of my phone... just in case.

#18 | Posted by 1libertarian at 2009-10-12 05:35 PM | Reply | Flag:

AT&T is no better. I still get messages weeks or even months after they were sent. Most of them from busy signals when I know my phone was not busy.

Back to Sidekick, Anyone that is storing personal data online is an idiot anyway. These are the same kind of people that wander around with rings in their noses, tattoos on their privates and kick me stickers on their backs.

#19 | Posted by RingMaster at 2009-10-12 05:41 PM | Reply | Flag:

Important Message to Sidekick Users;

'Aaaaa haaaaa haaaaaaaaa haaaaaaaaa wheee
aaaaaaa haaaaaa haaaaaa'

Suckers

#20 | Posted by Lipzoidial at 2009-10-12 05:42 PM | Reply | Flag:

"Why were they carrying all of it in their trucks?
#13 | Posted by frankf55"

"How gay do you have to be to call a sidekick a truck?
#16 | Posted by freechoice"

Suzuki Sidekick: www.samigarage.com

Which is dumber: Frank's joke, or Freechoice? Discuss.

#21 | Posted by mOntecOre at 2009-10-12 06:27 PM | Reply | Flag:

Given that I just got Freechoice's point, I think the answer is: mOntecOre. Frank, don't be a dumbass - that is not a truck. It is a car, or a toy, but not a truck. Quit making me look dumb.

#22 | Posted by mOntecOre at 2009-10-12 06:29 PM | Reply | Flag:

My t-mobile phone used to receive and send pictures then it just quit for no reason. I tried to download the pix and video from my phone to my computer but it would not work and said I was using the wrong cable - the same cable that came with the phone. I found a blog with all these people talking about the same thing.

Youtube used to not work for me, then it started working, then it quit. This is very common apparently.

WTF are we still in the like Model T era of the computer age or what?

#23 | Posted by grumpy_too at 2009-10-12 07:13 PM | Reply | Flag:

I can't believe these people didn't back up their own data... and on that note, I think I will take and extra backup of my phone... just in case.

#18 | Posted by 1libertarian at 2009-10-12 05:35 PM | Reply |

I don't believe it either. In fact I'm willing to bet that the problem wasn't that they weren't doing the backup, but that the backup procedures they had were badly written or not written with clear enough goals.

#24 | Posted by KnightHawk at 2009-10-12 07:16 PM | Reply | Flag:

Does anyone else remember when Borland had Sidekick that ran on DOS 3.1 back in the early to mid '80s? We all had it on our machines at Sprint. We thought it was so cool. Just push two keys and up popped the TSR. It had a calculator, a primitive word processor (based on WordPerfect) an address book and an ASCII table.

Funny looking back and thinking that was a technological marvel

#25 | Posted by goatman at 2009-10-12 07:29 PM | Reply | Flag:

#13 | Posted by frankf55
How gay do you have to be to call a sidekick a truck?

#16 | Posted by freechoice

Given that I just got Freechoice's point, I think the answer is: mOntecOre. Frank, don't be a dumbass - that is not a truck. It is a car, or a toy, but not a truck. Quit making me look dumb.

#22 | Posted by mOntecOre

Actually-it's a "Mini-SUV"-that makes it a TRUCK(albeit a mighty small one.....)

I don't try to make anyone look dumb...I allow them to do it to themselves........:>D

#26 | Posted by frankf55 at 2009-10-12 07:32 PM | Reply | Flag:

I remember my Older half-brother picking up a used Commodore 64 in the mid-'80s-and thinkin' "What will they think of next?"

Holy crap!

#27 | Posted by frankf55 at 2009-10-12 07:38 PM | Reply | Flag:

I had the Vic 20 w/ casette drive. I remember spending hours entering basic code from the back of a magazine, type RUN,
Enter,
Syntax Error.
Wah-Waaah

#28 | Posted by memyselfini at 2009-10-12 10:03 PM | Reply | Flag:

I had the Vic 20 w/ casette drive. I remember spending hours entering basic code from the back of a magazine, type RUN,
Enter,
Syntax Error.
Wah-Waaah

#28 | Posted by memyselfini at 2009-10-12 10:03 PM | Reply | Flag:

LOL... I had the C64 and spent a couple of hours just to get a tiny little square to appear on the screen... after the requisite syntax errors were resolved (you know, Zat is like a syntax error identifier). Then I spent a week or more creating an address book.

And the tape drive... 30 minutes just to play "Farmer's Daughter"?

I thought I found everything but usually wound up face in the mud outside the farm.... or shot with a 12 guage by the Farmer.

"Wah-Waaah"
#28 | Posted by memyselfini

Discorporate and come with me...?

#29 | Posted by Hagbard_Celine at 2009-10-12 10:22 PM | Reply | Flag:

" tape drive "

Bill Lear invented those cassettes.
A great read: "Stormy Genius."

#30 | Posted by Zatoichi at 2009-10-12 10:24 PM | Reply | Flag:

I still have my TRS-80. NO disk drive, programs stored on audio cassette. came with 4k RAM, I upgraded to 16k for $200. LOL Bought it in 1979 for $800.

That kind of processing power is virtually free today.

#31 | Posted by goatman at 2009-10-12 10:25 PM | Reply | Flag:

"I still have my TRS-80."

LOL.... When was the last time you set it up for nostalgia's sake?

#32 | Posted by Hagbard_Celine at 2009-10-12 10:38 PM | Reply | Flag:

I can't remember. Maybe 20 years ago? The audio cassettes had long lost their data as magnetic tapes do. I just got the READY> prompt.

#33 | Posted by goatman at 2009-10-12 10:40 PM | Reply | Flag:

"Stormy Genius."

In my wish list on amazon (I have a long list I have to get to).

But Hell, its available for $5.26 with shipping....

#34 | Posted by Hagbard_Celine at 2009-10-12 10:41 PM | Reply | Flag:

PS. Saw one just like it in the Smithsonian a few years ago. Made me laugh.

#35 | Posted by goatman at 2009-10-12 10:41 PM | Reply | Flag:

Wow, looking at one of the antique computer museum web sites, I see that the Apple II came out way the fuck back in 1977! My brother had one of them. The C64 did not come out until 1982. I went back in the USMC in 1980 and they put me to work typing for the Wing Adjutant at El Toro on this large funky Lanier computer that had huge tubes inside and created a lot of heat, had to have its own little room with cold A/C, the only machine like it on base. In 1982 they asked my opinion about the new IBM Displaywriter and I said they should buy it so the base got 40 of them (which they wanted to do anyway). I hated it when they got rid of that old Lanier (it never broke down) and the instruction book was very well written.

#36 | Posted by grumpy_too at 2009-10-12 11:11 PM | Reply | Flag:

Actually-it's a "Mini-SUV"-that makes it a TRUCK(albeit a mighty small one.....)

I don't try to make anyone look dumb...I allow them to do it to themselves........:>D

#26 | Posted by frankf55
Maybe for a lib that is a truck, but any self respecting person knows that is no where near a truck.

#37 | Posted by freechoice at 2009-10-13 08:19 AM | Reply | Flag:

but any self respecting person knows that is no where near a truck.

#37 | Posted by freechoic

The one in the picture WAS completely by itself...so it really wasn't anywhere near ANOTHER truck.....

freechoice-your insistence on this speaks VOLUMES about YOU-personally....

#38 | Posted by frankf55 at 2009-10-13 10:34 AM | Reply | Flag:

I wonder how much pain will be inflicted on Deutsche Telekom in the stock market because of this disaster.

#39 | Posted by grumpy_too at 2009-10-13 10:41 AM | Reply | Flag:

for those of you who don't actually have a sidekick you CANT back up your own data- one of the nice things about changing phones with T-mobile was getting everything dowloaded to your new phone when you changed. Also typing things in online and having them show up on your "desktop" of the sidekick.

I have been with t-mobile since they were 'Voicestream' and had great customer service. Over the past few months it has been pretty cruddy service.

What they are giving us??? 1 month free data usage, ie for me $20 bucks. Several hundred contacts, all my email, text messaging and apps all gone.

Luckily I am out of contract so I will be stopping by ATT this week to get a new iPhone

#40 | Posted by TxDj68 at 2009-10-13 11:46 AM | Reply | Flag:

I still have my TRS-80.

#31 | Posted by goatman at 2009-10-12 10:25 PM | Reply | Flag: OC; Hoarder

#41 | Posted by mOntecOre at 2009-10-13 12:36 PM | Reply | Flag:

The T-Mobile Sidekick is not an enterprise level device (like the BlackBerry).

Besides, the only people I know who have a Sidekick are teenie-boppers and one stupid ass Java developer who can't program for shit.

#42 | Posted by OUR_ZERO at 2009-10-13 02:09 PM | Reply | Flag:

Cell Phone Biz Geek Article

www.glgroup.com

This guy says the disaster was the fault of Microsoft. I had been hating on T-Mobile and blaming them, but did not realize I was missing out on a chance to really hate on Microsoft some more. Only problem is I've been hating on MS for so long it is not that satisfying any more, and I've caught the virus of Hater-ism that is in the air and need something to focus on, you know, because after hating on the Rtards for eight long years it is boring to try to really despise those bastards with the white hot fire like I need when they are pretty much just pitiful nowadays. I need a new hate.

#43 | Posted by grumpy_too at 2009-10-13 03:07 PM | Reply | Flag:

People driving Suzuki Sidekicks lost all their Data?

Data will be okay. He's made of titanium or something.
Probably has GPS too.

#44 | Posted by northguy3 at 2009-10-13 03:32 PM | Reply | Flag: