Last-minute Christmas shopping guide

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

You've already missed the deadline for free shipping from Amazon (AMZN, Tech30), for example. (It was Friday.)

But the online store says gifts ordered as late as Tuesday can still be under the tree on Thursday if you pay for one-day delivery. Some customers in major cities can even place orders by 10 a.m. on Christmas Eve and receive same-day delivery.

Hitting the stores: If you want to do your last-minute shopping the old fashioned way, expect stores to be crowded and lines to be long this weekend.

Many stores like Target (TGT) and J.C. Penney (JCP) will be open for extended hours.

Toys 'R' Us and Kohl's (KSS) will be remain open all hours until Christmas eve.

Shopping online: And you can also shop online at these same stores.

Walmart's (WMT) free shipping deadline passed (last Wednesday), but "rush shipping" is available through Monday for a fee. And if the item is in stock at a nearby store, orders for in-store pickup can be placed even on Christmas Eve.

There's still time for free shipping through Best Buy (BBY). It says orders over $35 placed by 11:30 a.m. ET on Monday qualify for free delivery by Christmas. It also offers free in-store pickup.

The deadline at Kohl's and Target is Saturday. Sears' and Macy's is Monday.

Last call at the Post Office: If you already have a gift you have to mail, that clock is ticking, too. The U.S. Postal Service will accept packages through Tuesday for Priority Mail Express. You can save a few bucks -- and time in line -- by dropping off the package by Saturday and using First Class Mail (for Christmas cards) or Priority Mail (for packages).

The deadline for Thursday delivery from UPS (UPS) and FedEx (FDX) is Tuesday.

Related: Toys 'R' Us extends hours for last-minute shoppers

Related: Mall Santa 101

First Published: December 20, 2014: 7:21 AM ET

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How has middle class Christmas changed?

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

CNNMoney wants to know what was under your Christmas tree 30 years ago (Think: Trivial Pursuit, Cabbage Patch dolls, Transformers) and what are you wrapping this year (Think: iPhones, Fitbits and PlayStation)?

Do you, your kids or grandkids expect more expensive presents nowadays? Is it more than you gave or received 30 years ago?

Tell us about it.

First Published: December 19, 2014: 7:40 PM ET

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A defiant Sony scrambles to find a way out for 'The Interview'

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

This weekend the embattled movie studio is in active discussions with potential distribution partners, figuring out if there's a way forward for the film that provoked a crippling cyberattack, an FBI investigation and a presidential critique of the company.

Netflix (NFLX, Tech30), YouTube and major movie theater owners are not commenting.

But CNN's Fareed Zakaria, who interviewed Sony Pictures CEO Michael Lynton on Friday, said later on CNN that he came away with the sense that "Sony intends to release this movie in some form, relatively soon. I don't think we're talking about six months from now. This movie will be seen."

What was just a lousy comedy a few short days ago is now a symbol of two essential American values -- freedom of expression and freedom from fear.

On Tuesday, the hackers that previously stole terabytes of data from Sony's servers explicitly targeted the Christmas release of "The Interview" by issuing a message that invoked 9/11. They warned Americans not to venture to movie theaters playing the film.

Sony then signaled that movie theater owners could back out of plans to screen the film if necessary -- and they did just that, like a series of falling dominoes.

The owners were concerned that families would forgo holiday season trips to the movies due to safety concerns and hurt every big Christmas film release, not just "The Interview."

So on Wednesday, with virtually nowhere to show the film, Sony canceled the Christmas release. (Lynton told Zakaria that the studio tried and failed to find a digital distributor, so it ruled out an immediate online release, too.)

Backlash to the decision was ferocious.

On Friday, President Obama echoed the feelings of many in Hollywood when he said Sony had made a mistake: "We cannot have a society in which some dictator someplace can start imposing censorship here in the United States."

Obama also openly worried about the possibility of producers and distributors "engaging in self-censorship because they don't want to offend the sensibilities of somebody whose sensibilities probably need to be offended."

Related: Sony exec fires back at President Obama

Speaking to Zakaria shortly after the president weighed in, Lynton said he essentially agreed with the president -- but that Sony (SNE) couldn't go it alone.

"We don't have that direct interface with the American public," Lynton said. "So we need to go through an intermediary to do that."

Theoretical distributors include theater chains like AMC and Regal, if they're willing to reverse their prior decision; cable video-on-demand operators like Comcast (CCV) and Time Warner Cable (TWC); subscription streaming sites like Netflix and Amazon (AMZN, Tech30); and movie rental services like iTunes by Apple (AAPL, Tech30).

Sony Pictures has a video streaming site of its own, Crackle, but it's free for users and doesn't have the capability to charge customers to watch a movie. Charging for "The Interview" would help Sony recoup some of the movie's $44 million budget.

One of the studio's sibling divisions, Sony Computer Entertainment, has another route to consumers: the PlayStation Store, which lets owners of the video game console rent or buy movies via the Internet. The company has declined to comment on whether it might choose to release "The Interview" there.

Of course, Sony -- and any company that helps it release the film in the future -- has to consider the risk of further intrusions by the hackers and further leaks of the stolen data they already have.

In a threatening message to executives on Thursday night, an anonymous hacker said Sony was "very wise" to cancel the film and claimed they would "ensure the security of your data unless you make additional trouble."

Releasing the film in some form would presumably be considered "additional trouble."

Related: Hackers send a new message

But among all the emotions that are spilling forth from Sony's leaders -- anger, fear, frustration -- a new one has emerged: defiance.

Lynton told Zakaria that "we're trying to weigh the options as to how we can get this" released.

Disappointment inside the studio about the lack of support from other major Hollywood players is beginning to subside.

After weeks of almost nothing but silence, The Motion Picture Association of America spoke out forcefully on Friday, following the FBI's statement that North Korea was behind the late November cyberattack.

Lynton, who was in New York on Friday night, awoke on Saturday morning to a front-page New York Times column that expressed "disgust" at the "readiness of theater owners and Sony to cave in to far-fetched threats."

But there was also this call by the New York Daily News editorial board: "Patriotism demands: Show the movie and show it now."

Meantime, the studio released another movie on Friday -- the highly-anticipated "Annie." It had leaked onto illegal film-sharing web sites after the cyberattack, but it is still expected to earn tens of millions of dollars.

"It's a rare bit of good news for Sony," The Hollywood Reporter said, for a studio that needs some.

Related: N. Korea blasts 'childish attempt to frame us'

First Published: December 20, 2014: 9:16 AM ET

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All I want for Christmas: Boobs

A new Christmas tradition: Plastic surgery.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

That may be a riff on the original, but it's a tune many are singing this holiday season, as more people are asking Santa to go under the knife.

Holiday gift giving has become a staple at many cosmetic surgery practices, and the popularity has grown over the last several years, according to Tom Seery, Founder and CEO of RealSelf.com, a consumer website for patients considering cosmetic procedures.

Seery said that people are widely more accepting of nips and tucks than they used to be, and the fact that it's become more mainstream makes people more comfortable admitting they want something done.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 15.1 million people had cosmetic procedures in the U.S. in 2013, up 104% from 2000.

"Because of that, cosmetic surgery is much less of an awkward conversation to have around the dinner table,"Seery said.

The most common plastic surgery gifts to give are anything involving the face -- from fillers to lifts -- and breast augmentations, according to Dr. Yoel Shahar, a plastic surgeon in New York.

The Christmas season is the busiest time of year for most plastic surgeons, because people have time off to get the procedures and then recover.

Related: Why so many men are obsessed with 'Bro-tox'

This year, Heidi, a mother of three living on Long Island, NY, won't be looking for the jewelry box her husband usually leaves under the tree. Instead, she's getting a new kind of gift -- money toward the facial filler Juvederm, which she'll have injected into the area under her eyes at Marotta Facial Plastic Surgery Center.

"I was so excited when he told me, because I'm always complaining that I look so tired and my husband knows this," said Heidi, who requested that we not use her last name.

Cosmetic surgery is a major splurge, so it's an obvious choice for a gift wish list. The average cost of breast augmentation surgery was $3,678 in 2013, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The average face lift cost was $6,556 and a tummy tuck was $5,217.

As in Heidi's case, the majority of these gifts come from a significant other. A survey of RealSelf community members found that, of those who had gotten some kind of a procedure as a gift, 75% received it from their romantic partner or spouse.

But this gift idea comes with a caveat: About one third of respondents said they'd be offended if a family member, romantic partner or a friend gifted them a cosmetic procedure.

It could sound downright Grinch-like to give a gift that implies your loved one could use some work, but doctors say that's not generally the case.

Dr. Scot Glasberg, a private practice plastic surgeon based in New York City, and president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, said he sees procedures being gifted all the time, but usually the patient has already had a consultation and has independently decided to have work done. The third party is only involved in the payment part, not the decision to do it.

Glasberg recently met with a patient that had come to him solo for a breast augmentation. But the check came from her boyfriend, who paid for the procedure as a Hanukkah gift.

"There are a lot of red flags as a surgeon, once you hear the word gift," he said. "The key is to make sure they're getting it for the right reasons -- to help with body image or self-esteem, not as a way to enhance a relationship."

Related: Mall Santa 101: The making of the perfect Mr. Claus

Heidi thought her husband's gesture meant he had been listening to all her complaining and had gotten her what she really wanted.

"I thought it was very thoughtful that he cared that much, and you know, happy wife, happy life."

First Published: December 19, 2014: 9:51 AM ET

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Why North Korea's attack should leave every company scared stiff

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The attack on Sony (SNE) Pictures inflicted crippling damage in a way that past hacks have not. Stolen corporate secrets, customer passwords and credit card numbers from previous cyberattacks haven't left a lasting impact on companies, and they haven't kept their customers away.

By succeeding in its mission to get Sony to pull "The Interview," hackers have provided a blueprint for really hurting American companies: Break into their computers, steal data, erase files, expose private documents, then make a physical threat.

"The problem now is not the hack. It's how Sony responded to it. It's the cave-in," said Peter W. Singer, a renowned author of several books on cyberwar. "They rewarded and incentivized attacks on the rest of us."

Sony's attack was sponsored by North Korea, U.S. government officials are preparing to announce. Unlike most attacks conducted by Russian and Chinese hackers, North Korea's hackers were relentless. They completely embarrassed Sony and made movie theaters afraid to carry its film.

In the past, most U.S. corporations have brushed off cyberattacks levied against themselves or their peers. That means most are just as unprepared for hackers as Sony was.

After seeing what happened to Sony, companies should be shaking in their boots.

"This sort of attack could be reproduced using the same techniques," said Orla Cox, director of security response at Symantec (SYMC, Tech30). "This should be a wake up call for organizations,"

Sony's attack was frightfully easy to pull off. This could have been the work of a tiny team of bright computer programmers -- maybe as small as three people, said Kaspersky Lab security researcher Roel Schouwenberg. In fact, the whole operation could have been outsourced to hackers-for-hire, noted Art Gilliland, general manager of security for HP (HPQ, Tech30).

Now, companies must make a calculated decision every time it gets aggressive with a competitor or makes a controversial move. Hackers could be lurking to take them down.

"Media, pharmaceutical, energy companies. Everybody's got enemies," said Craig Carpenter, president of Resolution1 Security. "This Sony hack shows you can be brought to your knees if you're not capable of shutting something like this down before it gets out of hand."

But stopping cyberattacks takes a big investment -- one that companies so far have been unwilling to make.

The barrage of cyberattacks is nonstop. Computer alarms go off maybe 5,000 times a day at a large company like Sony, Carpenter said. Every time an employee visits a sketchy website or a new app enters the network, an alarm goes off. In many cases, those must be manually checked by a member of the company's security team.

The workload outpaces the number of workers assigned to keep companies safe. That's how hackers slip in unnoticed and start their work. On average, it takes a company 243 days to discover a breach, according to the M-Trends 2013 report by Mandiant, a computer security consultant.

Once upon a time, companies only had to worry about cybercriminals trying to steal credit cards or foreign government spies seeking company secrets to assist competitors.

Now, the list of worries could include the Islamic State -- or any other small, determined group who thinks they've been offended.

"Who should companies fear? Anyone that wants to do harm to a corporation," said Lee Weiner, an executive at Rapid7. "It's very hard to define who that could be. Are they hacktivists? Cybercriminals? Chaotic actors? It's hard to quantify that today."

Related: Activists plan to drop 'Interview' DVDs in North Korea

Related: Movies are the least of Sony's problems

Related: How safe are you? CNN's cybersecurity magazine

First Published: December 19, 2014: 9:29 AM ET

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Friday Links

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

A weekly collection of design, data and interactive links.

Design/Data viz
Atsushi Koyama | Mechanical drawings and the human form merge in oil painting
Material Interaction | Interactive experiences for Material Design Principals
HunterGatherer | A design, illustration, and animation studio by Todd St. John
Kobe vs. Jordan | A comparative look two basketball legends
Phenol | A cool new patchable analog synthesizer
Bitsbox | Monthly coding projects for kids
From Lycos to Facebook | Tracking the 20 most popular web sites since 1996
What color is it? | Hex colors based on the time of day

Photo/Video
Proof | Kenji Yamaguchi's workshop of camera wizardry
Kinematope | Light installation on future train platform

See last week's links

Have a nice weekend
@dubly and @talyellin

First Published: December 19, 2014: 9:53 AM ET

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Movies are the least of Sony's problems

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

But the film business is really the least of Sony's problems.

That's partly because Sony's studio accounts for less than 10% of its total sales.

The company is really struggling in the realm of electronics, which it once dominated with innovations like the Sony Walkman and the Trinitron TV.

• Its TV manufacturing unit, which once produced Sony's fattest profit margins, now struggles to make money.
• It dropped out of the personal computer business earlier this year.
• Sony's smartphone business has just 3% of the market. And it wrote down the value of that unit by $1.7 billion last quarter, which led to another loss for the entire company. It lost $1.2 billion in its fiscal year that ended in March.
• Its debt was downgraded to junk bond status early this year.
• It recently suspended its dividend for the first time in its history.

"Sony had very large margins on its consumer electronics business because it had such a good brand," said Van Baker, a consumer electronics analyst at Gartner. "But consumer electronics has become very competitive, especially with competitors in China."

Related: Can anything save Sony?

There are a few bright spots for Sony (SNE). Its PlayStation video game console is a hit, beating Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30)'s Xbox. Japanese consumers, who still constitute a major market for electronics, remain very loyal to the Sony brand. And the Japanese government's policy of keeping the value of the yen low helps make its prices competitive in overseas markets such as the U.S.

But Sony has been struggling for over a decade -- at least since Apple (AAPL, Tech30) first unveiled the iPod in 2001.

In addition to the hack, Sony's film unit is facing the same headwinds as every other studio that makes money selling movie tickets in the age of the Internet. And it's had has had its share of flops, like the 2013 Channing Tatum thriller "White House Down."

Sony's televisions used to produce top profit margins for the company but now that unit struggles to make money.

But it's still capable of turning out hits, such as the Spider-Man or James Bond franchises, as well as critically acclaimed films like last year's "American Hustle." In fact, Sony management balked when hedge fund titan Dan Loeb pushed the company to spin off the studio early last year.

Sony has been slow to recover from a series of missteps in the late 90s and early 2000s, Baker said. "I don't know if they can become Sony again."

First Published: December 18, 2014: 9:01 AM ET

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