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> Just stop defending this company please... As an interested but unaffected observer, I'd just like to understand accurately the state of things. It's quite r

by rlpb 7y ago

> Just stop defending this company please... As an interested but unaffected observer, I'd just like to understand accurately the state of things. It's quite right[1] to call out biased reporting that misrepresents the facts, fails to cite evidence of claimed facts, or that misrepresents speculation as fact, since otherwise all we get is "fake news" and lynch mobs, which just polarises the population and helps nobody. If you have a problem with a rebuttal, then argue against it on the basis of what it said, please, rather than on the assumption that it is automatically wrong based on previous history. It's fine (and perhaps even appropriate) to speculate in a biased way on unknowns based on previous history, but that doesn't in any way invalidate proper journalism based on seeking the facts, and the two should not be conflated. [1] In principle. You seem to be arguing against the principle. My comment isn't intended to pass judgement on the accuracy of this reporting or the accuracy of the rebuttal.

magduf 7y ago
>since otherwise all we get is "fake news" and lynch mobs, which just polarises the population and helps nobody. Perhaps, but one difference I see is that lynch mobs target disempowered individuals who can't defend themselves against the mob, usually people who were already very low on society's totem pole. What's anyone going to do to Microsoft? They've been rightfully criticized for all kinds of bad behavior for decades now, and they're still hugely profitable. People have known about the spyware issues in Windows 10 for ages now, but it isn't stopping them from using it.
- Mountain_Skies 7y ago
  Microsoft isn't the only one negatively affected by false news. The consumer of the information is also negatively affected. Security workers need accurate information, not Outrage of the Day junk. It might turn out that the concerns raised in the article are valid but they don't have enough evidence at this time to raise those concerns. It just adds noise for the consumer of the information has to deal with. I don't really care about Microsoft somehow getting harmed. I do care about the IT worker whose job it is to protect their company's systems from security exploits. Dumping low quality possibly false information on them makes securing their systems more difficult. That's the real harm.

by rlpb 7y ago

magduf 7y ago

>since otherwise all we get is "fake news" and lynch mobs, which just polarises the population and helps nobody. Perhaps, but one difference I see is that lynch mobs target disempowered individuals who can't defend themselves against the mob, usually people who were already very low on society's totem pole. What's anyone going to do to Microsoft? They've been rightfully criticized for all kinds of bad behavior for decades now, and they're still hugely profitable. People have known about the spyware issues in Windows 10 for ages now, but it isn't stopping them from using it.

Mountain_Skies 7y ago
Microsoft isn't the only one negatively affected by false news. The consumer of the information is also negatively affected. Security workers need accurate information, not Outrage of the Day junk. It might turn out that the concerns raised in the article are valid but they don't have enough evidence at this time to raise those concerns. It just adds noise for the consumer of the information has to deal with. I don't really care about Microsoft somehow getting harmed. I do care about the IT worker whose job it is to protect their company's systems from security exploits. Dumping low quality possibly false information on them makes securing their systems more difficult. That's the real harm.