[LINK] Identity theft virus infects 10,000 computers

[Kim Holburn]

On 2006 Aug 16, at 4:57 PM, Howard Lowndes wrote:
> Kim Holburn wrote:
>> On 2006 Aug 16, at 7:21 AM, Craig Sanders wrote:
>>> On Wed, Aug 16, 2006 at 02:51:34AM +1000, Rick Welykochy wrote:
>>>> Currently, the dollar total of losses and expenses due to shoddy
>>>> software and security break-ins (think zombie boes for example) on
>>>> Microsoft systems must run into the $$$ BILLIONS for businesses and
>>>> individuals combined.  Society would benefit as a whole if  
>>>> Mickeysoft
>>>> were forced by law to provide more secure software.
>>>
>>> yes, well, they are claiming that their software is of  
>>> merchantable quality,
>>> and they are taking good money on that premise.
>> You know that's an interesting point.  People selling software  
>> make claims for their software, including that it is "of  
>> merchantable quality".  Much FOSS makes no such claims.  I have  
>> often thought that our (and of course the U.S.) "advertising"  
>> society creates litigation.  When you have a "company" making only  
>> "positive" public claims about their product then it really  
>> invites and creates an industry of litigation to balance those  
>> claims.  If a product was advertised like:  "We think our product  
>> is OK and does the job adequately but it's not as good as we'd  
>> like and could be dangerous used the wrong way", it would be much  
>> harder to sue.
>
> ...as well as being impossible to sell...

Why?  You have to make dubious claims in order to do business?  I  
heard a discussion on auntie today about youtube and the new "fad" of  
people making their own ads for products they like.  It has become so  
popular and is doing so well that the companies involved are starting  
to use those ads themselves.  The ads are free (or much less  
expensive for the company) and people trust them more because they  
weren't *made by the company*.  Says something doesn't it?

--
Kim Holburn
IT Network & Security Consultant
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