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Re:Employee sues Google for 'illegal' confidentiality policies by sangnoir on Wednesday December 21, 2016 @08:53AM (#13229062)
> So, are we discussing ethics or legality?

No.

I'll make an analogy: Engineers hate it when sales make commitments on behalf of engineering. Can you not imagine how lawyers might dislike engineers making legal commitments?

When dealing with people outside of the org, lawyers want from engineers what engineers want from sales - be vague and don't create obligations you do not fully understand. It is still perfectly fine for a sales guy to privately point out a bug - just don't shout it to the customer.

Re:Employee sues Google for 'illegal' confidentiality policies by onion2k on Wednesday December 21, 2016 @09:25AM (#13229287)
Can you not imagine how lawyers might dislike engineers making legal commitments

I think it takes a lawyer to believe "pointing out when the company you work for is breaking the law" is the same as "making a legal commitment", as if laws only apply if you acknowledge them. I'm realise that is essentially how the world lawyers live in works, but I think it sucks and I wouldn't want to sign a contract that forces me to be a part of it.

Re:Employee sues Google for 'illegal' confidentiality policies by skybrian on Wednesday December 21, 2016 @10:27AM (#13229793)
Most people in most areas don't know the law, so you can't point it out, you can only speculate.

Assuming you know the law when you never studied it is the problem. The idea is that you should be asking if something you think is questionable is legal or not. That's why companies have lawyers. It's about bringing it to the attention of the right people who can make the call and keep the company out of trouble, without saying something incorrect that you might have to testify about later.

Re:Employee sues Google for 'illegal' confidentiality policies by stuckagain on Wednesday December 21, 2016 @10:16AM (#13229726)
You are being obtuse. The point is that an engineer can't authoritatively conclude that the company is breaking the law, so they shouldn't write it down.