To be honest, it seems something coming out of PR/Lawyer guys rather than actual engineers.
I mean, the statement is pretty clear and leaves little room for doubt, it would take a lot of simplification and misunderstanding to twist a proper technical analysis (provided it has been done, or even asked) to this level.
Re:Lenovo Statement on Superfish
by Someone1234 on Thursday February 19, 2015 @12:28PM
(#9075347)
> I mean, the statement is pretty clear and leaves little room for doubt
That's how you know it isn't from an engineer. We always leave a little room for doubt e.g.
"I'm 90% sure this will work!"
Re:Lenovo Statement on Superfish
by vinceguidry on Thursday February 19, 2015 @02:50PM
(#9076503)
That's why engineers don't write PR statements.
Re:Lenovo Statement on Superfish
by whoisthemachine on Thursday February 19, 2015 @12:44PM
(#9075471)
It's also important to understand that in a case like this, upper management likely _wants_ the money from installing this on laptops (or their bosses do, or their boss's bosses do, and so on), so while they may act in good faith in translating the technical impacts of software like this to their management, they likely translate with a slight, unbeknownst to them bias.
It's pretty similar to what Comcast are doing by injecting ads into the web pages you visit.
Perhaps the real problem is that tech companies hire too many product/marketing managers, resulting in them having to cook up ridiculous money-making schemes in order to justify their own existence.
> Perhaps the real problem is that tech companies hire too many product/marketing managers, resulting in them having to cook up ridiculous money-making schemes in order to justify their own existence.
You have hit the proverbial nail very squarely on the head.
Here is it should have been written:
> We have thoroughly investigated this technology and please don't sue us.
Re:Lenovo Statement on Superfish
by BobCollins on Sunday February 22, 2015 @01:14PM
(#9090283)
> Our company puts out press releases all the time and us tech people just shake our heads at how inaccurate and plain wrong they are.
And that doesn't make it right, honest, or excusable.
Reminds me of "The Plan": http://mygeologypage.ucdavis.edu/waterstraat/how_the_plan_be... and many other places around the net.
I work at a large Telco/ISP and I understand how this kind of thing happens (though I'm not excusing it).
First they come to the tech people and we explain exactly what's going on. Our managers translate it so they can understand it, and push it up with their name on it. Those Directors translate it so they can understand it and push it up with their name on it. The VPs dumb it down a bit, put their name on it and push it sideways to communications, where it goes all the way back "down" the organizational structure until someone actually makes the press release. By that time sometimes the release isn't even about the same original thing anymore.
Our company puts out press releases all the time and us tech people just shake our heads at how inaccurate and plain wrong they are.
EDIT: As Kurtz79 points out, I forgot the step where it gets translated through Legal/PR before it goes down to communications.