06.12.10

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Microsoft Promotes Internet Explorer Using Lies That It Spreads to Africans

Posted in Africa, Deception, Free/Libre Software, Microsoft at 5:50 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Summary: Microsoft markets its Web browser as the “secure” option with the help of another MOU (Memorandum of Understanding)

Africa is receiving a lot of attention this week because of the World Cup. Here for example is the news about the choice of Free software to power the official Web site:

More World Cup news: The South African government is using the open source Drupal CMS to run its World Cup 2010 website.

A couple of months ago we showed that Microsoft decided to advertise Internet Explorer with “security” as the selling point. It was right there in the official Web site. As part of the PR campaign, Microsoft also employed the same trick as Sevenwashing with a children-safe Web browser. It was a PR response which we covered here (the context being that Microsoft had not patched Internet Explorer properly for five months [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12], so it then attacked Google’s reputation). According to Ghabuntu, Microsoft is using similar tricks in Ghana right now. As the author puts it, “Microsoft spreading Internet Explorer in Africa under new guise!”

“Ghanaian based internet service provider, BusyInternet, and Microsoft Anglophone West Africa (MAWA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to provide internet users with modern software security.

“The software, known as Microsoft Internet Explorer Eight (IE8), enables users to take full control over who can and cannot track their activities, ensure adequate peace and security; and provide regular update of personal information.”

What Microsoft does here is dangerous because it puts the population in greater danger. It’s like when the Catholic church tells Africans not to use condoms because the condoms, it argues, would make the population less secure. The thing about Microsoft is, it knows how to lie with apparent honesty, as long as it serves its own selfish goals, so there is a resemblance here. █

“The true hypocrite is the one who ceases to perceive his deception, the one who lies with sincerity.”

–Andre Gide

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