Apple Caught Modifying Wikipedia Entries

[Third Eye]

Wikipedia is well known for not being an overly reliable source of information as anyone can edit entries. Despite not receiving the blessings of academic circles, Wikipedia remains one of the fast and easiest ways to get information on any given subject, which is probably why so many people use
it.

Despite it not being the most accurate source of information, many Wiki contributors do everything they can to ensure that the information is up to date, accurate and unbiased. Unfortunately, not everyone falls in the aforementioned category and some contributors have other agendas. Such seems to be the case of employees or representatives of several high profile companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Dell, who have been altering Wikipedia entries for their companies. In some cases, truthful but pejorative information was removed or altered, while in other cases negative entries about competing firms were added.

This practice was documented by Virgil Griffith who created a program called ‘Wikipedia Scanner,’ which reveals who edits Wikipedia articles by scanning the IP address, and cross-references it with a geographical database. Using the program, Griffith caught Microsoft trying to cover up the Xbox 360 failure rate; Apple editing Microsoft entries, adding more negative comments about its rival, and vice versa; Dell deleting negative comments on customer services and removing a passage how the company outsources work to third world countries.

Griffith clearly admits to having created the tool in order to "create minor public relations disasters for companies and organizations I dislike." While it is impossible to prove that the modification were made by someone actually working for the company, the IP clearly proves that it was someone that had access to the company’s network. Although this is not exactly news, as this sort of thing takes place each and every day, it is quite shocking that such high profile companies would be out doing this, and even worse, modifying the pages of their rivals.


Source (For Arya)

[a_k_s_h_a_y]

is that news to u ??? its obvious man !

[iMav]

everything is fair in love and war ... business is war

[Gigacore]

@ akr, he meant to say that apple was caught while they were editing articles to Wiki Scanner

[Pathik]

its common knowledge now.. These things r on since long

[freshseasons]

And things like these are so common open and taken granted for ,that even when Apple and MS or Dell knew the IP would be traced they didnt really bother masking the IP.
Guess all is fair when its earning the niche'.

[gary4gar]

this is a big problem for Open source projects, needs to be addressed

[aryayush]

Somehow you managed to include Apple in the post title even though it wasn't specifically connected to them. Nice job. Did gx_saurav coach you, because he's quite the expert on doing this kind of stuff?

[iMav]

salesman ka ego hurt ho gaya

the source has used this title ... the person who posted the news here did not alter nething ...

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Apple...es-63446.shtml

PS: dude keep the sarcasm down ... u never know some people would object to it

[anandk]

thanx for reporting a news.

[Drizzling Blur]

Whatever ! Apple Forever

[gxsaurav]

Originally Posted by aryayush

Somehow you managed to include Apple in the post title even though it wasn't specifically connected to them. Nice job. Did gx_saurav coach you, because he's quite the expert on doing this kind of stuff?

What..when...where....u think I m the mentor of half the forum & half the forum listens to me ..wow, thats a dream come true.

So, if anyone is bashing Apple or reveling truth, like Manan said, did it hurt your ego? Edit your post plz.

[aryayush]

@Tech Genius
I am sorry for the previous post! I'd not known that those idiots at Softpedia had made up that title. Sorry!

[spironox]

hmmm i am a bit in 50-50 chance here as i believe that many companies modify the print media into favour to end up having a good shiny image of themself in market

what ever .. mac or win or linux.. i think every one does that

but nice that some one is keeping watch on wiki

[ax3]

its apple ....... they just rock ..........