Has Patchou's Petition been invalidated?
I've been asked the question... has Patchou's petition been invalidated?
Well, I wouldn't say completely 'invalidated'.. I would say there is an even bigger question mark over it now than there was before. Why do I say that, and why was I asked?
Patchou has updated his Messenger Plus! installer so that every time the programme is installed, the default web browser opens to his Petition Page.
Here's the problem. The statements that people are being asked to make by signing the petition include, among other things, “..Messenger Plus! is not, and has never been, a threat to my computer or anyone else's for that matter. It is my opinion, based on solid evidence, that MSAS contributes to damaging thousands of computers every month because of its improper detection and removal of the Messenger Plus! software, in addition to greatly damaging the reputation of the product for no viable reason."
A new user is not in a position to be able to honestly say that they have 'solid evidence' that 'thousands of computers every month' are being damaged. Nor are they in a position to say that Messenger Plus! has 'never been a threat to my computer or anyone else's'.
I have already commented on the above statement in my other Blog entries:
http://msmvps.com/spywaresucks/archive/2005/08/19/63394.aspx
http://msmvps.com/spywaresucks/archive/2005/08/18/63180.aspx
Back then, the petition was, in my opinion, flawed. Now that new users are being directed to it and prompted to sign it while it includes declarations of knowledge and opinion that they cannot possibly have as a new user, the petition is on even shakier ground than it was before. The fact that there are probably people who have signed the petition certifying statements about themselves that simply can't be true throws the entire petition campaign into doubt.
Update: 6 September:
http://msmvps.com/spywaresucks/archive/2005/09/06/65524.aspx