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- Crowdfunding scientific research: Interview with Experiment
- Is the all or nothing crowdfunding approach a good thing, or seriously flawed?
- Crowdfunding Campaign PR: An Interview with Mitch Rosenberg, KinderLab Robotics
- New enrollment period now open: Launch your First Crowdfunding Campaign Success Blueprint Program
- Free online event: How to drive enterprise technology sales with PR
- Myth #10: Prompt’s ten technology sales myths
- Myth #9: Prompt’s ten technology sales myths
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Archive for August, 2013
By PromptBoston
August 29th, 2013
Prompt feedback on a Prompt project: Institute for Pediatric Innovation
Prompt feedback on a Prompt project: Institute for Pediatric Innovation
Prompt recently completed a web project for the Institute for Pediatric Innovation (IPI), a non-profit healthcare organisation founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts to improve outcomes care for vulnerable babies and children through new paediatric-specific technologies. Our consultants re-coded IPI’s website WordPress theme to improve page layout and allow greater user control of content with extra WordPress widgets and short codes.
Prompt London’s Sinead Gosai asked Ashley Carter, the communications contact we worked with at IPI, to reflect on her time working with Prompt:
Sinead: How was your general experience of working with Prompt?
Ashley: “Working with Prompt Boston was wonderful, even from the first phone call when we didn’t really know exactly what we were looking for. The Prompt consultants were extremely helpful in pointing us in right direction and working closely with us to figure out the solutions that would best fit IPI’s needs. We greatly appreciate Prompt’s willingness to work with a small, non-profit organisation to help us accomplish our mission, and ensure we stayed within our budget.”
Sinead: We’re proud of the way that we work as a close team here – we believe that we can do a good job for our clients and be fun to work with! Would you agree
Ashley: “Yes, absolutely – Prompt’s PHP/HTML5 consultants were technically knowledgeable, friendly, patient and humorous! They worked step-by-step with us, explaining things such as page layout technology and browser compatibility, and then taking each of our edits and suggestions into consideration. As well as overhauling our new website, the Prompt team was committed to providing hands-on training for our employees, so that we can take on the task of maintaining and updating our website in the future. This will be instrumental in helping the site grow as our organisation develops, allowing us to continue representing our mission and our brand with a strong web presence.”
Sinead: Finally, how do you feel about the completed project?
Ashley: “We are thrilled! It’s met our online web goals and gives our organisation the update we needed. Thank you!”
Posted in Boston, Prompt locations, Technology | Comments Off on Prompt feedback on a Prompt project: Institute for Pediatric Innovation
By PromptBoston
August 29th, 2013
Prompt launches flexible ‘First Byte’ PR packages for tech start-ups
Prompt launches flexible ‘First Byte’ PR packages for tech start-ups
Customizable service bundles also offer ‘add-on’ options for rapid response to market opportunities
Boston, MA – August 28, 2013 – Prompt Boston has launched a range of PR, marketing, content creation and social media service packages designed specifically to benefit technology start-ups. Prompt’s ‘First Byte’ packages support key business activities that promote thought leadership, media relations and content creation. Nicknamed ‘Megabyte’,‘Gigabyte’,‘Terabyte’ and ‘Petabyte’, each scale of package also offers add-on options through a ‘Byte Size’ menu, enabling companies to respond easily to sales and growth-related opportunities, or swiftly trigger specific activities when most benefit can be gained. These optional add-ons include analyst relations, customer case studies, media training, event support and even award programs.
The programs also cover PR, media relations and copywriting in the UK, France and DACH (Germany, Austria and Switzerland), enabling American-headquartered companies to easily extend their marketing activities to new territories and to maximize the return on their marketing dollars.
Hazel Butters, CEO of Prompt Boston, said: “With the fast-paced nature of today’s technology industry, many companies, particularly start-ups, need PR programs that are flexible, scalable and economical. Increasingly we find ourselves working with start-ups and tech companies that have previously been scared away from PR by hefty six-figure fees and teams that seem to consist of a cast of thousands. Prompt’s ‘First Byte’ packages help our clients to build impactful, results-driven PR programs which remain focused, manageable and affordable.”
Prompt’s ‘First Byte’ PR packaged activities are delivered with full transparency to ensure clear visibility of progress and results. Through this certain and honest approach, Prompt’s specialist teams work as true extensions of clients’ internal PR and marketing teams.
Hazel concluded: “PR is an important component of any business plan or strategy. With Prompt’s packages, companies can reap valuable results and predictable returns on their investments. It’s all too easy for start-ups to regard PR as just another cost, because they aren’t made plainly aware of the tangible benefits PR brings. Others may understand the advantages of PR but feel that hidden costs make it prohibitive for them to adopt. Our start-up packages are exclusively designed for early stage companies; they contain no nasty surprise costs, and are created specifically to help smaller teams harness the power of PR as part of a viable and sustainable business strategy.”
Tammy Kahn Fennell, CEO of MarketMeSuite, a user-friendly social media platform trusted by 30,000 users to organize, prioritize and engage smarter on social media, said: “As a growing software company with commitments in engineering, new product development, customer service, partner strategy and sales, it can be challenging to free up budget and dedicate time for specific media activities. We worked with Prompt when we needed set-price media work because the team could commit to a predictable fee that helped us to plan financially, while prioritizing activities that complemented our immediate sales and growth strategy.”
To learn more about Prompt’s ‘First Byte’ PR packages, visit the website. To receive more information on pricing and package details, please fill out Prompt’s form here.
About Prompt
Prompt is a communications agency that enables marketers and entrepreneurs to increase sales and marketing effectiveness. Specializing in innovative markets including technology, green tech and sustainability, Prompt helps its clients communicate effectively and authentically with core audiences online and offline through PR, media relations, copywriting, webinars, market and industry analysis, social media, video content and customer reference programs. Prompt Communications has offices and consultants spanning in London, Massachusetts and California. Prompt’s current and former clients include Adeptra, Adobe Systems Incorporated, Aperture, Corizon, Dell Compellent, Foviance, Genesys Telecommunications, GenSight, Grouptree, IBM, jovoto, KANA, Oracle Corporation, smartFOCUS and Webtide.
www.prompt-communications.com
Media contacts:
Hazel Butters or Jackie Fraser
1 (617) 401-2717
press@prompt-communications.com
Posted in News, Prompt news | Comments Off on Prompt launches flexible ‘First Byte’ PR packages for tech start-ups
August 22nd, 2013
Learning to code: why bother as a tech PR, and why Python is a great starting point
Learning to code: why bother as a tech PR, and why Python is a great starting point
I’m a Pythonista. Okay, perhaps not a fully-featured Pythonista but I’m definitely on the Pythonista path. I have set up a github account, know the difference between a type and a class (ooh, in a way that’s a trick statement) and have written an adventure game that incorporates for loops, while loops and if…else statements (it’s text-based and involves the not-very-complicated plot of deciding which of three caves you want to look into, but hey, I wrote it and I am very proud of it).
Yes, at Prompt we write and talk about technology for most of the day: databases, enterprise applications, security software, consumer devices, mobile technologies, software testing – if it’s got silicon in it or under it, and operates on bits and bytes, then we’re ready to frame it, pitch it, discuss it or write about it.
But why – as a tech PR and marketer – bother learning a programming language? And why learn Python? Here are some of my reasons.
- A welcome addition to my job – I’m a fan of technology and understanding how it works just makes me love it even more
- Fun – how can any language named after ‘Monty Python’ not be?
- An object orientated programming (OOP) language – which means that I get to learn OOP terminology and add a gold star to my geek rating
- Easy to learn – it is a scripting language and has a clear syntax so that you can get started really quickly, and kind of understand what you are coding (and why)
- A great way to learn (how to think like a computer)
- A way to really add to your job – you can manipulate text files and data tables
- Sociable – supported by a large, friendly and enthusiastic community
- Valuable – an in-demand skill. Check out the job listings if you don’t believe me – yes, some people may argue that it’s not as in-vogue as Ruby, but it’s certainly in demand
- An extension language – it is embedded in many applications such as Maya and was the first language to be supported by Google App Engine, so it has loads of applications and uses
There are lots of resources out there to help you learn. A great starting point is the Python Software Foundation’s site – I worked through (and still reference) Zak Shaw’s Learn Python the Hard Way, aka LPTHW.
Keen to learn but still hesitant? Well, if you’re in Boston and happen to be a cautious-but-interested-female, PromptBoston regularly hosts the @PyLadiesBoston at @CICnow – check out meetup.com and get scripting!
Posted in Hazel Butters: Opinion, Python, Technology | Comments Off on Learning to code: why bother as a tech PR, and why Python is a great starting point
By PromptLondon
August 22nd, 2013
From white to green: President installs photovoltaics panels (and six facts about solar panels)
From white to green: President installs photovoltaics panels (and six facts about solar panels)
The news that the White House is reinstalling solar panels on the roof demonstrates a real commitment from the Obama administration to encourage green energy management and sustainability across the country. Photovoltaic technology, however, is not a new initiative. In fact, back in the 70’s President Jimmy Carter had about 30 panels installed on the roof of the White House before President Ronald Reagan had them removed in 1986.
As we’re interested in all kinds of technology – including green and sustainable technologies – we thought it would be interesting to look at some facts around photovoltaics , also known as PV, or more simply, ‘solar panels’:
- Photovoltaics is a method of generating renewable power by allowing sunlight to be converted directly to electricity using semiconductors
- Photovoltaic cells are comprised largely from silicon and can be mounted on buildings or on standalone frames. A number of cells are connected to form an array, either to cover basic home energy needs or to feed the national grid, or both
- Solar power has increased in popularity over the years, with many common devices now powered by the sun’s energy – anything from e-readers and radios to mobile phone chargers and kids’ toys are powered by the sun’s rays. Hey, we once thought solar-powered calculators were impressive!
- Although there is an initial cost to install equipment, solar energy is ultimately clean, free and infinite, and thanks to some considerable technological advances, the price of photovoltaic panels has steadily fallen in recent years. It now costs around $1 to $1.3 per PV watt installed. Cost of Solar has a great info graphic to demonstrate the costs of the panels over the years
- A report from IMS Research suggests that the market will grow from under $200 million in 2012 to $19 billion by 2017. Germany is currently leading the way after a home energy storage subsidy went into place on 1st May. IMS predicts Germany will account for nearly 70 percent of storage installed in residential PV systems worldwide in 2013.
- Although solar power can only capture light when there’s, er, daylight, it’s estimated that by using a solar PV system, a typical home could save over a tonne of carbon dioxide per year – that’s more than 30 tonnes over its lifetime. PV panels are low maintenance, have a long component life and are silent when converting energy. However one of the biggest disadvantages of solar panels is their limited efficiency levels in comparison to other renewable energy sources such as solar thermal. Many also argue that they are visually intrusive and the performance is intermittent, a common complaint being the variation in performance over different seasons
- In the next decade, it is predicted that photovoltaic power will be similar in price to traditional sources of electricity and that PV panels will be a standard feature for newly constructed homes. So while solar energy may not provide answers to all our environmental problems, it certainly goes some way to reducing our carbon footprint – and saving a few pennies along the way
Want to find out more? – check out these solar energy resources:
Posted in Sustainability | Comments Off on From white to green: President installs photovoltaics panels (and six facts about solar panels)
August 12th, 2013
Hashtags: #How #much #is #too #much?
Hashtags: #How #much #is #too #much?
The #.
Whether you‘re a Brit and call it the hash key or North American and know it as the pound sign, when it comes to social media, # is lovingly known as the hashtag.
It originally made its debut on Twitter in 2007. Over the past six years it has spread to Facebook, Instagram, Google+ and Tumblr. It’s even been sneaked in by LinkedIn.
The hashtag is a very useful way to tag content; yet there’s nothing more counterintuitive — or annoying — than too many hashtags. Even the earliest adopter of the hashtag, Chris Messina, the open source advocate and engineer credited with introducing the symbol to Twitter, said: “The worst thing is what I might call ‘poor hashtag grammar.’ Like #when #people #tag #every#word #in #a #sentence!”
Yes, sometimes it’s a way to flag something different and you can be quirky and have some fun with hashtags. But we all know that one person (or company) that consistently #s almost every word.
To not be that person, double check against some practice hashtag tips the next time you find yourself wanting to hit the # key one too many times:
- Consider the # as a keyword or main topic of your post – it should reinforce whatever subject you are writing about
- (Generally) hashtag nouns not verbs. For example, when talking about your fast and secure cloud technology, anything can be fast and secure — so hashtag ‘cloudtechnology’ or ‘cloud’ to get better search optimization.
- Be specific. Hashtags are valuable because they help users pinpoint relevant information. The more specific you are, the more they will appreciate you and your content.
- Don’t use spaces or punctuation marks in your hashtag. It breaks up the searchable term, and you’ll look like a social media rookie. (Example: #publicrelations, NOT #public-relations or #public relations.)
- Limit yourself to a maximum two hashtags per post. Even Twitter tells users, “Hashtags are most powerful when you use them judiciously. Including more than two in a tweet is probably overkill.”
So when you find yourself clicking the ‘Post’ or ‘Tweet’ icon, remember to think before you hashtag…
Posted in Hazel Butters: Opinion, PR Practices, Social Media | Comments Off on Hashtags: #How #much #is #too #much?
By PromptBoston
August 9th, 2013
Why crisis PR can improve more than just your company’s reputation
Why crisis PR can improve more than just your company’s reputation
Crisis PR is often associated with one thing – a major screw up and a subsequent clean up. And as many of us have learned, the best crisis PR can actually land the company that screwed up in a better position than it was beforehand (the Tylenol crisis of 1982, anyone?).
Well, now it seems crisis PR must live up to another standard: increasing revenue. And the recent announcement of Apple’s trade-in program, targeted at customers using third party or counterfeit iPhone, iPad and iPod chargers, may be doing just that.
The program, which was launched in response to the electrocution and coma of two individuals in China, allows all Apple customers to trade in their existing USB power adapters for an Apple-certified adapter for only $10 (or local currency equivalent) – almost 50 percent less than the adapter’s regular retail cost. The usually mum tech company said in a statement: “Recent reports have suggested that some counterfeit and third party adapters may not be designed properly and could result in safety issues. While not all third party adapters have issues, we are announcing a USB Power Adapter Takeback Program to enable customers to acquire properly designed adapters…”
But how will this increase revenue you may ask, if Apple is discounting its product? The program requires that the trade-ins must be made at an Apple store or an authorized Apple provider, and as Adam Pasick from Quartz points out, the take-back program is bound to generate some extra foot traffic – meaning the $57.60 in revenue that Apple pockets per store visit is looking pretty good.
So while Apple saves its reputation and racks in more cash, weigh in – what do you think of Apple’s crisis PR? Brilliant or just rotten? We look forward to hearing from you!
Posted in Apple, PR Practices, Technology | Comments Off on Why crisis PR can improve more than just your company’s reputation
By PromptLondon
August 8th, 2013
Technology PR travels: Around the technology world in 80 days – Day #11: Romania
Technology PR travels: Around the technology world in 80 days – Day #11: Romania
Following our technology PR trawl through Budapest, we set out for the ancient land of Romania, sailing a boat gently down the Danube to Bucharest, Romania’s capital city. The Danube forms much of Romania’s southern border and was given its name by Greek historian Herodotus, who dubbed it ‘The King of the European Rivers’. Just as we were marveling at the architecture of the Drobeta Bridge and exploring the Topolnita caves, we found ourselves in Giurgiu; a hop, skip and a jump later and we had finally arrived in Bucharest.
Famed for its somewhat spooky history and once home to Vlad the Impaler (or Count Dracula as he is more commonly known) Romania is much more than a setting for many a horror film. With its rich history of old world lore, it may not seem an obvious choice for modern-day innovation, but Romania has contributed much to science and technology.For example, in May 1981, Astronaut Dumitru Prunariu gave Romania a firm footing in the stratosphere when Romania became the 11th country in the world to put an astronaut in space. Incidentally, Prunariu is now the president of the Romanian Space Agency.
As well as space success, Romania is also reported to have one of the highest levels of computer programmers in the world. Biologists are also a big deal in Bucharest; bacteriologist Victor Babes discovered more than 50 different types of germs, making significant inroads into the study of infectious diseases, including rabies, leprosy and diphtheria. Physiologist Nicolae Paulescue discovered insulin, and George Emil Palade won the Nobel Prize in 1974 for his contributions to cell biology.
And the country also keeps current, forging the way for innovation. Teenager Ionut Budisteanu recently scooped the top prize at the International Science and Engineering fair – the largest high school science research competition in the world – for his creative research into a self-driving car. Ionut’s idea uses processing webcam imagery and artificial intelligence technology. Eliminating the use of a high-end 3D radar to achieve this goal makes the car more affordable.
Check back in next time as we head to Bulgaria – and get to grips with the Cyrillic alphabet!
Posted in PR Practices, Technology | Comments Off on Technology PR travels: Around the technology world in 80 days – Day #11: Romania
By Media Team
August 7th, 2013
Prompt Boston launches free weekly technology PR workshops
Prompt Boston launches free weekly technology PR workshops
Advice and insights for New England companies with practical technology PR courses in Kendall Square
Boston, MA – Prompt Boston, the East Coast office of Prompt Communications, a technology specialist public relations and digital communications agency, has launched free weekly ‘PR and Pizza’ workshop series for New England technology companies, at the Cambridge Innovation Center (CIC).
The workshops offer free ideas and advice to technology marketing professionals and entrepreneurs in start-ups and early-stage ventures to enterprise companies. Workshop topics include messaging, news creation, news distribution and pitching, media and analyst training, social media, PR measurement and ROI.
Each workshop is run by Prompt Boston’s PR, copywriting and social media consultants.
Caroline Egan, social media and content strategist, 360Chestnut said: “As a technology company that is focused on educating consumers on energy-efficient and cost-effective solutions for their homes, we understand the benefits of PR. Being able to join Prompt’s workshops has given us the opportunity to hear about fresh strategies and tactics, and discuss ideas to help us to promote our own services as efficiently as possible.”
Geoff Mamlet, managing director, Cambridge Innovation Center said: “As one of the largest communities of early-stage ventures, start-ups, innovators and entrepreneurs in the world, we welcome community members such as Prompt that are keen to share information and ideas. Knowledge-sharing plays an important role in innovation.”
The one-hour workshops take place each Friday in Kendall Square. Workshops can be reserved on Prompt Boston’s Eventbrite page.
Prompt’s CEO, Hazel Butters, said: “Prompt Boston enjoys being part of this vibrant local community. This series of free workshops helps us to share our knowledge with the community. We want to help technology companies that may lack financial resources, as well as established vendors that are keen to sharpen the marketing and promotion of technology products, services or apps.”
###
Prompt Communications:
Prompt is a communications agency that enables marketers and entrepreneurs to increase their sales and marketing effectiveness. Specializing in innovative markets, Prompt helps its clients communicate effectively and authentically with core audiences online and offline through PR, media relations, copywriting, webinars, market and industry analysis, social media, video content and customer reference programs. Founded in 2002, Prompt Communications has offices in London and US offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts and San Francisco, California. www.prompt-communications.com
Posted in News, Prompt news | Comments Off on Prompt Boston launches free weekly technology PR workshops
August 7th, 2013
Astroturfing: What it is and why tech vendors need to stay far, far away
Astroturfing: What it is and why tech vendors need to stay far, far away

Astroturfing is about a different type of fake grass — when vendors or any organization or body tries to deceptively engage with users at a ‘grass roots’ level and influence public opinion.
Ah, the last week has seen news about ‘astroturfing’.
Not familiar with astroturfing? Well you’ve probably seen it in action. Though the term was coined way back in 1985 by US Senator Lloyd Bentsen, the practice is still very much with us today.
It’s got nothing to do with synthetic indoor soccer playing surfaces. Astroturfing is about a different type of fake grass — when vendors or any organization or body tries to deceptively engage with users at a ‘grass roots’ level and influence public opinion.
For example, writing and posting your own reviews online would be considered a type of astroturfing. Considering it’s such a potentially, well, to use a British phrase — dodgy — thing to do, it seems to occur with wearying frequency.
While it may be at the forefront in technology circles, astroturfing is certainly not new nor something dreamt up by the tech industry. For example, take the creation of the National Smokers’ Alliance in 1995 — which was purported to be funded by Philip Morris and launched by its well-oiled (and I’m guessing well-paid) PR machine. There’s an amazing(ly shocking) array of examples of astroturfing across geographies, industries and company types.
In the digital world, accusations of astroturfing include a marketing agency working for Apple that was posting fake reviews and a letter-writing initiative from a seemingly grass roots organization that was linked back to Microsoft, trying to wrestle out of its 2010 anti-trust woes.
The most recent case that has everyone blogging and commenting and shouting is the unfortunate case of Samsung, with the Samsung Smart App Challenge 2013 being tarred and feathered with astroturfing allegations. Allegedly it offered developers $500 to ask the developer community four “casual” and “organic” questions on Stackoverflow, a friendly and accessible developer community for professional and amateur programmers.
A developer that was approached flagged the activity to Stackexhange, the organization behind Stackoverflow, which alerted Samsung and the activity has halted. But the damage has been done. Whatever happens next, we’re at the juncture where this:
– Smacks of desperation
– Got the hackles up in open communities like Stackoverflow and made members weary about vendors / marketers / us PR folks
– Made Samsung look like it doesn’t understand its own target community — developers — and how they want to be approached. The original blogger who called it out, Delyan Kratunov, even stated: “Had they approached me to ask that I promote the competition legitimately, I would’ve been happy to do it out of goodwill.” To me, that says it all.
Samsung said it didn’t know about the activity. In my experience, vendors that say: “Here’s a sack of money, go and do whatever you think is right with it,” are rare. Albino unicorn-rare. [Sidenote: Any tech vendors that are unsure of what their marketing budget is being spent on, come and work with us. We’ll even let you know what we’re doing before we do it. It’s under the cunning codename “plan”].
Furthermore, as a consultancy, you are compensated for your ideas, creativity — and ability to execute programs that are in line with the company’s objectives, and their values. I’m pretty sure that “being known for astroturfing” isn’t on any company’s PR objectives.
Posted in Communications consultancy opinion, Hazel Butters: Opinion, PR Practices | Comments Off on Astroturfing: What it is and why tech vendors need to stay far, far away
By PromptBoston
August 5th, 2013
WordPress user tip: Re-creating disappearing bullets when posting from Word to WordPress
WordPress user tip: Re-creating disappearing bullets when posting from Word to WordPress
Like many WordPress users I frequently use Microsoft Word to put together posts and then utilize the WordPress ‘Paste from Word’ feature – if you’re not familiar with this feature, you’ll find it in the formatting toolbar. If you can’t see it, simply press the ‘kitchen sink’ button. Don’t know what that is? Check out our short post ‘Everything but the kitchen sink’.
Despite this helpful ‘Paste from Word’ button, there can still be hiccups due to Microsoft Word itself, your WordPress theme, or a combination of both. One such problem commonly encountered is disappearing bullets.
If you have a list that you’d like to have bulleted, but grow frustrated at its disappearance or format changes upon transferring from Word to WordPress, follow these steps:
- Once in your post or page on WordPress, select the ‘Text’ view from the top right – don’t be scared, it’s just HTML
- Scroll to the section of your HTML in which you would like to insert bullet points
- Before your first bullet point, you should see a <ul> tag. Insert a style attribute here, that reads like this: <ul style=”padding-left: 20px;”> – The padding option will determine the left alignment of your list, so feel free to adjust the ‘px’ number. Px refers to the number of pixels – if you don’t know what number to add in then try 20 and change it up or down accordingly
Note: the <ul> tag specifies an unordered list (bulleted to you and me). If you’re looking for a numbered list then change <ul> to <ol>, which will result in an ordered (aka numbered) list.
- Next, you will need to style *every* <li> tag in your list, effectively forcing each one to have the style you want – See our example here:
- Here I’ve used the Prompt bullet style of choice, which is <li style=”list-style: disc outside;”>
- Now, save the file and preview it. Got everything you need? Then press ‘update’ or ‘publish’ and stand back to admire your handiwork
- If you’d like to see Prompt’s final product, resulting from the HTML pictured above, click here
More questions about bullets or WordPress styling? Why not join one of our Google Hangouts to chat with Prompt’s WordPress expert, Malachy McConnell or get in contact with us at wordpress@prompt-communications.com?
Now get out there and bullet away.
Posted in Technology, Training, WordPress | Comments Off on WordPress user tip: Re-creating disappearing bullets when posting from Word to WordPress
August 2nd, 2013
From China with Love
A laser-Rolex, an Aston Martin DB5 with revolving licence plates and an x-ray Polaroid camera. We’ve seen 007 armed with many pieces of technology over the years, but we’re unlikely see him firing up a Lenovo.
Last weekend the Australian Financial Review published a news story that Beijing-headquartered Lenovo has been “banned” from intelligence agencies in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, UK and the US due to concerns over hacking vulnerabilities via hardware back doors the story stated: “multiple intelligence and defence sources in Britain and Australia confirmed there is a written ban on computers made by the Chinese company being used in classified networks“. The story is continuing to develop as agencies are quizzed over whether this is true. Lenovo rebutted the claims, as did the Australian Government which said Lenovo is not accredited because there’s “never been a request to Defence to accredit Lenovo computer products”.
This isn’t the first allegation of this type. In 2006, the US State Department announced 16,000 Lenovo computers would not be used for classified work. Huawei was refused an entry bid for a broadband contract in Australia and was shut out of the American market when a Congressional Report was published in October 2012 raising concerns over national security and Chinese telecommunications technologies.
There are several things this story makes me wonder about [apart from whether it’s true / if we’ll ever find out] – how much foreign technology is used within Chinese agencies, or do they have similar concerns? And how much back door hacking actually takes place? After all, the NSA is defending allegations of back door access via Windows alongside Microsoft.
No doubt, digital fingers will continue to be pointed as when it comes to hacking, home or abroad, everyone is shaken and stirred.
*Alternative Bond-themed titles? Tweet them to @PromptLondon!
Posted in Hazel Butters: Opinion, Lenovo, Microsoft, Technology | Comments Off on From China with Love