He had knowledge and connections to the upper echelons and he couldn't make it, and when health concerns arose he went back to his money because it sucks to be working poor and in need of medical assistance.

There's a difference in stakes and impact and intent: the client firm is actively interested in finding security holes and the outcome of a negative security report does not (usually) directly affect the continuing operations of the business or impact on the personal reputations of the business owners their ability to conduct business, or how moral they're perceived by society.

A negative report here would be a devastating blow on Linus himself, his business is built around him and relies on audiences trusting him, it would also open up the door for legal action that could result in massive monetary damages and fines.

I've had "independent" valuations and audits. I've seen how these firms work - and it's not independent. They obey the people that pay them or they don't get any work in the future from anyone else "that firm destroyed my business".

The most suspect aspect of the report is that they found nothing negative, everything was perfect. This on its face doesn't ring true for any business I've ever seen, as well as how they responded to the accusations and how many people came out to accuse them.

You just summoned a demon

I hope she's great, but I can't imagine you'll find more dedicated or more aligned to the cause people than those that have spent a lifetime working to build everything that is Mozilla.

I can't imagine they can't find good people from within - why do you need to inject people from outside right at the top of the foundation?

The whole thing stinks as schoolboy level revenge fantasy. I doubt there's truth to it.

Prop money has specific laws and guidelines and is very easily identifiable and therefore do not count as counterfeit.

If a $5 bill does find its way in the economy no one gets arrested probably, someone just made a stupid trade. Otherwise half the store owners would be in jail when attempting to deposit money that happens to contain a fake note here and there.

I believe you but this is identical to werewolf movie tropes.

Sleep in a cage with your arm handcuffed?

I don't think the writer has them on hand - this is a news article not a review.

I hope this is clever marketing from the developer because I had never heard of this game until now and also because I can't for the life of me figure out why anyone would abuse an indie developer for $2.

I understand some people might do that, but they'd have to be a tiny percentage.

From what I read it was this observation that led him to investigate the cause. But this is the first time I read that he's employed by Microsoft.

The fine becomes payable with interest if you lose the case on appeal, which is nearly inevitable.

So he may be able to post bond by collateralising assets but is he able to pay the fine when he inevitably loses the appeal?

Also bond loans are not free. That's what he's afraid of - singing off a building's ownership to a bond holding company means it's gone.

He'd rather fight the procedural slow-moving government instead of a company whose actual job is relieving people of assets all day long.

This is their classic pincer maneuver employed by the establishment - and it works really well: the left wing candidate is both too left and not left enough.

You see it in every election.

It works so well because they own mainstream media so they can run all narratives at the same time as opinion pieces to hamstrung the left. That's how the ratchet works also.

This is like inviting the Catholic church in an institution specifically built to protect former victims of same and similar institutions.

Given that anyone can start an instance and federate with Threads, or join an instance that does, freedom of choice is unaffected.