HP Accused of Illegal Exportation To Iran 287
AdamWeeden writes "According to research done by the Boston Globe, HP has been secretly using a third-party company to sell printers to Iran. This is illegal under a ban instituted in 1995 by then US President Bill Clinton. The third-party company, Redington Gulf, operates out of Dubai and previously stated on their web site that the company began in 1997 with 'a team of five people and the HP supplies as our first product, we started operations as the distributor for Iran,' though now the site has been changed to remove the mention of Iran. Has HP unknowingly been supplying Iran with technology or have they been trying to secretly get by the US government's export restrictions?"
HPSetup SSID (Score:5, Funny)
Nice to hear that another country has its entire WLAN infastructure polluted by "Hpsetup" SSIDs!
eh hum.... (Score:5, Funny)
Yes.
Oh, and Timmy...please use a modern browser w/spell checking, thanks.
Oh dear god (Score:3, Funny)
Unknowingly? (Score:5, Funny)
Only if you put big finger-quotes around "unknowingly".
On the other hand, maybe this is a secret government plot to bankrupt Iran by selling them cheap printers, then gouging them on cartridges.
Ixnay on the interpay (Score:5, Funny)
shhhhhh.... it is a CIA ploy to bankrupt Iran via HP printer ink refills... would have gotten away with it too if it weren't for that meddling /.
Re:ummm ... printers? (Score:5, Funny)
Weapons of Mass Instruction?
Re:ummm ... printers? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Oh dear god (Score:5, Funny)
"We gave Muslims top secret printer technology."
We also gave them HP printer drivers. That's like requiring them to throw shoes at themselves if they want to print.
Re:Unknowingly? (Score:5, Funny)
they stress to each employee not to work with certain companies (and Iran is on the list)
Ah, yes. The great company of Iran.
Re:Oh dear god (Score:2, Funny)
They can now print G'Had pantalets at 28 ppm
What are pantalets? Tiny, tiny trousers?
The Ayatolla.... (Score:3, Funny)
Ooooh (Score:5, Funny)
Re:ummm ... printers? (Score:3, Funny)
You've obviously never been in an Iranian torture facility. They strap you to a chair, and force you to watch Titanic and Spice World in full Dolby digital surround sound, and in 3D. About an hour into the movies, the prisoners beg to be fed to the HP printers.
Hey, actually, this doesn't sound like a half-bad T.V. show. "Persian Science Theater 3000"
Hooman: Abbas, what the hell are we watching?
Abbas: I don't know Hooman, the box said "Plan 9 From Outer Space." I heard it won the Golden Raspberry Award, I think they give that to the top films! Raspberries taste good, so the movie should have been good!
Kavan: Hold me, Abbas, I want to die.
[The three men gouge their own eyes out]
PC LOAD LTR (Score:5, Funny)
PC load letter! FSCK!
Cunning Plan (Score:2, Funny)
Sell them (Iran) ink more expensive than oil until they become bankrupt.
Re:eh hum.... (Score:2, Funny)
yeah, because there are a ton of good printing options in Iran.
I can see it now:
Now introducting Al-Dirka Hassan's Muhamdojet 1000! It can print 5 millihectares with a single cartridge of sheeps blood!
It is compatible with any type of papyrus or parchment!
Ahhh, HP LaserJet Printers (Score:3, Funny)
Re:PC LOAD LTR (Score:3, Funny)
Samir: No one in this country can ever pronounce my name right. It's not that hard: Samir Na-gheen-an-a-jar. Nagheenanajar.
Ali Khamenei: Yeah, well at least your name isn't Ali Khamenei.
Samir: You know there's nothing wrong with that name.
Ali Khamenei: There was nothing wrong with it... until I was about 12 years old and that no-talent ass clown became Supreme leader of Iran and started screaming anti-US invective.
Samir: Hmm... well why don't you just go by Al instead of Ali?
Ali Khamenei: No way. Why should I change? He's the one who sucks.
This is a huge deal! (Score:4, Funny)
Given how technologically advanced HP printers have become, this presents a huge risk to national security. I'm mortally afraid that my comfy way of life has been jeopardized by HP's actions. President-Elect Obama needs to appoint a special prosecutor ASAP!
Actually, now that I think about it, my comfy life has already been jeopardized by HP products... anyone want a paperweight that just happens to look like a fancy scanner with ADF?
Re:Oh dear god (Score:2, Funny)
Are you sure they weren't referring to the cryptographic messages that the printers give whenever there's an error?
Re:HPSetup SSID (Score:5, Funny)
Re:HPSetup SSID (Score:3, Funny)
You should switch it to the address of the new residents so they think the previous owners left a wireless router somewhere in the house turned on.
Schadenfreude, fun for the whole family.
Re:ink (Score:4, Funny)
A printer contains one or more step-step motors, microcontroller chips, a processor and a flash based firmware.
Assemble it with a hires webcam a little outsource in India/China a AK47 and you have got a very dumb sentry gun.