A reader remarks on profitable bugs:
This sounds patently illegal to me, both market manipulation and “insider” trading (although the legal definition of this latter point may actually preclude this kind of trick.)
Preclude the trick? Or do you mean the definition of insider trading doesn’t include this particular approach? I don’t see how it could, since the insider must be an employee of the company, I think.
Another reader corrects me:
Nope. “Insider” is defined as anyone who is acting on information not available to the general public. So, if you heard two strangers in an elevator talking about how Company Z was going to get hostilly taken over tomorrow by Megabusiness Y, and because of the overheard info you sell your shares of Company Z before the price tanks, you’ve just committed insider trading.
I wonder how company-private blogs that might carry important material information are viewed by the SEC.
