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It's not every day that an Internet prank warrants an investigation from the SEC. But that's exactly what someone got when he posted a false rumor of Steve Jobs' heart attack to iReport, CNN's experiment in citizen journalism. While the investigation hasn't officially ended yet, leaked details confirm that there wasn't any real ill will involved in the falsified report.
We knew the prank got its start from 4chan, but anonymous sources now say that the SEC has identified the original poster as an 18-year-old boy (man? dude?), according to Bloomberg. The SEC launched its investigation to determine whether the false report of a heart attack striking Steve Jobs was posted in order to drive down the value of Apple's stock, as the company's market cap dropped nearly $5 billion in the first hours of trading that day. The investigation has not officially concluded yet, but the same sources unsurprisingly say that the SEC has not found any evidence to support stock gaming.
Still, the concern was apparently present enough to shake the world a little. As we've noted before, Apple's trademark silence about company operations, as well as its close guarding of Jobs' health, has reportedly spooked analysts and investors in recent months. Apparently, Steve Jobs is, like, the only guy who works at Apple and designs all this awesome stuff. Who knew?
We knew the prank got its start from 4chan, but anonymous sources now say that the SEC has identified the original poster as an 18-year-old boy (man? dude?), according to Bloomberg. The SEC launched its investigation to determine whether the false report of a heart attack striking Steve Jobs was posted in order to drive down the value of Apple's stock, as the company's market cap dropped nearly $5 billion in the first hours of trading that day. The investigation has not officially concluded yet, but the same sources unsurprisingly say that the SEC has not found any evidence to support stock gaming.
Still, the concern was apparently present enough to shake the world a little. As we've noted before, Apple's trademark silence about company operations, as well as its close guarding of Jobs' health, has reportedly spooked analysts and investors in recent months. Apparently, Steve Jobs is, like, the only guy who works at Apple and designs all this awesome stuff. Who knew?
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