Companies should always keep themselves in a position where they...

Companies should always keep themselves in a position where they know all is above board so that when employees leave or customers change, weaknesses or irregularities cannot be exposed and capitalised on by shorters. ESPECIALLY in the high valued tech space.

I do agree shorters need to be held accountable for misinformation/damages if found to be untrue though. It gets tricky when claims are based on "known publicly available information" and are interpretations thereof. Shorters can argue that the detail required to repudiate their assertions was not in the public domain and should have been to ensure a transparent and efficient market.

Directors withholding negatives or performing financial gymnastics to make the P&L look great through obfuscation that they justify to themselves rarely pays off in the end for holders.