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For example, you're doing a research for a car to purchase. You get a list of cars with engine number, city where a car was assembled, and a color. What's missing is make, model and price.

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Misinforming, maybe? – muntoo Nov 16 '11 at 5:57
We're really trying to avoid using this site for "single word requests." If you have a particularly interesting problem to solve, all we ask is that you put a bit of effort and research into the question. See: meta.english.stackexchange.com/questions/1654/… or meta.english.stackexchange.com/questions/2160/… – Robert Cartaino♦ Nov 16 '11 at 15:05

closed as general reference by Robert Cartaino♦ Nov 16 '11 at 15:06

This question is too basic; it can be definitively and permanently answered by a single link to a standard internet reference source designed specifically to find that type of information. See the FAQ for guidance on how to improve it.

4 Answers

up vote 5 down vote accepted

When it's done deliberately, it's obfuscation.

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up vote 4 down vote

The irrelevant information could be described as a smokescreen.

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up vote 3 down vote

To sidetrack is to direct a person's attention away from the relevant subject to an irrelevant one.

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up vote 1 down vote

Specifications can be slanted, imperfect, flawed, missing, incomplete, deficient, deceptive, blemished, embellished, camouflaged, cherry-picked, or corrupt because of mendacity, laziness, misinformation, turpitude, equivocation, double dealing, a shell game, forgetfulness, delay, propagandizing, or random error; no one word will fit all cases. Other possibly related phrases: pull the wool over your eyes, sell you some snakeoil, rigamarole, specmanship.

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