Hewlett-Packard's Hurd Leaves Washington Unscathed http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=email_en&refer=home&sid=aZ7Y5gq37ASI Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Hewlett-Packard Co. Chief Executive Officer Mark Hurd emerged unscathed from seven hours of hearings in Washington after pledging to repair the computer maker's image and stamp out unethical behavior. ........ Hurd's testimony came after more than five hours of congressional interrogation of Dunn and other Hewlett-Packard executives. Committee members called the probe ``outrageous'' and ``shameful.'' Deflected Blame "In contrast to Hurd, Dunn deflected blame for the probe and said she didn't accept responsibility."
Patricia Dunn got my vote when she cracked the joke about the pope getting the attention in the news. Someone secure enough in her beliefs in times of stress that can crack juch a dangerous joke is fine in my book, says a lot about her courage. Thank You Have not followed the case in detail, but, indeed she is not to be burned at the stake if a mistake was made. i think we all have made a mistake here and there., I know i have. LOL
Dunn, 4 others named in HP spying indictments California Attorney General Bill Lockyer sought felony indictments against former Hewlett-Packard Co. Chairwoman Patricia Dunn and four others linked to the corporate spying case on Wednesday. Lockyer filed criminal complaints in Santa Clara County Superior Court naming Dunn along with former chief ethics officer Kevin Hunsaker and three investigators who were involved in the spying. Chief Executive Mark Hurd was not named. All face four felonies: using false or fraudulent pretenses to obtain confidential information from a public utility, unauthorized access to computer data, identity theft, and conspiracy to commit the crimes. {more at url} http://biz.yahoo.com/bizj/061004/1355564.html?.v=1
HP says reaches civil settlement with Calif. AG http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061207/bs_nm/hewlettpackard_dc SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ - news) said on Thursday it would pay California $14.5 million to settle a civil case related to board-leak investigations that led to the resignation of Chairman Patricia Dunn. HP said that under the agreement, filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court, it would also put measures in place to ensure its internal investigations comply with state law. During the company's internal probes, investigators impersonated HP board members, employees and journalists to get their private telephone records. California Attorney General Bill Lockyer filed criminal charges against Dunn, who resigned on September 22, and four others in October because of tactics used in HP's efforts in 2005 and 2006 to find the source of media leaks. "The Hewlett-Packard incident has helped shine a national spotlight on a major privacy protection problem," Lockyer said. "Fortunately, Hewlett-Packard is not Enron. I commend the firm for cooperating instead of stonewalling, for taking instead of shirking responsibility." HP said that $13.5 million of the total amount would be used to create a Privacy and Piracy Fund to help California prosecutors in investigating consumer privacy and piracy violations. Another $650,000 would be used to pay statutory damages and $350,000 would reimburse the Attorney General's office for its investigation. HP also said there was no finding of liability against it as part of the settlement. The California attorney general will not pursue civil claims against the company or against its current and former directors, officers and employees, HP said.
Reporters, Family Sue HP in Spy Scheme By Jordan Robertson, AP Technology Writer Group of Reporters and Their Family Members Sue HP Over Boardroom Spying Scheme http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070815/hewlett_packard_directors.html?.v=8 SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- A group of reporters and their family members whose private telephone records were secretly obtained as part of Hewlett-Packard Co.'s boardroom surveillance scheme sued the technology giant and two former executives Wednesday. Five separate lawsuits claiming "illegal and reprehensible conduct" were filed in San Francisco Superior Court against Palo Alto-based Hewlett-Packard, former Chairwoman Patricia Dunn and Kevin Hunsaker, the company's former ethics chief. Both executives were ousted last year because of their roles in HP's probe of unauthorized leaks to the media. The probe turned into a national scandal for the world's No. 1 seller of PCs and led to criminal investigations and congressional hearings over investigators' use of Social Security numbers and other personal information to trick phone companies into handing over confidential call logs. The plaintiffs include three reporters from online media company CNET Networks Inc.'s News.com -- Dawn Kawamoto, Stephen Shankland and Tom Krazit -- and one reporter from The Associated Press -- Rachel Konrad, who is Shankland's wife. Other plaintiffs are Kawamoto's husband, Jon Kawamoto, and Shankland's parents, Thomas and Rebecca Shankland. The lawsuits allege invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and engaging in unfair business practices. They seek unspecified damages and a jury trial. "We're filing the lawsuits to make sure this never happens again," said Kevin Boyle, one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs. HP said it apologized to each of the people affected by the spying probe and made a "substantial" settlement offer. "Unfortunately, rather than respond to the offer, they have decided to sue," HP said in a statement. "HP is disappointed by their decision and will defend itself." Defense lawyers for Dunn and Hunsaker did not immediately return calls from the AP for comment. The lawsuits come nearly a year after HP disclosed in a Sept. 2006 regulatory filing that investigators used a tactic called "pretexting" -- or pretending to be someone else to obtain private information from companies -- to spy on board members, journalists and their families. The next month, California's attorney general charged Dunn, Hunsaker and three private investigators with four felony counts each -- including fraud, identity theft and conspiracy. Those charges were later dropped, with a Santa Clara County judge calling their conduct a "betrayal of trust and honor" that nonetheless did not rise to the level of criminal activity. Separately, HP agreed to pay $14.5 million in a civil settlement with the state, most of which was slated to fund investigations into privacy rights and intellectual property violations. The U.S. attorney's office in San Francisco brought charges against one of the investigators, Bryan Wagner, who pleaded guilty to two felony counts of identity theft and conspiracy in the case. His sentencing is set for October in San Jose federal court. Despite the uproar, the scandal has had little effect on HP's stock price, which has jumped 27 percent since before the scandal was disclosed. The rise has created more than $20 billion in shareholder wealth. HP's market value stood at nearly $121 billion Wednesday after shares fell $1.13 to close at $46.15. Investors have been impressed with HP's operational efficiency and strategy under Chief Executive Mark Hurd. The company has dramatically cut costs and last fall reclaimed the No. 1 ranking in worldwide PC sales from struggling Dell Inc. HP is scheduled to report its third-quarter financial results after the market closes Thursday. Analysts are expecting another solid quarter of growth, with profit of 66 cents per share on $24.1 billion in revenues.