Boardroom Spying On Directors

[Dubh Aingeal]

As word spread that HP was dumping Board member George Keyworth for press leaks, Newsweek broke the bigger story: HP Chairwoman Patricia Dunn was so obsessed with finding the leaker that she authorized a team of independent electronic-security experts to spy on the phone records of calls made from HP Directors' home and private cell phones. Not only that, phone records were obtained via pretexting, the controversial practice of obtaining information under false pretenses. After Dunn laid out the surveillance scheme for the Board last May, HP Director Tom Perkins quit on the spot, characterizing Dunn's actions as illegal and unethical. HP is also coming under fire for playing dumb to the SEC about the reasons behind Perkins' resignation. Perkins, who helped launch HP's computer division in the 60's, has asked the FTC, FCC and the Justice Department to investigate.

[cptdeath]

ever see that movie the matadoor with Peirce Brosnon?

[Troy Spiral (13)]

Hrmm. At first reading seems fair to me. Im not sure "spying" is by nature an unethical act is it?

[Dubh Aingeal]

It is now being reported that the HP boardroom spying incident that occurred earlier this year also involved obtaining phone records of journalists from at least two news outlets. Journalists from CNET and the Wall Street Journal had their phone records obtained through a method called 'pretexting' to see who, if any, of the HP board members the journalists may have been in contact with.

[Troy Spiral (13)]

It is now being reported that the HP boardroom spying incident that occurred earlier this year also involved obtaining phone records of journalists from at least two news outlets. Journalists from CNET and the Wall Street Journal had their phone records obtained through a method called 'pretexting' to see who, if any, of the HP board members the journalists may have been in contact with.

Hrmm. So if i'm lurking around a corner, intentionally listening to a conversation. I find out so-and-so is being a total jackass. But i never announce my presence to the "victims" whatever information i glean from such an act is... basically null and void due to the sneaky nature of it?

(i'm partially acting dumb here just to broaden the question slightly into right to privacy discussion) Not being snippy , just conversational. Trying to back the bus up to the initial idea that privacy is assumed to be noble and whatever is gleaned from an "invasion" of this noble attribute is by nature, bad.

I know to most it just sort of "feels" bad to eavesdrop (it does to me as well actually) im just trying to question that asumption. Might turn out that its a vaild reaction. Im just not sure what the effective rational for it is. "I dont like it" seems... overly simplistic but its all im comming up with at the moment.

[Dubh Aingeal]

Patriciagate gets even stranger. In a twist that indicates the extent of HP's investigation, the CA Attorney General's office said HP's investigators also targeted the personal phone records of CNET reporter Stephen Shankland's father, Thomas, a semi-retired physicist in New Mexico. The scandal prompts CNNMoney to ask Chairwoman Patricia Dunn: Are you lying or incompetent? An emergency HP Board meeting is scheduled for Sunday.

[Dubh Aingeal]

Hrmm. So if i'm lurking around a corner, intentionally listening to a conversation. I find out so-and-so is being a total jackass. But i never announce my presence to the "victims" whatever information i glean from such an act is... basically null and void due to the sneaky nature of it?

(i'm partially acting dumb here just to broaden the question slightly into right to privacy discussion) Not being snippy , just conversational. Trying to back the bus up to the initial idea that privacy is assumed to be noble and whatever is gleaned from an "invasion" of this noble attribute is by nature, bad.

I know to most it just sort of "feels" bad to eavesdrop (it does to me as well actually) im just trying to question that asumption. Might turn out that its a vaild reaction. Im just not sure what the effective rational for it is. "I dont like it" seems... overly simplistic but its all im comming up with at the moment.

Quite a large broadening here since they did not listen to any phone calls. What they did was call up the phone companies and stated they were someone else (not too much diffrence in my eyes frome identity theft) to obtain their phone records.

[Scary Guy]

Quite a large broadening here since they did not listen to any phone calls. What they did was call up the phone companies and stated they were someone else (not too much diffrence in my eyes frome identity theft) to obtain their phone records.

So they used social engineering to get what they wanted. 90% of "hacking" requires this.

[Troy Spiral (13)]

Yeah i'd point out my last post again and just say that the premise assumes that "eavesdropping" doesn't really care (in that case) how its done. The argument / question / idea remains the same.

"It feels wrong" or " there is a law against it" doesn't nessiarly mean its unethical.

Slavery was the law of the land in many parts of the world for ages. I think most would agree that didn't make it ethical.

[Dubh Aingeal]

Yahoo! is reporting that HP has been asked by Congress to turn over records related to the internal investigation of possible illegal media leaks. This request came as a part of the continuing look into 'pretexting' by the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee.

The Federal Communications Commission has also taken interest in HP, asking AT&T Inc. last week how the company's private investigators managed to obtain the private phone records of board members and journalists.

[Vater Araignee]

Nothing wrong with spying, it's what you do with it.

Theft, masturbation you know that kind of stuff.

[Dubh Aingeal]

The NY Times reports the secret investigation of news leaks at HP was more elaborate than previously reported. In addition to illicitly gathering private phone records almost from the start, detectives reportedly followed and videotaped some directors and journalists, were given photos of reporters to help identify them, and tried to plant surveillance software on a CNET reporter's computer. HP also fessed up to spying on its own spokesman, whose personal phone records were taken.