Securities Commission investigates HP

JUST WHEN it seemed that HP's life could not get much worse, the Securities and Exchange Commission has upgraded its informal inquiry of the outfit's boardroom spying antics into a formal investigation.

According to Associated Press, HP revealed the development in its SEC filing after reporting financial results for the fourth quarter and the fiscal year 2006.

The outfit's spinners were quick to claim that this was not "an escalation" or "broadening" of the investigation, although it is hard to see how this could not be the case. The SEC filing also revealed that it is being sued by at least five shareholders and received a request for documents from the Federal Communications Commission over its handling of media leaks.

This is on top of the US Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California, a congressional panel and California's attorney general's investigation.

So far five people including former HP Chairwoman Patricia Dunn and former HP ethics chief Kevin Hunsaker, and private investigators Ronald DeLia, Matthew DePante and Bryan Wagner have been charged with four counts each of felony identity theft and fraud.

More here. µ