FBI looking at laptops sent to US governors

THE FBI is investigating HP notebook computers that have been sent to governors' offices in 10 states all across the US without having been ordered.

The laptops were delivered in four states including West Virginia, Wyoming and Vermont, while similar shipments to six other state governors were intercepted.

Governor's office staffs in West Virginia and Wyoming each received five laptops and quickly realised that they had not ordered the computers. They turned the machines over to law enforcement immediately.

"Our expectation is that this is not a gesture of good will," said Kyle Schafer, West Virginia's chief technology officer. "People don't just send you five laptops for no good reason."

HP confirmed late last week that it was aware of the orders and said that they were linked to fraud. Pamela Bonney, an HP spokeswoman said, "HP took prompt corrective action to address the fraudulent orders and is working with law enforcement personnel on a criminal investigation."

Speculation is that the laptops might have been loaded with malware, such as a Trojan horse, keylogger or botnet program. The cost of a few notebook computers might be viewed as just an investment by criminals or agencies of foreign governments seeking to penetrate state or federal government networks.

Maybe it was just part of a lobbying effort by some organisation that neglected to tell the governors' offices to expect some gift laptops.

Or, on the other hand, perhaps the US Homeland Security Agency might have sent the notebooks to the governors' offices as advance replacements for the laptops it will confiscate whenever state officials travel overseas. µ

L'Inq
Network World