Several reporters and their family members have sued Hewlett-Packard Co and some of its officers alleging the technology giant violated their privacy in a hunt for the source of boardroom leaks. The five lawsuits brought by Rachel Konrad, Dawn Kawamoto, Stephen Shankland, Thomas Shankland and Thomas Krazit seek unspecified damages, Reuters reported.
The legal action follows disclosures in September 2006 that the world's biggest maker of personal computers and printers had hired private investigators to determine who on the board had leaked information about sensitive boardroom discussions to news outlets including online technology newsletter CNET Network Inc and the Wall Street Journal. The plaintiffs in the lawsuits include journalists for CNET and the Associated Press as well as their family members.
The investigators engaged used subterfuge to obtain private phone records of board members and reporters, HP admitted last year. The scandal led to the departure of HP's then-chairman, Patricia Dunn, and prompted a US congressional investigation of the tactics used in the investigation, known as pretexting. A California judge in June dismissed misdemeanour fraud charges against HP's former ethics chief Kevin Hunsaker and two private investigators involved in the scandal. Charges against Dunn were also dismissed.
HP said it apologised to each of the people affected by the spying probe and made a "substantial" settlement offer, according to an Associated Press (AP) report. "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."
