HP 'Settles' With SEC Over Pretexting-gate

Legal Issues

from the painless dept

HP is starting to move past the pretexting imbroglio that engulfed the company last summer. Although it’s still facing a lawsuit filed by the journalists that it spied on, the company has settled the issue with the SEC. Actually, the SEC wasn’t so much concerned with the pretexting itself, but with the way the company handled the initial resignation of boardmember Tom Perkins. Unsurprisingly, the company didn’t let shareholders know the true reasons behind his departure at the time it happened, which was in contravention of SEC regulations. Despite the apparent breach, the company seems to have gotten off pretty light, as it doesn’t have to admit wrongdoing or pay a fine. That “settlement” probably doesn’t even qualify as a slap on the wrist, since a slap on the wrist actually hurts. Basically, HP has to promise not to do it again, though it probably learned that lesson some time ago.