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HP's Moscow Offices Raided In Bribery Probe
FrankPoole writes "Hewlett-Packard's Moscow offices were raided Wednesday as part of a bribery investigation by Russian and German authorities. The news was first reported by The Wall Street Journal [currently paywalled; Reuters also covered it], which wrote that HP is suspected of allegedly paying out nearly $11 million in bribes to secure a major Russian government contract several years ago via a German subsidiary. Ironically, the contract was with the Prosecutor General's office of the Russian Federation, which will now play a role in investigating HP. While HP knew of the investigation as far back as December, the company did not disclose the information in any SEC filings. Instead, in its most recent quarterly report, HP states that in foreign nations 'it is common to engage in business practices that are prohibited by laws and regulations.'"
That's funny and wrong I don't know where to begin...
Some people are only alive because it's against the law for me to hunt them down and kill them.
They didn't pay enough.
If someone says he and his monkey have nothing to hide, they almost certainly do.
Best part of the summary:
HP states that in foreign nations 'it is common to engage in business practices that are prohibited by laws and regulations.'
I guess many US companies think the same way, based on their acting.. It's common, or is it the best way to make money?
LOL!
HP's Moscow Offices Raided In Non-Bribery Probe
You overpaid then. Most people only have to pay her with a punch to the face. She's desperate for any dick that isn't Rob's micropeen.
SEC sues Goldman Sachs.
Compare and contrast.
Set your phasers on "funky"!
(i.e. "Bribes"). Yeah, HP, how did that work out for you? Too bad they can't claw back your bonus for *that* move.
Please do not read this sig. Thank you.
Indeed. In 3rd-world countries you must bribe if you want to compete because your competitors are bribing.
Table-ized A.I.
big business as it is normally done. Right?
It was Fiorina at the time.
If you link from /. it is paywalled. As always, if you link from Google, it is all free. Just paste WSJ headline into Google, and go:
http://www.google.com/search?q=H-P+Executives+Face+Bribery+Probes
First hit is the article in full.
Funny how Google is a better front end to WSJ than WSJ itself. Maybe WSJ is shooting itslef in the foot with this policy. (Same with Mercury News and others)
don't cut it off www.mgmbill.org
Today is Friday
( HP states that in foreign nations 'it is common to engage in business practices that are prohibited by laws and regulations.'" )
it is upper class to engage in business practices that are prohibited by laws and regulations.
Yours In Akademgorodok,
Kilgore Trout
While i didnt RTFA, but just to focus in on one aspect of the summary,
"HP states that in foreign nations 'it is common to engage in business practices that are prohibited by laws and regulations.'"
While they may have been wrong in this situation, the statement itself is very true; After spending some time in china for instance, bribery is certainly prevalent. Also when we examine the US system, with lobbyists and contributions... is it really that different?
This gives "Radia" a whole new meaning.
-- Insert witty one-liner here. --
Only government holds the key to this injustice. Same as here in the US, where bribing politicians is an everyday occurrance, government has the final say in whether the bribe is taken.
I find it alarming that most people choose to blame the solicitor (HP in this case), who only does what government encourages them to do. Sure, the private party may have conspired to commit a crime, but again, government ultimately holds the key to making it happen.
Not to mention Cornhusker Kickback and Louisiana Purchase.
For sale, votes: Current price between $250,000,000 and $1,500,000,000 depending upon condition. Please see your nearest associate for details.
Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
Arthur Levitt: The longest-serving SEC chairman (1993 to 2001). Hired by Goldman in June 2009 as an adviser on public policy and other matters.
Set your phasers on "funky"!
That's not irony, that's corruption.
Instead, in its most recent quarterly report, HP states that in foreign nations 'it is common to engage in business practices that are prohibited by laws and regulations.'
Apparently they didn't read their own Ethics & Compliance materials. As a former HP employee, I can tell you that every year the employees are required to take an online course in Ethics and Compliance. Part of those materials mentions that HP won't participate in any activities that are expected practice in other countries, but forbidden in the US. The specific example of bribery was included. Furthermore, simply knowing that a partner or subsidiary is doing something unethical on behalf of HP is forbidden. The act of a business partner bribing a customer to secure a contract for HP was one of the examples. In fact, there were even videos with actors portraying these situations. Then again, maybe the training materials grew out of this specific case.
What are the model number for HP rocket launchers and suitcase nukes? I've heard they are quite popular outside of the US, except for the rather expensive refill rockets and plutonium, but some third parties offer them a bit cheaper, although with no warranty.
Bribe prosecutor's office to get contract and get prosecuted by the office.
Somebody needs to up their bribe-fu.
Fuck systemd. Fuck Redhat. Fuck Soylent, too. Wait, scratch the last one.
You've got ripped off. She paid me to suck me off.
Well, as true as your statement may be, it doesn't make bribery ok. Government officials in China have been executed for accepting bribes. If you have to bribe someone, you should make sure that you can't be convicted for it.
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I hope these individuals are dealt with with the verocity China sets forth on individuals breaking laws of this caliber.
It amazes me how ethical behavior has taken a back seat to profits (see: Massey Energy, Maydoff, and the cause of that... oh what was that thing... uh, oh yea, global recession).
How many of you were awstruck when Google pulled out of China? I was taken aback. Shocked that I was shocked. And I asked myself why that is?At the threat of losing a huge financial opportunity, I was amazed that a company didn't take it lying down. They said 'F you' and threatened them back.
That's the way it should be and the world needs more of it.
Respect +10, Google.
in the USA that is normal, it is called campaign contributions, or business investments. isn't capitalism grand?; where everything has a price (even your soul)
Politics is Treachery, Religion is Brainwashing
Seems like someone missed the annual Standards of Business Conduct training.
From page 12...
Those dealing with such countries are stuck between a rock and a hard place. If they don't bribe they won't suceed, if they do bribe and someone decides to make an example of them for whatever reason then they may end up doing time.
note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
I think that punishing the people who accept bribes is more important than punishing those who bribe. It's not really fair, but if the financial climate requires bribery then obviously something is wrong. Punishing business interests for trying to succeed could lead to lowering the incentive to do business within the region. But by making sure that no one wants to accept a bribe, then you change the business climate. People accepting bribes are the real criminals.
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HP obviously missed the Prosecutor General's memo that he needed a bigger bribe....
Those dealing with such countries are stuck between a rock and a hard place. If they don't bribe they won't suceed, if they do bribe and someone decides to make an example of them for whatever reason then they may end up doing time.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why corruption destroys national economies. Investors and multinationals understand this fact, and only the most desperate or stupid choose to do business in such an environment.
Russia has been hanging foreign and domestic corporations out to dry for a decade using the corruption catch-22. NTV, Yukos... I'll go out on a limb and say that any foreign corporation doing business in Russia is insane. Sorry, my Russian Slashdot friends, you're great people, but your government is a business deathtrap.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE62E1SU20100315
"My recommendation is: 'Maybe you should reconsider doing business in Russia,'" she said. "I am considerably more optimistic about Nigeria than I am about Russia on this issue."
Sounds good. So what do you do if the "people who accept bribes" are the same as the people in charge of prosecuting bribery?
This is not a hypothetical question.
Good point. In that case, I'd say that you're pretty much screwed. Unless you have some kind of secret police watching the people in charge of prosecuting bribery. Although I can't say I like the idea of secret police all too much...
"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?"
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Quote:
One of the things I have always found troubling about Westerners doing business in emerging market countries is that they sometimes take an almost perverse pride in discussing payoffs to government officials. It is as though their having paid a bribe is a symbol of their international sophistication and insider knowledge. Yet, countless times when I am told of the bribe, I know the very same thing could almost certainly have been accomplished without a bribe.
Source: Chinalawblog.com.
Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
Good news! Russia *does* have some secret police watching out for this sort of issue. Their job is to KILL YOU when you start to complain about this problem.
http://www.cpj.org/killed/europe/russia/
http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1071933.html
It's really a question with no good answer.
A governement trying to weed out corrution could set up an independent body to investigate crimes commited by law enfocement but there is of course the risk of that becoming corrupt too.
note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
She payed me thice as much as you and she got a mouth full of my manmilk, cottage cheese, and some sweaty brew. You should invest your manjuice more wisely, because it has all kinds of related products that women pay dearly for you to export to them.
What do you go to a well and dip a cum bucket down a rope and carry the groceries to her? I'm a handyman myself, and I've been laying pipe for quite a long time. I even have some
do-it-yourself videos you can buy to teach yourself how to extend shorter pipes to couple with uneven unions. One union I'm proud of coupling was this house with three Lesbian stewards that weren't getting their proper recognition in Utah, so with a little junction the paper diagrams point to me as a 3-way switch that exceeds Code specifications.
Last I checked, the first mushroom you went down on wasn't a magic one.
I don't know about other countries, but in Russia, the laws are commonly stacked up such that you simply can't do business if you don't cough up the bribe - they'll close you down otherwise, because if you don't break law A, you're breaking law B (which directly contradicts A).
You can't even catch a corrupt official red-handed anymore. Not so long ago, they've enacted the law that using any concealed audio or video recording or transmitting device while dealing with a government official is a crime (which can be punishable by up to 3 years in jail). Notices to that effect adorn doors of many offices of higher-profile officials - I've seen a bunch myself.
Next time someone replies to a troll like this just to get your comment higher on the page, I'm going to mod you off-topic, because you're off the topic that you're replying to. Unfortunately I won't be able to leave a comment explaining why. You want to top-post on this story, you're going to have to come up with some sort of kathleen fent-related content.
Your comment is not more worthy than anyone else's comment until it has been judged so by the community. You're just not special, sorry if no one has told you that before.
Go ahead, mod me off-topic, I'll come back stronger than ever.
I did a business analyst internship with Weyerhaeuser, and their corporate policy specifically allows gifts to be given to business partners, vendors, and government officials whenever "the local custom or culture dictates."
There are a huge number of yeast infections in this county. Probably because we're downriver from the bread factory.
Just read the history of Richard Branson and Virgin Records. They found it was cheaper to break the law and pay the fines than sell legal records, and they made a boat-load of money doing just that.
No trespassing. Violators will be shot. Survivors will be shot again.
You don't even have a job, sopssa. All you do is sit around here all day on slashdot while you suck welfare and you talk like you actually think you know something about corporate America? Give us a break, fake.
Wow. Interesting to hear about, as I've long considered that the only way we will reduce corruption in the US is to have 24/7 surveillance of our elected officials, available for anyone to view (like a YouTube CSPAN).
Of course, they're the ones passing the laws, so they'll never allow something like that, was also my thinking.
But this is a further step -- passing a law actively against that model. The Russians are creative.
I feel fantastic, and I'm still alive.
And finding the proprietary ramchip upgrades is a pig...
Seagoon: Shut up Eccles!
Eccles: Shut up Eccles!