The Hewlett-Packard spying scandal, which led to Chairwoman Patricia Dunn's decision to step down, got even worse this morning with the following revelation from The New York Times:

Those briefed on the company's review of the operation say detectives tried to plant software on at least one journalist's computer that would enable messages to be traced, and also followed directors and possibly a journalist in an attempt to identify a leaker on the board.

The revelations at Hewlett-Packard, the computer and printer maker that helped define Silicon Valley, have provided a rare glimpse of boardroom turmoil -- resulting in Ms. Dunn's agreement to step down as chairwoman in January, and two resignations from the board.

This is so bad it defies comprehension...

Frankly, I don't know if this was driven by arrogance or panic or a combination of the two.  I posted on this issue earlier, making the point that companies need to think about how their actions will look on Page 1 before they move forward.

However, in HP's case, I'm wondering whether they thought about this at all.  Spying on a journalist's computer files?  Following directors?  Unbelievable!