2Day FM's DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian phoned the King Edward VII Hospital from Australia on Wednesday morning pretending to be the Queen and Prince Charles asking for an update on the condition of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. The call was described as a prank by the DJs who made it and foolish by the hospital. The nurse who answered the call, Jacintha Saldanha, was convinced by the impersonation and relayed confidential medical details. Today Ms Saldanha was found dead, early reports indicate the death is not suspicious and is suspected to be suicide. [more inside]
posted by samworm on Dec 7, 2012 - 242 comments

In an effort to track down the source of information leaks by Hewlett-Packard Co. insiders, private investigators hired company Chairwoman Patricia Dunn obtained reporters' telephone records illegally. They got the records by impersonating journalists from the Wall Street Journal, CNET.com and other news organizations in a practice known as “pretexting.” The news comes after the departure of HP director Tom Perkins [PDF], a founder of legendary venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers in May. Perkins later learned from AT&T that his private records were also illegally obtained. State and federal investigations have been launched.
posted by ericb on Sep 7, 2006 - 18 comments