[Liz]

Even so---if they were company-paid, the PR fallout of corporate spying is horrendous---heads will roll.

[Ol' Sox]

I guess that would depend on whether it was completely internal. If it is, all the prosecutor's blather about criminality is moot. "Spying" on employee communications, especially where corporate security is in question, is very common. The company is liable for their employees' conduct, after all, and the company owns the equipment.

I would be curious to know more about the details of the phone records examined. A phone call is a two-way communication. A reporter could claim he/she is being spied on if they were a party to a communication with an HP employee who's phone records were being examined.