Products could have been delivered to Syria via distributors or resellers, asserts OEM.
HP has stated in a 
letter made public that it denies supplying its products to Syria, which is currently subject to US sanctions, although states that products may have been delivered through resellers or distributors, reports the Wall Street Journal.
The letter, dated 9 October 2012 to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), was made public in a recent regulatory filing after reports that the OEM’s technology was being employed in a surveillance programme by the Syrian government in 2011.
Mercury News has detailed the SEC’s comments in its request: “We are aware of November 2011 news reports that your equipment was installed by the Italian company, Area SpA, in Syria as part of a nationwide surveillance and tracking system designed to monitor people in that country.”
HP has stated that Area SpA was required to comply with all applicable export laws, including those prohibiting selling HP products to embargoed or sanctioned countries, and denied that products Area SpA is suspected of selling came directly from the OEM but from “an HP partner that was not informed of the ultimate destination for those products.”
HP further added: “It is always possible that products may be diverted to Iran or Syria after being sold to channel partners, such as distributors or resellers.”
The OEM has claimed that it has since ended its contract with Area SpA in April 2012.
HP has experienced a number of setbacks in recent months, including the announcement of significant losses for 4Q212 results skewed by allegations of fraudulent accounting with Autonomy, which the OEM is taking to court in the US.