This guy is probably guilty of what Wal-Mart accuses him of, but I also think the guy is correct about the company’s espionage effort. His crimes are directly linked to the work he claims he was hired to do, so it seems to me that it is a situation of abusing access in an office dedicated to spying on others. Wal-Mart stopped being the humble company of its founder a long time ago.
A fired Wal-Mart technician alleged the world’s largest retailer has been spying on its workers, critics, vendors and consultants. The company defended its security practices.
Wal-Mart declined to comment on specific allegations made by 19-year veteran Bruce Gabbard to the Wall Street Journal in a report published Wednesday. Wal-Mart reiterated that it had fired Gabbard, 44, and his supervisor last month for violating company policy by recording phone calls and intercepting pager messages.
Wal-Mart made the case public last month and denied Gabbard’s claims that his actions were the result of pressure from Kenneth Senser, a former senior CIA and FBI official who has headed Wal-Mart’s office of global security since 2003. Another FBI veteran, Joseph Lewis, is head of corporate investigations under Senser.
The fact that this guy worked for the Threat Research and Analysis Group, a unit of Wal-Mart’s Information Systems Division (and run by ex-CIA and _FBI guys), supports my interpretation. Frankly, in hindsight it makes sense. Wal-Mart is not only as rich as a country, it has international interests, obligations, and efforts it must protect and manage. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had an international security strike force able to deploy at a moments notice.
Isn’t that what Blackwater is all about? Why buyyour own troops when you can just contract it out. If it’s good enough for our government it’s good enough for Wal-mart.
Sam Walton was humble? First I’ve ever heard that.
I’m not surprised. Well, not too much.
I know people who are associated with both Blackwater and Wallyworld. The reason this man has been fired is that Walmart is going to be sued by two employees who were said to be having an affair and accepting gifts from a large advertising firm.If he had shut up like his supervisor he would have been rehired by a Walmart vendor.Now he hopes for a legal settlement.He knows too much and he will settle out of court.Blackwater employees are very “close”to the Wal-mart security operation.Walmart is like a country in that there are competing political interests within the company and they take no prisoners.
Funny, in the financials industry, recording phone calls, keeping instant messages and emails, etc. is actually required by SOX. But, in fairness the financials companies make sure everyone is painfully aware that they have no expectation of privacy during the workday.
Wal Mart is a glorified dime store. It is amazing that we live in a world where a company like Wal Mart can be big enough and powerful enough to need that level of security.
Efficiency and economies of scale are nice and all… But Wal Mart is an abstract, a corporation, that we actualy citizens allow to be big enough to weild real political and economic power over some of our lives. I’m not sure how, but I’m pretty sure Wal Mart affects me.
A lot of folks give folks like me a lot of flakk for being critical or mistrustful of massive corporate interests… but at the core of it for me is that I don’t object to success, wealth, or anything like that. But when an entity becomes as huge as Wal Mart, has the ability to build or destroy communities, affects personal lives, culture, etc, then we all have a vested interest, a right, to expect a level of ethics and a degree of transparancy from that entity. (notice I said “a degree of” before you attack – Yes… I mean you James Hill you right wing loonbat)
I don’t know who is right or wrong here and I’m not gonna chew on Wal Mart just to chew on them. I guess I’m just commenting on why some people take such an interest in, and have passionate feelings about, megacorps that control huge wealth. We just feel that Wal Mart will never be altruistic. And if Wal Marts needs mean hurting little people, they’ll do it… Thus, we take an interest.
6,
oftlo, Wal-Mart affects us all. Two words: Supply Chain. They dominate the logistics industry. They can set prices, availabilities, and schedules to a degree greater than any other retailer on the planet.
I don’t really see anything very sinister or unusual that Walmart is being accused of doing. Sadly, companies do have to work hard to minimize theft. Walmart is popular because of low prices and low margins. I don’t think they’re worse than most other companies.
Operation Low Low Prices Task Force Strike Team Activate!!!
I wonder if they have ex-special forces personell on staff?
wal-mart’s actions in various areas have gotten to the point where I’m not shopping there anymore. It’s not in my best interest to support a store that behaves the way they do ; .the savings (if there really there) just don’t seem match the down sides as I see them.
I saw a Whale-Mart door greeter with one eye the pointed out to the right and another that pointed up and to the left. I always thought if he kept his head down he would make a great store detective.
Walmart sucks, so what else is new?
I had a dream that every store was Wal-Mart,
Every isle was full of stuff, but I couldn’t find anything,
The ghosts of long dead french fries hanged in the air.
Dark shapes moved under the dim lights, and I looked away.
I ran from store front to store front, but always the same,
Ronald and a half dead man greeted me warmly.
Wrote that years ago. True story; worst nightmare I’ve ever had. It wasn’t so much the content but how long it lasted; never did find that blender I needed. I think that the principle of capitalism that Wally never really did understand was the value of competition.
Break. Them. Up. No corporation should act like a country. Crack them into pieces small enough for government oversight. And never let a company get that big again. A corporate charter is a priviledge, not a right. When they start their own CIA, revoke the charter. And jail the culprits.
I hope to point out something interesting…
That EVERY retail store has ‘ALOT’ of security. And MORe on employees, then anyone else.
This is nothing NEW.
Between ALL the types of security stores have…I only see this as a Smear campaign.
WalMart is evil. Don’t shop there. Tell your friends and family to not shop there, either.
15,
Supermarkets spy on their critics?
Well let what the technition be said is true.
I was harassed by these guys to quit and lose my uneployment .