Whistleblower Data Under Seal
One of the federal government's data mining contractors has gotten sideways with the Justice Department in a way that companies fear and loathe -- allegations by a whistleblower.
Teradata Data Warehousing, which helps customers "reveal patterns within large volumes of data," is poised for a spinoff from parent NCR.
In a quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said "the United States Department of Justice is conducting an investigation regarding the propriety of the Company's Teradata Data Warehousing business' arrangements or understandings with others in connection with certain federal contracts."
At the core of the case is an allegation made under the federal False Claims Act. In the SEC statement, the company said it had "shared evidence of questionable conduct that the Company has uncovered with the Justice Department and intends to continue to cooperate with the Justice Department in its investigation." Company officials won't comment, saying the case is under seal, according to an NCR spokesman
"The Company's internal investigation is also focusing on the adequacy of pricing disclosures to the government under certain of the Company's federal contracts," the NCR statement said.
The False Claims Act is one of the most prominent avenues for the government's pursuit of contracting fraud and abuse. Regular citizens -- oftentimes former employees -- of companies found to have defrauded the government can get up to 25 percent of the settlement.
Exploring how the False Claims Act system works -- not to mention the cases that result -- will be a worthy line of inquiry for Government Inc. (All calls and notes about pending cases welcome.)
Last year, Oracle settled the largest fraud case involving a schedule contract at the General Services Administration, agreeing to pay the Justice Department a $98.5 million fine following False Claim Act allegations that a company it acquired had inflated prices for software it sold to the government.
Teradata also has a GSA schedule contract.
By Robert O'Harrow |
August 14, 2007; 4:51 AM ET
qui tam
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Posted by: upstate111 | August 14, 2007 1:23 PM
I thoroughly enjoy your blog. I recently watched a movie titled Irag for Sale which I recommend to anyone who has not watched it. The two companies that this movie focuses on are Halliburton and Keller, Brown, and Root(KBR). According to allegations in this movie Halliburton and KBR, who together hold the majority of the "no bid" contracts in Iraq, grossly overcharged the government for services rendered, and products supplied.
My questions is, shouldn't these companies be charged under the "False Claims Act" discussed in one of your recent posts titled "Whistleblower Data Under Seal?
Posted by: Randy Gleason | August 16, 2007 12:55 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFxuEQAAtHg
That's a clip from the History Channel..
Lies, Lies, Lies..and crimes that everyone involved should be held accountable!
Watch some of the contractor's fraud oversight hearings from 2004-2006 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYsIC5Jwrhw (some are archived on C-SPAN) and last month's hearing on the embassy that is being built in Iraq. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evRPwwyno_c These people have no humanity in them.. money and power are the only things that matter. We seem to live in a kakistocracy, a plutocracy, or a capitalistic society..far from a democracy.
Wake up people and get involved in your government. Dennis Kucinich for president.
Principals over Politics!!!
Posted by: Leanne F | August 17, 2007 5:29 AM
It would be beneficial to our Government as well as the taxpayer's, if there weren't dollar's being wasted by DHHS, taking children away from their family's, by fraudelent mean's. For each child placed in foster care, DHHS (child protective service's), is rewarded with Government incentive money, every month. The foster couple's are also rewarded and given bonus's. Million's of dollar's would be saved each year if the money were used as intended. But CPS doesn't try to keep the child in the home. They take them right away and put them in foster care,just so their incentive money kick's in. There is no working toward reunification. If there were, CPS would lose their adoption bonuse's as well as the foster couple's.
Posted by: Dorothy Knightly | August 17, 2007 4:19 PM
Can anyone tell me if there are any companies in the US other than KBR and Halliburtion who could have even been able to supply the serves in the time frme required?
Posted by: charles kelly | August 19, 2007 4:41 PM
The YouTube testimony is interesting. What's most interesting to me is that it occurred in front of the House Appropriations Committee, and NOT the Government Reform and Oversight Committee where it belonged. Virginia's Congressman Tom Davis was in charge of the House Oversight Committee for 12 years and what was he doing? Keeping things tightly wrapped. First, he was firing the auditors who oversee these awards, then he held his first hearing in years -- by signing the subpeona of Terri Schiavo! When the Democrats wanted to hold a hearing on the War, he wouldn't even let them meet in an office. They had to meet in the basement. Really. What else was he busy doing? Working with Tom Delay and Jack Abramoff - Davis was one of only 3 Congressman who got a direct donation from Abramoff, and one is Bob Ney who is convicted - to steal contracts and elections. Oh, and working with the good buddy of Davis, Karl Rove, who the Post finally confessed they knew all along:
"Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (Va.), who in 2002 ran the House Republicans' successful reelection campaign in close coordination with Rove. "We knew history was against us, and he helped coordinate all of the accoutrements of the executive branch to help with the campaign..."
I wonder how many contractors use the firm of Davis's second wife, ICG Govt....
Virginians, Davis needs TO GO NOW.
Posted by: NoStyles | August 21, 2007 12:37 AM
The comments to this entry are closed.
Hopefully the inquiry will also reveal how the government incompetently wasted millions of tax dollars by abandoning contractor oversight. A great example is found in this contract that uses Teradata: http://www.herbb.hanscom.af.mil/esc_opps.asp?rfp=R1291
Anyone thinking that only Teradata defrauded the government is woefully naive. Lockheed, Accenture, Bearing Point, and a host of others got rich working with Teradata at the USAF, accomplishing little for the soldiers that were supposed to benefit.