[Infowarrior] - Oracle sues rival SAP for hacking their systems

[Richard Forno]

Oracle Sues Rival SAP for Alleged Theft
Thursday March 22, 8:29 pm ET
By Michael Liedtke, AP Business Writer

Oracle Sues German Rival SAP for Alleged Theft of Secret Product Information

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Oracle Corp. on Thursday accused SAP AG of hacking
into its computers to heist secret product information in a lawsuit that
escalates the animosity that had already been building between two of the
world's largest business software makers.

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"This is about more than just protecting intellectual property," said
Forrester Research analyst Ray Wang. "This is about product support and the
art of war."

The complaint, filed in a San Francisco federal court, alleges that
Germany-based SAP resorted to high-tech skullduggery in a desperate attempt
to maintain its leadership in business applications software -- programs
that help companies manage a wide range of administrative tasks.

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But the suit alleges that SAP didn't have enough information or adequate
resources to support Oracle's software, triggering the clandestine raids on
Oracle's computers beginning last September and continuing through at least
January of this year.

SAP TN infiltrated Oracle's systems by using the log-in information of
defecting customers and then concealed its true identity by using phony
phone numbers and fake e-mail addresses such as test(at)testyomamma.com, the
lawsuit alleged.

Oracle said it has uncovered more than 10,000 illegal downloads of material
from SAP computers, with much of the activity being traced to an Internet
protocol, or IP, address in SAP TN's Bryan, Texas, headquarters.

"If these allegations are true, shame on SAP," Wang said.

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http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070322/oracle_sap.html?.v=7