We made sure all they got were orange rinds,'' said Ditzel, who kept the company's mission secret for five years until January, despite heavy interest from the media and industry. But in the game of spy versus spy, few players are willing to admit involvement unless caught in the act. In recent years, admissions of unorthodox tactics have come from companies such as Microsoft Corp., America Online Inc., and this past week, Oracle. Oracle chairman Larry Ellison said he authorized payments to a private detective agency to spy on several trade and policy groups that publicly supported Microsoft in the federal antitrust case. He portrayed his efforts as a public service, although Oracle would benefit directly from a wounded Microsoft.
Experts say high-tech companies are especially vulnerable to espionage.
They often work to promote a casual atmosphere to their employees and overlook establishing security procedures in their rush to get out new products. No one knows the total size of the problem, but even if they don't talk about it and even if they're not quite sure what they're afraid of, it's clear they see the risk,'' said senior analyst Frank Prince at Forrester's e-business infrastructure group.