Internet Privacy And Safety: What Happened To The Enron Corporation?

Internet Privacy and Safety Name Institution Affiliation Speech: Internet Privacy and Safety Ladies and gentlemen technological developments have made access to both private and public information very easy. It has enabled many organizations to share information about their stability by posting their books of accounts on their websites. However, despite the convenience that these technological developments have brought some shrewd people and businesses have used the opportunity to defraud unsuspecting people by promising to sell what they don’t have. Enron Corporation was one such company that used its online platform to lure people to invest in the company in the pretense that it was profitable and they were going to reap big from their investments. Its important first to understand that Enron Corporation was formed in 1985 after a successful merger involving Houston Natural Gas Company and InterNorth Incorporation, an Omaha based company. It rebranded into an energy trading and supplying company after the merger with the then Chief Executive Officer of Houston Natural Gas taking control of Enron Corp as the CEO and chairman of the board of directors. Notably, Enron Corp opened up so many subsidiary companies and trading businesses that were operating in losses that should have been declared by the parent company but weren’t. The company used a mark to market accounting which entails measuring the value of security on current market value as opposed to its book value. The corporation also had off the books corporations where losses of subsidiary companies were transferred and hence were not declared. Many investors were lured to invest in the corporation with the knowledge that it was in sound financial shape. The information on the company’s stability was widely displayed on the corporation’s website referred to as Enron online (EOL). In addition, the corporation failed to disclose the conflict of interest from the trading of its rapidly rising stock with its subsidiaries. It’s estimated that investors, creditors and employees lost up to a tune of sixty billion dollars from the corporations fraudulent dealings. The corporation’s executives were charged with conspiracy, insider trading and securities fraud. Most of the company’s top officials tried to dispose of their shares prior to its collapse from insider information. Kenneth Lay, the then CEO was tried and convicted of six counts of securities fraud and four counts of bank fraud. Jeffery Skiing who apparently resigned from his role as CEO citing “personal reasons” was convicted of conspiracy, securities fraud and insider trading. Andrew Fastow the CFO pleaded...