Boston Globe columnist Alex Beam says he’s boycotting Palo Alto-based Hewlett Packard because it hired private detectives who monitored the phone calls of journalists, went through their trash and invaded their privacy. When it came time to buy a new computer, Beam said he picked another brand instead of an HP Pavilion.

In related news, private investigator Bryan Wagner (right) was charged Wednesday with federal identity theft for allegedly using the Social Secuirty number of an unidentified journalist to access the reporter’s phone records at the behest of HP to investigate board room leaks, the AP reports.