Software Firm Probe May Have Widened

A federal probe of accounting practices at Computer Associates International Inc. may be more extensive than the software company has acknowledged, according to a lawyer for several former employees.

Computer Associates, based in Islandia, N.Y., has said that the investigation by the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission focuses on a $1.1-billion executive compensation package and the company’s method of booking revenue in 1998.

But the former employees, who are suing the firm on various grounds, allege that it used customer contracts and free software to shift revenue between quarters in 1999 and 2000, the former employees’ lawyer, Joseph Ranni, said. Such a practice could violate accounting rules.

Computer Associates defended its accounting and said it wasn’t aware of any changes in the probe. Shares of Computer Associates rose 16 cents to $14.98 on the New York Stock Exchange.