Microsoft confirms employee firings amid Hungary bribe probe

REDMOND, Wash. – Microsoft says it has fired four employees and terminated its relationship with four business partners at its Hungarian subsidiary.

The company did not say when it took the actions in Hungary but it made its announcement after the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that it is under investigation in a potential bribery and corruption scheme.

The newspaper says the Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission are looking into the discounted sale of Microsoft software such as Word and Excel to middlemen who then resold it to the Hungarian government at full price. Investigators are probing whether the difference was pocketed by government officials.

The Journal cited unnamed people familiar with the matter.