Peregrine Systems sold software to keep big companies' computers honest, and it ended in one of the largest accounting frauds of its era. The San Diego company's ServiceCenter suite ran the IT help desks of firms like Deere, Lufthansa and Procter & Gamble. Its chairman was John Moores, who had founded BMC Software. When Peregrine went public in April 1997, it was a modest outfit raising about $20 million.

Consultants Turned Software Makers

Peregrine was founded in 1981 to consult on IT management software. In 1987 it launched its first product, PNMS, for watching over mainframe networks. ServiceCenter came later and became its main line. The suite tracked trouble tickets, changes and equipment across a company's computers and networks. The bet was that as corporate IT grew more complex, every large company would need one system to run its service desk.

Restated Into Bankruptcy

Peregrine priced at $9 a share in April 1997 and listed on Nasdaq as PRGN. It grew fast by buying other companies, including Remedy in 2001. In 2002 it admitted it had inflated its revenue for years, and it filed for bankruptcy that September. Several executives were later convicted. Peregrine emerged from bankruptcy in 2003, and Hewlett-Packard bought it in 2005 for about $425 million.

Cover: The White Falcon, Isoda Koryusai. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for a falcon (the peregrine).