Apple Says Jobs Knew of Options

Correction Appended

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 4 - Apple Computer said on Wednesday that an internal review had found that Steven P. Jobs, the chief executive, knew that the company was backdating some stock options granted to employees to inflate their value.

The company said Mr. Jobs did not knowingly receive any backdated options and had not benefited from the practice, and that he did not understand its accounting implications. A company spokesman, Steve Dowling, said it was possible that there had been "irregularities" with some options granted to Mr. Jobs, but he declined to elaborate.

Apple, riding high on the popularity of its iPod music player, repeated that it would most likely need to restate past financial statements, but said it had not yet determined the amount or for which periods.

"I apologize to Apple's shareholders and employees for these problems, which happened on my watch," Mr. Jobs said in a statement. "They are completely out of character for Apple." Mr. Jobs said the company was working to resolve the remaining issues quickly.

Apple revealed in June that it had discovered irregularities related to stock options awarded between 1997 and 2001.

By doing so, it joined more than 100 companies, including Microsoft, that have announced investigations into their options practices.

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