(C) KBR
Incheon, South Korea — A Samsung Biologics employee has been handed over to trial for leaking trade secrets, including national core technologies, by physically smuggling thousands of printed documents out of the company's headquarters.
On December 29, the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office announced that they have indicted the employee, identified as "A," without detention. A faces multiple charges, including violations of the Act on Special Measures for Strengthening and Protecting the Competitiveness of National High-Tech Strategic Industries and the Industrial Technology Protection Act.
A Lapse in Security
According to prosecutors, between July and November 2023, A printed out approximately 2,800 pages of highly sensitive design drawings related to large-scale antibody fermentation and purification technology. Over the course of five months, A reportedly smuggled these documents out of the Songdo plant on 15 separate occasions by hiding them under his clothing.
The security breach was so discreet that Samsung Biologics failed to detect the activity at the time of the occurrence. The prosecution noted, "Despite the volume of documents being equivalent to a thick book, the company's security systems appeared to have been lax, as they did not notice the repeated thefts."
Motives and Consequences
Investigations revealed that A committed the crime while in the process of transferring to a competitor. During salary negotiations with the rival firm, A reportedly gathered the blueprints to use as leverage or for personal gain. However, following Samsung Biologics' formal complaint and the subsequent police investigation, A was unable to finalize his employment with the new company.
Fortunately, the prosecution’s patent investigation consultants confirmed that while the documents contained critical national and industrial technologies, they had not yet been handed over to the competitor.
"We will do our utmost to ensure a heavy sentence is handed down to the defendant to reflect the gravity of leaking national strategic technologies," a prosecution official stated.
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