People walk near a sign outside Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California.
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Prosecutors announced Thursday that a federal grand jury has indicted three Silicon Valley engineers on charges of stealing trade secrets from Google and other technology companies and transferring sensitive data to Iran.
Samane Gandari, 41, her sister Solor Gandari, 32, and Mohammad Javad Khosravi, 40, all of San Jose, were arrested Thursday and appeared in federal district court the same day.
The indictment identified the defendant as an Iranian national. Soroa was in the United States on a nonimmigrant student visa. Samane later became a U.S. citizen, and her husband, Khosravi, became a legal permanent resident of the United States. Prosecutors said Khosravi previously served in the Iranian military.
The three men are charged with conspiracy to commit trade secret theft, trade secret theft and attempted theft, and obstruction of justice, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California.
Prosecutors alleged that the three defendants used their positions at major technology companies that develop mobile computer processors to obtain hundreds of confidential files containing material related to processor security and encryption.
Mr. Samaneh and Mr. Soroor worked at Google before joining a third company, identified only as Company 3. Mr. Khosravi worked for another company called Company 2, which develops system-on-chip (SoC) platforms such as the Snapdragon series for smartphones and other mobile devices.
An SoC is a semiconductor that integrates many components, such as a graphics processing unit and memory, into a power-efficient package. Common SoCs include Qualcomm’s Snapdragon, found in most high-end Android smartphones, and Apple’s A-series for iPhones.
Google said in a statement to CNBC that it discovered the suspected theft through routine security monitoring before turning the matter over to law enforcement.
“We have strengthened our security measures to protect confidential information and immediately notified law enforcement of this incident upon discovery,” spokesman Jose Castañeda said in a statement.
The tech giant also pointed to measures it takes to protect trade secrets, including restricting employee access to sensitive information, two-factor authentication for work-related Google accounts, and logging file transfers to third-party platforms such as Telegram.
Suspicion of cover-up
Authorities alleged that the defendants routed the stolen files through third-party communication platforms to channels marked with their respective first names before copying the material to personal devices, each other’s work devices, and even Iran.
“Defendants’ method of transmitting sensitive data included deliberate steps to avoid detection and conceal their identity,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani.
The defendants sought to cover their tracks after Google’s internal security systems alerted them to Samaneh’s activity and his access to company resources was revoked in August 2023.
According to the indictment, she signed a false affidavit stating that she did not share confidential Google information outside the company. During this period, personal laptops associated with Mr. Samane and Mr. Khosravi were used to explore ways to delete communications and to investigate how long cell phone companies retained message records, prosecutors said.
The couple also allegedly photographed hundreds of computer screens containing sensitive information from Google and Company 2 in an attempt to evade digital surveillance tools.
The night before the two traveled to Iran in December 2023, Samaneh allegedly took approximately 24 photos of Khosravi’s computer screen at work, which contained trade secrets, including the company’s Snapdragon SoC.
Prosecutors allege that while in Iran, devices linked to Samaneh accessed these photos, while Khosravi accessed additional confidential information of Company 2, including the Snapdragon SoC hardware architecture.
Prosecutors said in the indictment that the Snapdragon SoC’s trade secrets have independent economic value because they are not generally known and are not readily available to the two competitors who could benefit from their disclosure or use.
If convicted, each defendant faces up to 10 years in prison for each trade secret charge, up to 20 years in prison for obstruction of justice, and a fine of up to $250,000 for each charge.
