Four current and former Samsung employees are accused of stealing semiconductor technology from the company. They reportedly stole valuable information about semiconductor technologies from the Korean company and passed it on to competitors.
This relates to two separate theft cases. The first case involves a former employee taking photos of confidential information related to Samsung's chip manufacturing technology. They were still working with the Korean company when the theft occurred. The person was in the process of transferring his job to Intel and was working from home at the time. They took pictures of a computer file containing important semiconductor information and shared the pictures with Intel once they joined the US chip maker.
We first heard reports of Samsung investigating the issue in March of this year. Korean media reported that the person may have taken hundreds of photos containing the wafer-making secrets of advanced semiconductors, including 3-nm and 4-nm wafers. While there was no evidence that the information was being shared with competitors at the time, the latest report confirms that the former employee handed over the images to Intel. The Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office accused them of violating South Korea's Prevention of Unfair Competition and Industrial Technology Protection Act.
Three other Samsung employees have been accused of stealing semiconductor technology
The other case involves a former Samsung employee who obtained confidential information from current employees. The person was in the semiconductor business and received an operating manual and diagram for the ultrapure water system from two of their former colleagues at Samsung Engineering. They may also have obtained additional background information. The former employee reportedly leaked the information to a Chinese semiconductor consulting firm.
This happened in August 2018 when the person was looking for a new job in this Chinese company. After they got the job, the ex-Samsung employee used the stolen materials and information to apply for the ultrapure water system, Yonhap reports. The Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office charged all three people involved in the case with the same violations. The four current and former Samsung employees have been sent to physical custody until further court proceedings.
The ultrapure water system purifies the water used for cleaning in the semiconductor manufacturing process. Removes ions, organic matter and microbes from water. Samsung has reportedly invested more than 30 billion KRW (about $21.2 million) each year since 2006 to develop the ultrapure water system.