Former employee of Ford accused of industrial espionage

Several online media outlets report that a man was arrested in Chicago upon entering the United States, for allegedly accessing a protected computer without authorization and stealing secret commercial information from Ford Motor Company.

Terrence Berg, the Federal Prosecutor for the Eastern District of Michigan, announced yesterday that Xiang Dong Yu, 47 years old (originally from Beijing, China), worked as an engineer for the American company from 1997 until 2007, when his contract was terminated.

In December 2006 Yu accepted an important position at Ford’s Chinese subsidiary, and according to the charges, on the eve of his departure the engineer copied 4,000 documents from Ford onto an external hard drive, including some sensitive designs for the manufacturer.

The FBI indicated that among the most important documents are designs for the engine/transmission mounting subsystem, electrical distribution system, power supply, and generic chassis modules.

It is also mentioned that Yu used the information obtained to block negotiations with a Chinese manufacturer last year, whose name is being kept confidential.

According to the prosecutor’s statements:

Technology protection gives companies competitive advantages, which is why the strict enforcement of federal laws that preserve trade secrets is a priority.

Both employees and employers should be aware that trade secret theft is a serious federal crime, which is severely punished.

The Prosecutor’s Office reported that attempted theft or misappropriation of trade secrets carries a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine of $250,000, while unauthorized access to a protected computer carries a maximum penalty of five years and a fine of $250,000.

We will have to wait until October 20 for the preliminary results of the first hearing to which the Chinese engineer will be subjected.

Via | Carscoop