Two former engineers from Google and the husband of one of them have been indicted in the United States for allegedly stealing sensitive trade secrets from major technology firms and transferring the information to unauthorized destinations, including Iran.
The defendants, Samaneh Ghandali, 41, her husband Mohammadjavad Khosravi, also known as Mohammad Khosravi, 40, and her sister Soroor Ghandali, 32, all Iranian nationals residing in San Jose, California, were arrested and appeared before a federal district court.
Allegations by the U.S. Department of Justice
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the three individuals conspired to commit trade secret theft, carried out theft and attempted theft of proprietary information, and obstructed justice.
The Ghandali sisters previously worked at Google before moving to another unnamed technology firm referred to as Company 3. Khosravi was employed at a separate organization identified as Company 2. All three were working in roles related to mobile computer processors.
Although the Justice Department did not publicly disclose the names of Company 2 and Company 3, reports indicate that Soroor Ghandali had interned at Google before later joining Intel, while Khosravi worked at Qualcomm as an ASIC design engineer.
Exfiltration of Processor and Cryptography Secrets
Prosecutors allege that the defendants used their employment positions to access confidential and sensitive data, including trade secrets related to processor security, cryptography, and advanced mobile computing technologies.
The stolen information reportedly included proprietary details associated with Google’s Tensor processor used in Pixel smartphones. Authorities claim that hundreds of sensitive files were transferred to third-party communication platforms and shared in private channels named after the defendants.
The exfiltrated materials were allegedly copied onto personal devices and even onto work devices associated with each other’s employers. Some of the data was later accessed from Iran.
Obstruction and Concealment Efforts
The indictment outlines multiple attempts to conceal the alleged theft. Prosecutors state that the defendants:
- Submitted signed affidavits denying any unauthorized sharing of confidential data
- Deleted transferred files from electronic devices
- Conducted online searches about deleting communications and retention periods for cellular messages
- Manually photographed sensitive documents displayed on computer screens rather than transferring them digitally
In one instance, Samaneh Ghandali allegedly photographed about 24 images of Khosravi’s work computer screen containing trade secrets shortly before the couple traveled to Iran in December 2023. These images were later accessed from a personal device while in Iran.
Google reportedly detected suspicious activity through internal security systems in August 2023 and revoked Samaneh Ghandali’s access to company resources. The company then alerted law enforcement authorities.
Potential Legal Consequences
If convicted, each defendant faces:
- Up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine per count for trade secret theft
- Up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for obstruction of justice
The case follows another recent conviction involving former Google engineer Linwei Ding, who was found guilty of stealing confidential documents to support a startup in China.
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