A private researcher who took rocket technology developed in South Korea without permission and founded a rival company was given a suspended sentence - South Korean media

A researcher at a private company who illegally took confidential documents related to the Nuri rocket, which was developed domestically in South Korea, and started a rival company has been given a suspended sentence.
According to the legal community, the Daejeon District Court sentenced Defendant A, who was indicted on charges of leaking trade secrets, breach of trust, and infringement of information and communications networks, to two years in prison with three years of probation.
Defendants B and C, who took technical information owned by the company at the request of Defendant A and moved to a rival company, were sentenced to one year in prison with two years of probation and eight months in prison with two years of probation, respectively.
A fine of 50 million won (approximately 5.12 million yen) was imposed on the companies that the defendants established or transferred to. Defendant A established a private company, D Co., in Yoo Sun-gu, Daejeon City.
After he left the company, he was indicted on suspicion of founding a rival company to Company D with the support of another company, and then urging his colleagues to change jobs.
Defendant B and others transferred to a rival company and obtained the measuring instruments, measurement data, development and production data, etc. owned by Company D.
D was suspected of taking out, without permission, proprietary technology and cost calculation documents for technology related to the manufacturing industry. D was a company that was involved in the analysis of the state and extent of deformation of structures and machines such as aerospace equipment when subjected to external forces.
The company has its own measurement and analysis technology, and has received orders for and delivered rocket deformation rate sensors developed domestically in South Korea.
While employed by Company D, Defendant A was in charge of contracts for measuring parts and preparing reports.
He was in charge of all wind power generator-related work and retired in July 2020. After that, Defendant B and three others who had been offered job transfers by Defendant A moved to rival companies by April 2021.
It was discovered that Defendants B and C were in charge of tasks at Company D, such as installing structural test sensors for rocket parts and measuring water pressure in fuel tanks.
However, the investigation revealed that the defendants continued to view their former colleagues' emails and illegally took out documents even after they left D Company.
The documents that were taken included a report on rocket-related parts developed in South Korea, a report on a prototype sensor structure used in rocket combustion tests, resistance data, and installation methods.
The court said, "The defendants leaked confidential information that the company had spent a lot of time and money developing without authorization, and caused financial damage to the company.
The court stated, "The charges are serious as they threaten market order and discourage enthusiasm for new research and development."