There are several known cases of industrial espionage that have occurred in recent decades. Here is a brief description of each:
Spying on Gillette (1997)
In 1997, one of the first known cases of industrial espionage in the shaving industry occurred. Stephen L. Davis, who worked for Wright Industries Inc., which Gillette had contracted to develop equipment for a new shaving system, was the key figure in the case. Davis, 47, stole confidential data about Gillette's new shaving system.
In February and March 1997, he gave technical drawings to Gillette's competitors, such as Warner-Lambert Co., BIC, and American Safety Razor Co., in an effort to give them access to Gillette's designs. The information was transmitted via fax and e-mail. Davis was also charged with wire fraud.
Davis pleaded guilty and truemoney data package was sentenced to 15 years in prison and significant fines. The case became an example of how companies can face serious consequences for industrial espionage.
Espionage against Kodak (1990s)
In the 1990s, Eastman Kodak faced internal industrial espionage. One of the company's former employees, Harold Worden, who had worked at Kodak for more than 30 years, stole a significant number of confidential documents when he left the company in 1992.
Worden failed to return the confidential materials and instead attempted to sell them to Kodak's competitors in order to start his own consulting firm. Following a criminal investigation, Worden pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison and fined more than $50,000.
Espionage against Avery Dennison (1990s)
Between 1989 and 1997, Taiwanese businessman Teng Hong Lee and his company Four Pillars were involved in industrial espionage against Avery Dennison, one of the largest adhesive manufacturers in the United States. Its products were used to make postage stamps and other products.
Examples of Industrial Espionage
Lee and his company were charged with stealing Avery's proprietary and confidential data related to formulations for pressure-sensitive adhesive products and using the information for their own gain.
As a result, the defendants were ordered to pay $40 million in damages to Avery Dennison. The case was one of the first to be brought under the Economic Espionage Act of 1996, which was created to protect American companies from intellectual property theft.
Espionage against IBM (1980s)
In the 1980s, IBM faced industrial espionage from Hitachi and two of its employees. Hitachi was accused of conspiring to steal confidential computer information from IBM and transfer it to Japan.
Two employees, Kenji Hayashi and Isao Onishi, pleaded guilty and were fined and given suspended sentences. IBM also won a case against Hitachi, and