Three Iranian Engineers Charged with Theft of Trade Secrets
Federal prosecutors have indicted three Iranian engineers in Silicon Valley for allegedly stealing sensitive information from Google and other major tech firms, while also sending that data to Iran.
The individuals charged are Samane Gandari, 41, her sister Sorol Gandari, 32, and Mohammad Javad Khosravi, 40. They were arrested on Thursday and made their initial court appearances that same day. All three live in San Jose and are confirmed Iranian nationals. Sorol Gandari is in the U.S. on a student visa, while Samaneh has since become a naturalized citizen. Khosravi, married to Samaneh, is a legal permanent resident. Notably, he previously served in the Iranian military, according to prosecutors.
The charges from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California include conspiracy to commit trade secret theft, actual theft of trade secrets, and obstruction of justice. Prosecutors claim that the trio exploited their roles at major tech companies, particularly those focused on mobile processors, to steal hundreds of classified materials regarding processor security and encryption.
Samaneh and Sorol previously worked at Google before transitioning to another unnamed company, referred to as Company 3 in court filings. Khosravi was employed at Company 2, which develops “system-on-a-chip” platforms used in smartphones and other mobile technology.
System-on-chip technology—often seen as a type of semiconductor—combines several components like graphics processors and memory into a single, efficient unit. Common examples include Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors in many high-end Android devices and Apple’s A-series chips found in iPhones.
Google identified the alleged theft through routine security measures and informed law enforcement shortly after. Google spokesperson Jose Castañeda stated, “We have enhanced our security protocols to safeguard sensitive information and promptly alerted authorities upon discovering the incident.”
The tech giant employs various strategies to protect its trade secrets, such as limiting employee access to sensitive data, using two-factor authentication for work accounts, and keeping logs of file transfers to external platforms.
The indictment suggests the defendants communicated the stolen files via third-party platforms using channels named after their first names. They reportedly copied the data onto personal devices and their work devices before allegedly transmitting it to Iran.
“The method used by the defendants to transmit sensitive data involved deliberate actions to avoid detection and hide their identities,” said FBI Special Agent Sanjay Virmani.
Prosecutors contend that the defendants attempted to cover their tracks after google’s system flagged suspicious activity from Samane Gandari, leading to her access being revoked in August 2023. During this time, she allegedly signed a false affidavit claiming she had not shared confidential information externally. Simultaneously, personal laptops associated with Samaneh and Khosravi were reportedly exploring ways to erase communications and investigate how long mobile carriers retain message records.
The couple also is alleged to have photographed hundreds of sensitive screens from Google and Company 2, purportedly to evade digital surveillance. Before Khosravi’s trip to Iran in December 2023, Samaneh allegedly took about 24 photos of Khosravi’s work screen that displayed trade secrets related to Company 2’s Snapdragon products.
Upon their arrival in Iran, devices tied to Samaneh reportedly accessed these images, while Khosravi looked into additional confidential information regarding Company 2.
If found guilty on all counts, each defendant could face up to 10 years of imprisonment for each trade secret charge and up to 20 years for obstruction of justice. Moreover, fines for each offense could reach $250,000.
