Former Intel employee sentenced, fined over $34,000 for stealing company secrets
In February this year, Gupta pleaded guilty in a federal court to stealing and sharing sensitive documents to benefit himself and Microsoft, his new employer
Varun Gupta, a former employee at Intel, was sentenced this week to two years of probation and ordered to pay a fine of $34,472 for stealing the company’s confidential documents and sharing them with his next employer, Microsoft, Oregon Live reported.
The sentence, which came on Tuesday, August 12, was seen to be significantly lighter than what prosecutors had sought. However, no custodial sentencing took place as the judge believed Gupta’s reputation had taken a beating.
The matter came to the fore when Intel officials found that Gupta, who was negotiating with them on behalf of Microsoft over a computer-processor deal, seemed to possess insider knowledge about the chipmaker’s operations.
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This triggered an immediate internal probe, which also involved Microsoft. It was revealed thereafter that Gupta, 45, had copied several sensitive documents to portable devices and uploaded some onto his laptop issued by the new employer.
Left Intel for Microsoft
He had worked for Intel for nearly a decade as a product marketing engineer and joined Microsoft in 2020. His former employer came to learn about his act of stealing documents that included competitor analyses, pricing strategies and other details.
Intel took legal action against Gupta in February 2021, and a confidential settlement happened some months later, with the accused paying the company around $40,000. Criminal charges persisted nonetheless, and in December 2024, he was formally charged with keeping stolen trade secrets.
In February this year, Gupta pleaded guilty in a federal court to stealing and sharing sensitive documents to benefit himself and his new employer, Microsoft, Oregon Live reported then. He flew to Oregon from France, where he is studying, to enter a plea before District Judge Amy Baggio in Portland.
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Oregon Live also quoted Assistant US Attorney William Narus saying Gupta copied thousands of confidential documents from his Intel computer onto a portable hard drive before exiting the company.
In a sentencing memo, Narus said the defendant not only took proprietary materials but also used them against his former employer. He demanded an eight-month prison sentence for Gupta to deter such behaviour in the sector in future.
Life after tech scandal
David Angeli, Gupta's lawyer, said he already had faced a lasting punishment which included losing a high-level position he worked towards over the years, settling a civil lawsuit with Intel for $40,000 and experiencing a damaged reputation which hindered his career in the tech industry.
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In a statement to the court, Gupta apologised to both Intel and Microsoft and the US government for the resources spent due to his "bad decision".
He is currently working to rebuild his life in France. After quitting the tech industry, he relocated to Europe with his family and is now studying vineyard management to work in the wine industry.