IT Engineer Hacks Employer to Find Out If He Will Be Fired
Zhengquan Zhang, a former employee of KCG Holdings, Inc., has been arrested for installing malware on his employer’s servers in order to steal information. The information he stole was related to whether or not he would be fired.
Zhang was in charge of managing KCG’s source code and trading algorithms. He installed malware and was caught when another employee notices suspicious activity. In the end, Zhang had stolen pieces of KCG’s proprietary source code for its trading platform and algorithms.
After being found out, Zhang admitted to another employee that he had placed the malware, and also accessed several email accounts of different employees. He admitted that he had done so because he heard of a potential acquisition and feared he would lose his job. So he hacked other employees looking for more information about the company’s plans.
Zhang is charged with theft of trade secrets, with a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
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