Critical Technology Theft 'Severe'... Red Alert for Corporate Security Including Samsung Electronics (Comprehensive Report 2)

Confidential Semiconductor Data Leak Incident...Massive Access to Confidential Materials on Foundry Sector
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Large Volume of Data and Sophisticated Methods Raise Concerns of External Leakage

Samsung Electronics achieved a record high performance with annual sales exceeding 279 trillion won. Samsung Electronics announced on the 7th that, based on its preliminary consolidated results for last year, sales reached 279.04 trillion won, and operating profit was 51.57 trillion won. The photo shows the Samsung Electronics Seocho building. Photo by Mun Honam munonam@

There has been an attempt to leak Samsung Electronics' core semiconductor technology. The technology in question is known to be in the semiconductor foundry sector, where global competition is intensifying. Recently, domestic companies have been defenselessly suffering without clear countermeasures, raising urgent calls for the establishment of strong response measures.

According to multiple sources on the 23rd, Samsung Electronics has detected and is investigating an employee who attempted to leak confidential semiconductor materials from the foundry division. A source stated, "The situation was detected within a team in the foundry division," adding, "All members of the department, including the individual involved, are under investigation." A Samsung Electronics official confirmed, "It is true that an investigation is underway due to a violation related to information security."

The incident began when employee A accessed a large number of the company's confidential semiconductor files uploaded on the company's secure server. Samsung Electronics suspected the employee after records showed that they viewed hundreds of semiconductor-related files in a single day and launched an investigation. The volume of files accessed was deemed too large to be considered routine work.

It is reported that employee A photographed the accessed files using a mobile phone. Since Samsung Electronics' Remote Business System (RBS) does not allow screen captures, the employee displayed the files on the monitor and took pictures with a camera.

This case is considered an abuse of Samsung Electronics' implementation of remote work for employee safety following the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, Samsung expanded the use of RBS, which was previously used only by some employees for external work, to include those working remotely after the pandemic. RBS is a system that allows Samsung Electronics employees to access the company's work network from home or while on the move using smartphones or PCs. The employee was able to access confidential company materials externally through this system.

How far has the leak gone... What are the future repercussions?

The scope and importance of the materials accessed by the employee are currently under investigation. However, it is reported that there is no confirmation yet on whether the information has been leaked to other semiconductor companies.

Within Samsung, concerns have been raised due to the large volume of materials and the sophisticated methods used. There is also speculation that collusion with semiconductor companies from countries such as China cannot be ruled out. Another source stated, "If there is evidence of leakage to foreign countries or other companies, formal legal action including reporting to investigative authorities may follow, rather than light punishment."

If the materials are leaked to other semiconductor companies, the damage to Samsung Electronics could be significant. As the company is putting all efforts into becoming the number one system semiconductor company by 2030, technology leaks in the foundry sector would be extremely problematic for Samsung Electronics. A semiconductor industry insider expressed concern, saying, "If information related to advanced fine processes such as 5-nanometer or below has been leaked, the problem could become even more serious." Globally, only Samsung Electronics and TSMC mass-produce 5-nanometer semiconductors.

Meanwhile, it cannot be ruled out that the leaked information extends beyond the foundry sector to other semiconductor technologies. In the DX (Device Experience) division, access to materials from other departments is fundamentally blocked, but in the DS division, employees with higher authority or involvement in many projects are known to have greater access. This means the importance and volume of leaked materials may vary depending on employee A's rank and assigned tasks.

Era of technological hegemony competition... Technology leaks that determine corporate survival

As seen in Samsung Electronics' recent attempted leak case, despite government efforts to nurture national strategic technologies and prevent technology leaks, the theft of confidential information between nations and companies is severe. As governments worldwide intensify support for core technology development and compete fiercely for talent, opportunities for theft and leakage of confidential information have also increased.

According to the National Police Agency and related industries, there were 45 cases of domestic industrial technology leaks over the past five years (2017?2021). Following the 2019 industrial technology leak eradication measures and the introduction of stronger penalties for leaks, the number of cases dropped to single digits with 6 and 7 cases in 2019 and 2020 respectively, but rose again to 10 cases last year. When expanding the types of leaked technology to include trade secrets beyond industrial technology, the situation is even more serious. During the same period, the total number of leak incidents and the scale of damage reached 593 cases and 22 trillion won.

The government is responding by strengthening related laws, but progress is slow. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the government currently designates 73 fields across 12 categories as national core technologies essential for national competitiveness. National core technologies refer to industrial technologies designated under Article 9 of the 'Act on the Prevention and Protection of Industrial Technology Leakage,' which have high technical and economic value in domestic and international markets or high growth potential in related industries, and whose leakage abroad could seriously threaten national security and economic development.

The government has belatedly decided at the end of last year to additionally designate major domestic technologies with global competitiveness in semiconductors, displays, and batteries as national core technologies and is currently working on related tasks. However, it has been confirmed that the semiconductor sector was largely excluded from the additional national core technologies to be designated by the first half of this year. With the upcoming enforcement of the 'Special Measures Act on Strengthening and Protecting National Advanced Strategic Industry Competitiveness' scheduled for August, additional designation of semiconductor national core technologies is expected only after the law takes effect. Also known as the Semiconductor Special Act, the subordinate legislation draft was publicly announced for comment until May 2 and is now in the early stages of gathering opinions.

Globally, severe penalties for technology leaks... What about South Korea?

Meanwhile, countries around the world are taking swift actions to strengthen penalties for leaks of core technologies, including semiconductors. Japan is accelerating the enactment of the Economic Security Promotion Act, which punishes researchers who leak advanced technologies with imprisonment of up to two years. In the face of serious technology theft between countries, the government intends to intervene directly to prevent the leakage of technology and information.

Taiwan, home to the world's number one semiconductor foundry company, also passed an amendment to the National Security Act last month, establishing the crime of economic espionage involving national core critical technologies and strengthening penalties. This measure was taken in response to ongoing technology leaks and talent poaching in countries like China, which is focusing on developing its semiconductor industry. In Taiwan, leaking national core critical technologies is punishable by 5 to 12 years imprisonment and fines up to 100 million New Taiwan dollars (approximately 4.3 billion KRW). Taiwan also tightly manages national core technologies by imposing strict government screening procedures when its advanced technology personnel seek employment in China.

International hacker groups are also aggressively stealing confidential information, making government-level responses urgent. The international hacker group Lapsus, which previously stole confidential data from semiconductor companies Nvidia and Samsung Electronics, recently announced that it had obtained internal information from LG Electronics, Microsoft, and others, causing concern among companies. Although Lapsus claims no political motives behind the hacking, the fact that even highly secure technology companies have had information leaked due to hacker attacks raises fears that such incidents could be exploited in the ongoing confidential information theft battles between nations and corporations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.