Appeals court frees programmer convicted of stealing employer’s computer code
2nd Circuit limits prosecutors use of the Economic Espionage Act of 1996
June 30, 2012 at 08:00 PM
5 minute read
In December 2010, a federal district court jury in New York convicted former Goldman Sachs computer programmer Sergey Aleynikov of stealing a huge portion of the Wall Street bank's proprietary, high-frequency trading (HFT) software code to aid his new employer. It sentenced him to eight years in prison. Federal prosecutors heralded the verdict as an example of the government's crackdown on employees who steal valuable company information in digital form.
But on Feb. 16, in an unusual move, a 2nd Circuit three-judge panel reversed the judgment just hours after oral arguments and ordered the defendant released. On April 11, the 2nd Circuit released its full opinion in U.S. v. Aleynikov.
Aleynikov acknowledged that he violated Goldman's confidentiality policy, but contended he had not committed a crime. In agreeing with that, the 2nd Circuit limited prosecutors' use of the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 (EEA), which makes it a crime to steal trade secrets, and the National Stolen Property Act (NSPA), which bars the transportation of tangible stolen material property across state lines.
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