A former director of Colombia’s central intelligence agency, under investigation in an eavesdropping and illegal surveillance scandal has been granted political asylum in Panama.
Maria del Pilar Hurtado a lawyer headed the Department of Administrative Security (DAS) in Colombia, from August 2007 2008. She is one of four former directors of the agency in charge of the Colombian intelligence services, being investigated for their roles in a scheme of eavesdropping and illegal surveillance of judges, opposition politicians, journalists and human rights workers. (more)
CA – A San Ramon, California, man is facing charges he stole valuable technology (The sugar pie.) from his former employer in hopes of building competitive location-aware products.
Zhiqiang “Michael” Zhang was arrested Tuesday, on charges that he stole trade secrets from Sirf Technology, a San Jose, California, maker of Global Positioning System chipsets, used by wireless location-aware programs in devices such as mobile phones and automobile navigation systems. A noted expert on location aware technology, Zhang had been a director of software development before resigning from Sirf in May 2009. He had been with the company for seven years.
According to prosecutors, Zhang then set up a company called Anywhere Logic “in order to develop and sell location-based services utilizing trade secrets stolen from Sirf.”
Zhang allegedly hired two Sirf engineers (The honey bunch.), Xiaodong Liang and Yanmin Li away from Sirf to work at Anywhere Logic. They have also been charged in the case, but are now living in China. (The same old song.) (more) (sing-a-long)
IL – Student journalists for Northwestern University’s Medill Innocence Project wore hidden recorders to secretly tape their interviews with witnesses as part of their investigation into an alleged wrongful conviction in the murder of a Harvey security guard, prosecutors told a Cook County judge today…
“I would put the parties on notice that a cell phone wire was used at least once by students with other witnesses,” Stack said.
In Illinois, it is illegal to record anyone without their knowledge or consent — without court authorization. (more)
Oracle still hasn’t succeeded in dragging SAP’s ex-chief executive into court to testify on what he knew about the subsidiary TomorrowNow’s “industrial espionage.”
On Monday, what Oracle got instead was an apology from the former CEO’s replacement: co-CEO Bill McDermott.
It was another tech-sector captain deflated in the circus of Oracle’s prosecution of its number-one business applications rival over money. (more)
Business espionage is costly. It is costly if you don’t catch it. It is costly if you do catch it and ride the legal hamster wheel. While an apology is gentlemanly, it doesn’t fill the loss.
Tip: Don’t let it happen in the first place. Get your ounce of prevention, here.
PA – A member of a private Poconos homeowners association board has been charged with wiretapping for allegedly using his cellphone to record a board meeting that included a speaker-phone call with a lawyer.
Joseph O’Lall, 39, of 7030 Whitetail Lane, Long Pond, recorded the April 13, 2010, Emerald Lakes Association board meeting without the knowledge of the board members or the lawyer, and then played back the recording for others, Pocono Mountain Regional police said this week.
O’Lall was charged with intercepting, using and disclosing wire, electronic and oral communications, and with criminal use of a communication facility, which was his cellphone. (
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