Ex-Intel engineer fined $34,472 for stealing confidential documents before joining Microsoft

A former Intel product marketing engineer, Varun Gupta, has been sentenced to two years of probation and a fine of $34,472 for stealing confidential documents before he left the company to join Microsoft. The ruling, handed down on Tuesday, was a significant reduction from the eight-month prison term that prosecutors had sought.

Gupta, who worked at Intel for nearly a decade, departed in January 2020. Just months later, Intel's internal investigation found that he had taken nearly 4,000 sensitive files, including pricing strategies and competitor analyses. The theft was discovered when Intel employees noticed Gupta, now at Microsoft, had an unusual amount of insider information during business negotiations.

The investigation, which Microsoft cooperated with, revealed that Gupta had copied the documents to portable devices and uploaded some to his new company-issued laptop. While Intel had already settled a civil lawsuit with Gupta for a confidential amount in 2021—reportedly around $40,000—he was later charged with a federal crime.

Assistant U.S. Attorney William Narus argued for jail time, but Gupta's lawyer, David Angeli, pointed out that his client had already faced significant financial and professional consequences. Ultimately, Judge Amy Baggio agreed with the defense, citing Gupta's ruined career and loss of reputation as key factors.

Now, with his tech career over, Gupta has moved to France to pursue a new path in the winemaking industry. The case highlights ongoing concerns about data security and employee trust within the tech sector.