SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean police have arrested 77 people involved in 35 cases of suspected industrial espionage discovered during a recent nationwide investigation, Yonhap news agency reported on Sunday.
Most cases only involved domestic companies, although eight were related to the leak of technology secrets to China or other countries, Yonhap quoted the National Police Agency as saying.
The agency could not immediately be reached for comment.
The number of international cases was double that of a similar probe conducted one year ago, Yonhap said, citing police data.
One suspect was arrested for leaking confidential corporate information upon moving from a South Korean employer to a Chinese company, which promised hundreds of millions of won (hundreds of thousands of dollars) to cover housing, schooling and living expenses in return for the information, the report said.
($1 = 1,287.3200 won)
(Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Editing by Edmund Klamann)