Leaking information like company information, software, and so on can land a person in pretty hot water. If you might recall it was about a couple of years ago when copies of Windows 8 began making their way around the internet? It was discovered that a Microsoft employee by the name of Alex Kibkalo was the one responsible for those leaks.
After a year’s worth of investigation, Kibkalo was recently arrested for stealing Windows-related trade secrets. Apparently Kibkalo, a senior architect at Microsoft, was motivated to leak the Windows 8 files, which were under a strict NDA at that time, due to a poor performance review that he was given during his tenure at the company.
According to the reports, not only was Windows 8 leaked, but he also leaked Windows 7 files and the Microsoft Activation Server Software Development Kit which when reverse engineered, could allow hackers to crack the Activation process within Windows, meaning that pirated copies of Windows 7 could continue to function without the nagging presence of popup messages warning users about their copy of Windows.
Kibkalo also had an “accomplice”, an anonymous French blogger who helped to spread the leaked files around. It was only after the French blogger attempted to contact another Microsoft employee did Microsoft discover Kibkalo was the one behind the leaks. He is expected to appear in a US district court today, although his fate remains unknown for now.