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Bengaluru techie booked for stealing IT firm’s source code worth Rs 87 crore
According to the Bengaluru police, the accused had been employed with the company since 2020.
According to the police, the group recruited bank account holders via Instagram and Telegram by offering commissions and job opportunities. (File Photo)
The Whitefield Cyber police station in Bengaluru has booked a senior employee of an IT company for allegedly stealing the company’s proprietary software source code valued at €8 million (approximately Rs 87 crore) and transferring it to his personal email account without authorisation. A notice has also been issued to the accused, the police said on Wednesday.
According to the police, the accused, identified as Ashtosh Nigam, was working as a senior manager– research scientist and had been employed with the company since February 1, 2020. The offence allegedly took place on October 11, 2025, when Nigam is said to have accessed without authorisation and exfiltrated confidential source code and sensitive software data belonging to the company.
The incident came to light during an internal audit, when company officials detected suspicious data transfers. The employee was confronted and, during an internal inquiry, admitted to the unauthorised transfer of the source code, the police said, adding that the admission was video-recorded by the company.
Following the inquiry, the company terminated his services on December 3, 2025. In a police complaint, the company stated that the data theft had caused a severe business impact and compromised its intellectual property rights.
Based on the complaint, filed on January 23, the police registered a case under sections 65 (tampering with computer source documents), 66 (computer-related offences), 66(C) (identity theft), and 66(D) (cheating by personation) of the Information Technology Act.
“Notices have been issued to both the company and the accused to produce documentary evidence. While it is confirmed that the employee had access to the source code, the extent of its misuse is yet to be determined,” a police official said.
Further investigation is underway.
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