A San Ramon, California, man is facing charges he stole valuable technology from his former employer in hopes of building competitive location-aware products. A San Ramon, California, man is facing charges he stole valuable technology 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, 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. Zhang was indicted by a grand jury on Nov. 10, but the indictment was sealed until he was arrested. He could face a 10 year sentence if convicted of the charges. He was released on a US$500,000 bond after making his first court appearance at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in San Jose, Tuesday. Sirf was acquired by the U.K.’s Cambridge Silicon Radio, a maker of Bluetooth and wireless chipsets, in 2009.Robert McMillan covers computer security and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Robert on Twitter at @bobmcmillan. Robert’s e-mail address is robert_mcmillan@idg.com Related content feature Top cybersecurity M&A deals for 2023 Fears of recession, rising interest rates, mass tech layoffs, and conservative spending trends are likely to make dealmakers cautious, but an ever-increasing need to defend against bigger and faster attacks will likely keep M&A activity steady in By CSO Staff Sep 22, 2023 24 mins Mergers and Acquisitions Mergers and Acquisitions Mergers and Acquisitions brandpost Unmasking ransomware threat clusters: Why it matters to defenders Similar patterns of behavior among ransomware treat groups can help security teams better understand and prepare for attacks By Joan Goodchild Sep 21, 2023 3 mins Cybercrime news analysis China’s offensive cyber operations support “soft power” agenda in Africa Researchers track Chinese cyber espionage intrusions targeting African industrial sectors. By Michael Hill Sep 21, 2023 5 mins Advanced Persistent Threats Cyberattacks Critical Infrastructure brandpost Proactive OT security requires visibility + prevention You cannot protect your operation by simply watching and waiting. It is essential to have a defense-in-depth approach. By Austen Byers Sep 21, 2023 4 mins Security Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe