A former Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) executive suspected of leaking technical secrets did not have access to the company’s core technology, National Development Council (NDC) Minister Yeh Chun-hsien (葉俊顯) said yesterday.
Yeh, who also serves on TSMC’s board, made the remarks after local media reported that Lo Wei-jen (羅唯仁) allegedly took confidential information on TSMC’s 2-nanometer, A16 and A14 processes before retiring in July and joining Intel last month.
TSMC typically reassigns employees one to two years before retirement to other divisions to prevent access to trade secrets, Yeh said.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Lo would not have had access to the company’s core technology, as he had been reassigned more than one year ago, he added.
Regarding concerns over potential leaks, Yeh said confidence in TSMC remains strong and the company would not be affected by a single individual.
Speaking to reporters before a Legislative Yuan hearing yesterday morning, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said that, as semiconductors are a core technology for Taiwan’s industrial development, they are now treated as matters of national security.
Even though trade secret violations normally require a company complaint to prosecute, those involving national security are subject to public prosecution, Kung said, adding that this is why the High Prosecutors’ Office has launched an investigation into the case.
Regarding the impact on the industry, Kung said that Taiwan’s semiconductor ecosystem is solid and well-established.
Whether it could be disrupted because someone took certain information remains to be seen, but for now, it does not appear the ecosystem would be easily affected, he added.
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