US charges 3 Silicon Valley engineers with sending Google trade secrets to Iran

Prosecutors say the Iranian nationals siphoned hundreds of files on Pixel smartphone processor security and accessed them during a 2023 trip to Iran

WASHINGTON — A US federal grand jury has charged three Silicon Valley engineers with allegedly stealing trade secrets from tech companies, including Google and transferring the information to Iran, the Justice Department said Thursday.

The three engineers, identified in court documents as Iranian nationals, are facing charges of conspiracy to commit trade secret theft, theft and attempted theft of trade secrets and obstruction of official proceedings.

Samaneh Ghandali, 41, her sister Soroor Ghandali, 32, and husband Mohammadjavad Khosravi, 40, were arrested Thursday and appeared in a federal district court in San Jose, California, the Justice Department said.

Both Samaneh and Soroor Ghandali had worked at Google before moving on to another company, while Khosravi worked at another unidentified company.

They are accused of stealing information from Google and other companies and passing them on “to work devices associated with each other’s employers, and to Iran,” according to a US Attorney’s Office statement.

All three lived in San Jose.

The announcement comes amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran, as US President Donald Trump is reportedly considering launching limited strikes on Iran to force it to accept his demands for a nuclear agreement, after US and Iranian negotiators held the second round of indirect nuclear talks in Geneva on Tuesday.

The US president has overseen a significant military buildup in the Middle East and repeatedly threatened to use it against Iran, first over its deadly crackdown on anti-regime protesters last month and more recently over its nuclear program.

US Navy Carrier Air Wing 8 aircraft fly in formation over the world’s largest aircraft carrier, Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), during Carrier Air Wing 8’s aerial change of command ceremony while underway in the Caribbean Sea, Jan. 19, 2026 (US Navy photo)

Prosecutors accused the trio of exploiting their positions at companies dealing with mobile computer processors to get access to sensitive data, including information related to data security, before transferring it to Iran.

It was not clear to whom in Iran the information was sent.

Their alleged actions “reflect a calculated betrayal of trust by individuals accused of stealing trade secrets from the very tech companies that employed them,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani said in a statement.

Officials said the Ghandalis stole “hundreds of files” that included Google trade secrets related to processors for Pixel smartphones and copied them to personal devices and third-party communications platforms.

Though the statement does not explicitly accuse the defendants of spying for the Iranian regime, the three are accused of obstructing the investigation into their actions.

Vehicles drive along a highway under a pedestrian bridge with a huge banner showing people waving the Iranian flag, in Tehran, Iran, on February 18, 2026. (ATTA KENARE / AFP)

The former engineers had attempted to conceal their actions, including by destroying exfiltrated files and other records from electronic devices, prosecutors alleged.

Google’s internal security systems detected Samaneh Ghandali’s activity, and Google revoked her access to company resources in August 2023, according to the Justice Department.

The agency said Ghandali and Khosravi traveled to Iran in December 2023, and a personal device associated with her accessed the sensitive documents during that time.

The trio was due to appear before a US Magistrate Judge on Friday.

If convicted, each faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of conspiracy to commit trade secret theft, as well as a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the obstruction charge.