Corporate Recruiter Convicted of Computer Fraud and Trade Secret Theft By San Francisco Jury

A California federal jury convicted a San Francisco executive recruiter this week for violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”) and theft of trade secrets from his former employer. The conviction represents a significant landmark in the closely watched eight-year case that deepened a federal circuit court split concerning the appropriate scope of the CFAA.

The case involves executive recruiter and former employee David Nosal, who allegedly conspired with then-current employees at his former employer, Korn/Ferry, to illegally access and download valuable candidate lists and other trade secret information from Korn/Ferry’s “Searcher” database. Nosal’s accomplices were able to access the computer system through a password provided to them by Nosal after he borrowed the password from a current Korn/Ferry employee. Nosal allegedly used this newly acquired information to start a competing business, Nosal Partners.

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