US federal prosecutors charged three people last night with stealing confidential information from Coca-Cola and trying to sell it to rival PepsiCo.
The three, who include an executive administrative assistant at Coke, were charged with wire fraud along with stealing and selling trade secrets. Federal prosecutors in Atlanta say the trio sought to sell the information, including a sample of a secret new drink, in deals worth as much as $1.5 million.
Federal prosecutors said Coke learned of the theft from Pepsi, which provided the company with a letter from an individual claiming to be a high-level Coca-Cola employee offering "very detailed and confidential information".
A Pepsi spokesman said: "We just did what any responsible company would do. Competition can be fierce, but it also needs to be fair."
On hearing from Pepsi, Coke alerted the FBI, which began an undercover operation.
Neville Isdell, chairman and chief executive of Coke, the world's largest soft drink company, said he has ordered a review of Coke's information protection policies.
He also expressed his "sincere appreciation" to PepsiCo, the second-ranked soft drink maker, for alerting Coke about this security breach.
A Coke spokesman said the closely guarded formula of Coca-Cola Classic was safe.