Intel's chief executive knew about the security issues -- and profited big time

Intel knew about the problem as early as November ■ Brian Krisnitz had a profit of $ 24 million from a combination of selling some of his stakes and exercising options

Intel CEO Brian Krznicz sold a large share of the company's shares months after Google informed the chip maker of a major security problem in its flagship processors before it was publicized.

Google told Intel about the flaw in June, an Intel representative told Business Insider. This means that Intel was aware of the problem before Krznicz sold his holdings in the company. The company's chief executive posted a profit of $ 24 million on November 29, by combining the sale of the shares he held and the exercise of options

The stock sale was puzzling when it was exposed, mainly because it was left Krisnitz with a mere $ 250 million of Intel shares - the minimum amount of shares the company requires to keep under its contract.

A representative of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) declined to comment on whether the authority was investigating the sale.

Intel said the sale was planned in advance - but it was realized months after the company became aware of the chip malfunction. An Intel representative said in a statement that the sale of Kerznitz had nothing to do with the security problem, adding that it was part of a standard plan for the sale of shares.

In order to avoid insider trading charges, corporate executives often draw up plans in which a portion of the shares they own is automatically sold at a predetermined date - a procedure known as Rule 10b5-1 C. According to the SEC, on November 29 - 245,743 shares held directly and 644,135 shares as a result of the exercise of the options - were held in such a program.

"Brian's sale is unconnected, and he continues to hold shares according to the company's guidelines," claimed an Intel representative.

However, Karznich implemented his plan only on October 30, according to the SEC. Intel's representative claimed that the decision to implement the plan is "unrelated" to information he received about the security problem.