Huangpu District People's Court has sentenced two former hospital employees each to one year in jail for selling medication usage data to pharmaceutical companies, local media reported Saturday.

The defendants were a pharmacist surnamed Wang and a buyer surnamed Le from the equipment department of Ruijin Hospital in Huangpu district, according to a news report on Shanghai Television Station.

Wang and Le had been working together since 2011 to steal patient usage data for 46 drugs, the report said. The two sent the stolen information via e-mail to a pharmaceutical sales representative. They made more than 11,000 yuan ($1,819) selling the information.

Pharmaceutical sales representative often use such information to pay kickbacks to doctors for prescribing specific drugs to their patients, which is against the law.

The hospital discovered the thefts when Wang and Le attempted to download the information over the hospital's Wi-Fi network.

The two were charged with illegally accessing computer information system data. According to China's Criminal Law, the charge carries a maximum prison sentence of seven years.