Image: © hanohiki/Stock.adobe.com
The tech giant claims Andrew Aude repeatedly leaked confidential details about upcoming products so he could ‘kill’ off the ones he took issue with.
Apple is suing a former company engineer for allegedly leaking confidential information about its products.
The tech giant claims Andrew Aude signed an Intellectual Property Agreement where he agreed not share confidential information to non-Apple employees, but that he “repeatedly flouted his promise”.
The lawsuit claims Aude shared information about “Apple’s business practices, internal policies and products – including those not yet released” to employees of other companies and “at least three national journalists”.
“Aude’s leaks were no accident,” Apple claims in the lawsuit. “In connection with one leak, Mr Aude admitted that he violated his obligations to Apple so he could ‘kill’ products and features with which he took issue.
“As his frequent Google searches, article shares and screenshots saved to his Apple-issued work iPhone reveal, vanity and personal enjoyment of the media’s attention also played a significant role in his malfeasance.”
Apple claims Aude leaked information for five years, including to journalists at The Information and The Wall Street Journal. Some of the products Aude allegedly leaked details about include Apple’s Journal app and the development of the Vision Pro VR headset.
The company claims it learned about Aude’s alleged activities in 2023 and that the employee managed to permanently delete “significant amounts of evidence” from his Apple-issued work iPhone.
“Before filing this lawsuit, Apple reached out to Mr Aude to potentially resolve this matter,” the company claims. “Apple contacted Mr Aude to understand the full scope of his leaks and ask for his full cooperation in resolving this matter without litigation. Mr Aude, however, did not commit to cooperating.”
Meanwhile, Apple is in the middle of its own potential legal trouble, as the European Commission has launched investigations into the company over concerns it is not complying with the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
The Commission is concerned that various practices by Apple, Alphabet and Meta breach DMA rules, such as Apple and Alphabet’s “steering rules” and Meta’s “pay or consent” subscription model.
Find out how emerging tech trends are transforming tomorrow with our new podcast, Future Human: The Series. Listen now on Spotify, on Apple or wherever you get your podcasts.
