Apple sues own employee, here’s what happened in Apple’s orchard

Apple sues its software engineer: Former Apple iOS software engineer, Aude, who joined the company in 2016, is facing a lawsuit for allegedly leaking sensitive information spanning over five years. According to the complaint filed by the iPhone maker, Aude, entrusted with insider knowledge on numerous critical projects, purportedly used his Apple-issued work iPhone to disclose details about several unreleased products and corporate strategies.

Among the disclosed information are features of the then-unannounced Journal app and Vision Pro headset, development policies, regulatory compliance strategies, employee headcounts, and more. One instance cited in the lawsuit involves Aude allegedly sharing finalised features of the iPhone's Journal app with a journalist from Wall Street Journal, which eventually led to a published report.

Used Signal Messenger for encrypted messaging 

Aude purportedly communicated with journalists using the encrypted messaging app Signal, exchanging thousands of messages. Signal app is highly secure, employing end-to-end encryption for messages, calls, and video chats. It's open-source and does not include any ads or tracking. 

The lawsuit also accuses Aude of divulging Apple's confidential information, including details on unannounced products and hardware, to non-Apple individuals.

Apple claims that Aude admitted to leaking information intentionally to undermine certain products and features. The company asserts that Aude's actions led to at least five news articles disclosing confidential information, impacting Apple's ability to surprise customers with new products.

Termination and confession in December

Apple became aware of Aude's alleged misconduct in late 2023 and terminated his employment in December of that year. Despite initial denials during interviews, Aude reportedly confessed to some disclosures but is accused of attempting to destroy evidence.

Efforts to resolve the matter out of court were reportedly thwarted by Aude's lack of cooperation, including his refusal to divest from restricted Apple stock units. Apple contends that Aude remains a threat due to his history of unauthorised disclosures and ongoing relationships with individuals at other tech companies and journalists.

The lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages, with the exact amount to be determined at trial, along with other legal remedies.