OpenAI Fires Engineer Over Hidden Device in Executive Room
OpenAI says it found a recording device plugged into a TV USB port and used its AI models to identify the employee who planted it, then referred the case to the FBI.
OpenAI said it discovered a sophisticated recording device hidden inside one of its offices, plugged into a TV's USB port in an executive conference room, and referred the matter to the FBI. The company said it used its own AI models to identify a specific employee who had planted the device a few days earlier.
The employee was fired. Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35-year-old OpenAI engineer, was charged with using or attempting to use a device to intercept oral communications, according to The San Francisco Standard, which reported the arrest. He was arrested Friday and has remained in custody since, appearing in federal court for the first time on Tuesday.
OpenAI said it has no indications the individual inappropriately accessed or exfiltrated model weights, source code, or customer data.
Earlier reporting on the device
The device was reportedly covered in toilet paper and installed on or around September 28th. That detail, first reported earlier, describes how the device was found rather than what prompted this week's arrest.
Quick answers
What was the OpenAI engineer charged with?
Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35-year-old OpenAI engineer, was charged with using or attempting to use a device to intercept oral communications.
Did the hidden device expose OpenAI customer data?
OpenAI said it has no indications the individual inappropriately accessed or exfiltrated model weights, source code, or customer data.
Where was the recording device found?
OpenAI said the device was hidden inside one of its offices, plugged into a TV's USB port in an executive conference room.