Apple filed a lawsuit earlier this month against former software engineer Andrew Aude, alleging he leaked info about products he wanted to “kill” to a journalist saved in his phone as “Homeboy.” The secret projects included Apple’s new Journal app and the Vision Pro, first reported by MacRumors Thursday.
The former Apple software engineer shared over 1,400 Signal messages with “Homeboy,” Aude’s secret name for a Wall Street Journal reporter, according to filings. Apple alleges Aude leaked Apple’s journaling app in April 2023 to the Wall Street Journal because he wanted the project “killed.” Aaron Tilley published a WSJ article on the app at that time. Aude also shared “over 10,000 text messages” with a journalist from The Information.
This was all conducted on Aude’s company-issued iPhone. Aude is accused of breaking the company’s confidentiality agreement, and Apple seeks $25,000 in damages.
At one point, Aude referred to his leaking of information as a “necessary evil” and that he eagerly anticipated the “chaos” that would ensue. He hoped his actions would cause a stir before “Apple’s corporate people even woke up.” Apple alleges Aude was malicious and willful in what products he leaked.
Aude also leaked details about the Apple Vision Pro back in Oct. 2020, despite Apple. In Aug. 2021, the software engineer confirmed rumors about a design feature of an unreleased Apple device, noting that it was “one of Apple’s best secret features.”
Aude got caught in Nov. 2023, when a manager asked him if he’d been leaking information to journalists. He denied the accusation and then ran to the bathroom to delete much of his evidence, according to the court filing. A month later, Aude admitted that he leaked tons of information from Apple, and he was fired in December.
Apple claims that all of Aude’s leaks were purposeful and the software engineer still poses a threat to the company, even though he no longer works there. Apple says his history of leaking info and his deep knowledge of company secrets make him an ongoing security risk.
Apple is subject to a lot of leaks, partially because the company has so many secret projects. The company sued and imprisoned a former engineer for stealing Apple’s driverless car technology. In that case, the FBI was forced to get involved to stop a man from fleeing with trade secrets to China.
