In brief
Prosecutors say Abdulrahman Alfozan, a former OpenAI engineer, planted a hidden audio recorder in a conference room on 30 September. The device, wrapped in toilet paper, was found inside a TV’s USB port and was encrypted. OpenAI notified the FBI, which used its own AI tools to trace the intrusion back to Alfozan. He was fired, entered court next Tuesday and could face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Saudi National Charged After Alleged Spy Device Found in OpenAI Office
Abdulrahman Alfozan, a former engineer for the AI startup, is facing federal charges after investigators say he secretly placed an audio recorder in a chief‑executive conference room in OpenAI’s San Francisco headquarters on 30 September.
The device was discovered in a USB port on the back of a TV, wrapped in toilet paper and encrypted. OpenAI employees uncovered the recorder two days after it was allegedly installed.
Prosecutors say the suspect used the world’s most advanced chatbot to research how to conceal, engineer and remote‑monitor a continuous audio recorder, and even to discuss encrypting its data store.
OpenAI stated that it had not identified any breach of source code, proprietary data or customer information, and that the employee has been dismissed. It also said it leveraged its AI models to identify the device’s origins and confirm the engineer’s involvement.
Alfozan appeared in federal court on Tuesday; his next court date is pending. If convicted, he could face a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Image: Photographs of the suspect checking the recorder on surveillance video, released by the US Department of Justice.
