Марія БровінськаAI Eng
14 October 2026, 08:08
2026-10-14
An OpenAI employee installed a listening device in the top management meeting room. The traitor was discovered by AI experts and has already been arrested by the FBI.
OpenAI discovered a hidden audio recording device in one of its offices in San Francisco. The company used its own artificial intelligence models to investigate the device and determine who might have planted it. Following a complaint from OpenAI, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested the company’s employee, Abdulrahman Alfozan.
OpenAI discovered a hidden audio recording device in one of its offices in San Francisco. The company used its own artificial intelligence models to investigate the device and determine who might have planted it. Following a complaint from OpenAI, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested the company’s employee, Abdulrahman Alfozan.
OpenAI announced this on October 13. According to the US Department of Justice, the 35-year-old engineer was arrested on October 9. He was charged with using an electronic device to secretly intercept oral conversations. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison.
Device in the management meeting room
The device was discovered on September 30 in an OpenAI management meeting room. According to the case file, it was hidden in toilet paper and plugged into a USB port on the back of a television. The device contained encrypted data.
This room hosted meetings where confidential technical, commercial, and strategic information was discussed: research, product development plans, business opportunities, and interactions with government agencies.
According to the investigation, Alfozan was not authorized to attend these meetings. Surveillance cameras recorded him near the room on various days before the device was discovered. Later, the recordings also showed him looking behind the television, where the equipment was found.
Law enforcement officials say they found another similar device in a bag the employee left in another office. The case file also mentions requests to work tools and a chatbot about the location of meeting rooms, meeting schedules, and the technical aspects of creating a sound recording device.
No source code or customer data leaks were detected.
OpenAI said it used its own models to investigate the device and determine its origin, which the company said helped identify the employee who OpenAI believes installed the equipment days before it was discovered.
“We currently have no indication that this individual improperly accessed or took model weights, source code, or customer data outside the company,” OpenAI said.
The company fired the employee and referred the case to the FBI. The investigation is ongoing, and OpenAI said it will continue to cooperate with law enforcement.
At the same time, it has not yet been established whether the recordings from the device were obtained and what information it could have recorded. According to the investigation, the contents of the device were encrypted.
OpenAI called this case an example of how artificial intelligence can help detect complex security threats — including risks associated with the actions of its own employees.
Alfozan appeared in federal court on October 13. The charges have not yet been proven in court.
«Чи є у мене талант, якщо комп’ютер може імітувати мене?». Штучний інтелект пише книги авторам Amazon Kindle. The Verge поспілкувався з авторами та виявив багато цікавого
Письменники-романісти використовують штучний інтелект для створення своїх творів. Видання про технології The Verge поспілкувалося з письменницею Дженніфер Лепп, яка випускає нову книгу кожні дев’ять тижнів, й дізналося про те, як працює штучний інтелект для написання романів. Наводимо адаптований переклад статті.
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