Hidden Recording Device Found in OpenAI Office: Employee Fired, Case Handed to FBI
OpenAI says it discovered a recording device planted by an employee and referred the case to the FBI. So far, it says, there is no sign that customer data was taken.
OpenAI said on October 13 (local time) that it had found a hidden recording device in one of its offices. The company said it used its own AI models to help investigate what the device was and how it got inside. The investigation concluded that an employee had planted the device a few days earlier.
OpenAI fired the employee and referred the case to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). According to the company, the FBI has arrested the employee and is pursuing an investigation. OpenAI did not disclose exactly how it used AI in the internal inquiry.
Whether customer data had been taken was also part of the inquiry. OpenAI said it has so far found no indication that the employee improperly accessed or exfiltrated customer data or source code. The company said the same of its “model weights,” the internal values that determine how its AI behaves.
The open questions from here: what the device actually recorded, whether any recordings left the company, and why it was installed in the first place.