OpenAI engineer arrested for bugging executive conference room; company used its own AI to find him
IridiumEagle · x · 2026-10-14
Abdulrahman Alfozan, 35, a Saudi national and OpenAI engineer since July 2025, was arrested for allegedly hiding a recording device in an executive conference room at OpenAI's SF offices.
Key details from the complaint:
- Device found Sept 30, plugged into a USB port behind a TV, concealed in toilet paper, contents encrypted; installed around Sept 28
- The room was used for confidential research, product plans, business strategy, government engagements and commercial relationships
- Surveillance footage showed him near the room repeatedly despite no authorization
- A chatbot account tied to his spouse, sharing identifiers with his own account, submitted prompts about building a continuous audio recorder, adding Wi-Fi, remote listening, and encrypting its memory card
- OpenAI fired him and says it used its own AI models to help identify who planted the device
Related event: Ex-OpenAI Employee Arrested After Hidden Recorder Found in Office(48 posts)→
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