Overview

• Apple filed a lawsuit on July 17 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, accusing YouTuber Jon Prosser and Michael Ramacciotti of misappropriating iOS 26 trade secrets and violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
• Apple says Ramacciotti tracked engineer Ethan Lipnik’s location, used his passcode to unlock the development iPhone containing iOS 26, and streamed the unreleased software via FaceTime, leading to Lipnik’s termination for failing to secure the device.
• Prosser allegedly recorded the FaceTime session, stored footage of the unreleased features and used it to produce YouTube videos that generated ad revenue.
• The lawsuit seeks a jury trial plus injunctive relief to bar further leaks, compensatory and punitive damages, and orders to return or destroy any confidential materials.
• Prosser has disputed Apple’s account, stating he did not plot to access any phone, did not have passcodes and was unaware of how the information was obtained.