Overview

• Apple filed a federal lawsuit on July 17 in the Northern District of California under the Defend Trade Secrets Act and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act against Jon Prosser and Michael Ramacciotti.
• The complaint alleges Ramacciotti used location tracking and a stolen passcode to break into engineer Ethan Lipnik’s development iPhone and FaceTime Prosser to display unreleased iOS 26 features.
• Prosser is accused of screen-recording the FaceTime call, publishing reconstructed renders of the confidential software on his YouTube channel and generating ad revenue from the leaks.
• Apple terminated Lipnik for failing to secure the device and warns the development iPhone contained additional undisclosed trade secrets, leading to a demand for the return or destruction of any misappropriated material.
• Prosser has publicly disputed Apple’s account on X, and the company continues to assess the full scope of data that may have been exposed.