Former employee used rare bug to download confidential Apple files

Apple has disclosed in a recent lawsuit filing that a former employee exploited a rare and previously unknown bug to download confidential files from the company's networks. The incident occurred weeks after the employee left Apple to join rival AI firm OpenAI.

According to Apple, former systems engineer Chang Liu allegedly leveraged a zero-day vulnerability, meaning Apple had no time to fix it before it was reportedly exploited. This bug was said to allow access to the company's network and sensitive information without proper authentication.

Apple confirmed that the vulnerability has since been patched. The company stated that the employee's access was terminated once the security breach was discovered. While Apple acknowledged the bug could have potentially allowed access for "a few other" individuals, company server logs reportedly indicate that only Liu exploited it to steal confidential information.

The disclosure comes as part of Apple's ongoing lawsuit against OpenAI, accusing the company of trade secret theft. Apple alleges that OpenAI has used former employees' knowledge and stolen Apple's confidential data and other proprietary information to develop its own products.