The Justice Department made public a criminal complaint on October 13 charging OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan with planting a covert recording device in an executive conference room at the company’s San Francisco office. OpenAI says it has no indication that model weights, source code or customer data were accessed.
Complaint Alleges a Recorder Was Hidden Behind a Conference Room TV
Alfozan, 35, is a Saudi national and US permanent resident since September 2020. He worked at OpenAI as an engineer since July 2025; some reports describe him as an engineering lead. He is charged with using or endeavoring to use a device to intercept oral communications. He made his first federal court appearance on October 13 in case 3:26-mj-71329.
According to the complaint, a Seeed XIAO ESP32-S3 Sense recorder was plugged into a USB port on the back of a TV in an executive conference room around September 28. Security staff found it wrapped in toilet paper on September 30. The contents of its microSD card were encrypted and could not be read, and the device may have been modified to block data transfer to the TV.
OpenAI Used Its Own Models to Identify the Employee
OpenAI says it used its own models to analyze the device and identify the employee. Camera footage, installed after the discovery, showed Alfozan checking behind the TV on October 5. The same day, security found a second similar device in his unattended bag. He was arrested on October 9.
Prosecutors Point to Weeks of Reconnaissance Queries
The complaint alleges that from about August 17 to September 16, Alfozan used a workplace productivity tool to query building addresses, meeting rooms, calendars, meetings with external partners and the locations of leadership. That period ends roughly two weeks before the device was planted.
A Chatbot Account Tied to His Spouse Asked About Building Recorders
Prosecutors also describe a chatbot account tied to Alfozan’s spouse. On September 27 and 28, the account asked about building continuous recorders, modifying Wi-Fi, live listening and SD card encryption, and asked about the device’s custom header and MAC address. Those dates fall in the same window as the alleged placement of the recorder.
Officials Frame the Case as a Counterintelligence Matter
FBI Director Kash Patel called the case a counterintelligence priority, and Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton framed it as a national security matter. The Saudi embassy did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
If convicted, Alfozan faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. OpenAI fired him, referred the matter to the FBI and added camera coverage. The FBI investigation continues.
No Confirmed Data Loss, but a Sensitive Room
OpenAI says it has no indication of access to or exfiltration of model weights, source code or customer data. The risk lies in what the room hosts: discussions of proprietary research, product plans and government engagements. Because the recorder’s storage was encrypted and the complaint does not say what, if anything, it captured, the extent of any exposure is unknown. OpenAI’s statement covers model weights, source code and customer data; it does not address what was said in the room while the device sat behind the TV, and the complaint does not say how many meetings took place there.
The case differs from the credential theft and malware intrusions that dominate security reporting. According to the complaint, the alleged method combined physical access, a commercially available microcontroller board and internal tools used to learn where leadership would be and when. The complaint shows that the workplace tools employees use to find a meeting room can serve as reconnaissance for someone who wants to listen in. The public filing, as reported, does not say whether anyone directed the effort.
