# OpenAI engineer faces federal charge over alleged office recording device

_Published Tuesday, October 13, 2026 at 8:08 PM EDT · Security, AI · Latest · Tier 2 — Notable_

![OpenAI engineer faces federal charge over alleged office recording device — Primary](https://media.wired.com/photos/6aceab66cc5b61e4cd2bfb17/191:100/w_1280,c_limit/Man-Arrested-for-Listening-Device-in-OpenAI-Office-Security.jpg)

An OpenAI engineer made an initial federal court appearance Tuesday on a charge of using a device to intercept oral communications, WIRED reported. A newly unsealed complaint alleges Abdulrahman Alfozan planted a recording device in an executive conference room and used chatbot queries to help plan the surveillance.

Alfozan faces up to five years in prison if convicted. OpenAI discovered the device September 30 and fired him last Friday, coinciding with his arrest. The company says it has no indications he improperly accessed or exfiltrated model weights, source code or customer data.

## Sources

- [WIRED](https://www.wired.com/story/an-openai-employee-allegedly-used-a-chatbot-to-help-plant-a-recording-device-at-the-office/)

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Canonical: https://techandbusiness.org/newswire/dDe8zFiJBmWTt2wxjWIehl
Published: 2026-10-14T00:08:45.344Z
Story chronology: 2026-10-13T23:17:59.000Z
Retrieved: 2026-10-14T03:49:28.090Z
Publisher: Tech & Business (techandbusiness.org)