Apple Leaker Issues Apology: 'Profound and Expensive Mistake'

[MacRumors]

Last year, we reported that Apple sued its former software engineer Andrew Aude for providing journalists with confidential information about the company's future plans, including details about the Journal app, Vision Pro headset, and more.

As reported by 9to5Mac, the Superior Court of Santa Clara County on Thursday dismissed the lawsuit after Apple and Aude reached an agreement to resolve this matter. The court document for the case's dismissal does not provide any specific details about the agreement, but Aude issued a public apology on the same day.

In a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, Aude said leaking information was a "profound and expensive mistake."

Aude's full apology:

I spent nearly eight years as a software engineer at Apple. During that time, I was given access to sensitive internal Apple information, including what were then unreleased products and features. But instead of keeping this information secret, I made the mistake of sharing this information with journalists who covered the company. I did not realize it at the time, but this turned out to be a profound and expensive mistake. Hundreds of professional relationships I had spent years building were ruined. And my otherwise successful career as a software engineer was derailed, and it will likely be very difficult to rebuild it. Leaking was not worth it. I sincerely apologize to my former colleagues who not only worked tirelessly on projects for Apple, but work hard to keep them secret. They deserved better.

Aude joined Apple in 2016, to work on optimizing battery performance, and the company fired him in 2023 after learning of his wrongful disclosures. For more details about the situation, read our previous coverage of the lawsuit.

Article Link: Apple Leaker Issues Apology: 'Profound and Expensive Mistake'

 

[iObama]

Sounds like Apple wrote this, handed it to him, and said "Say this and we'll drop it." lol

 

[DocMultimedia]

How dumb can people be? Don't you learn to not tell secrets in kindergarten?

 

[sw1tcher]

I suppose it's easier for Apple to go after the leakers than the people (e.g. Mark Gurman, Ming-Chi Kuo, etc) who write about the leaked info.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Sounds like Apple wrote this, handed it to him, and said "Say this and we'll drop it." lol

Yeah, has these sort of vibes

😂

(from the movie "Airplane")

 

[jdhopkins]

FAFO.

 

[TechWhisperer]

Did he also leak when the Journal app comes to the iPad? If not, he needs to apologize for that too!

 

[burnout8488]

Sounds like Apple wrote this, handed it to him, and said "Say this and we'll drop it." lol

That's absolutely what happened - Apple loves using the word "Profound"

 

[Bonte]

I suppose it's easier for Apple to go after the leakers than the people (e.g. Mark Gurman, Ming-Chi Kuo, etc) who write about the leaked info.

Well, writing about it isn't against the law, leaking contractually protected company secrets is.

 

[surfzen21]

I suppose it's easier for Apple to go after the leakers than the people (e.g. Mark Gurman, Ming-Chi Kuo, etc) who write about the leaked info.

Well Apple does not have NDAs as well as other legally contracted obligations and restrictions with Gurman and Kuo so there is no legal basis to "go after them".

You go after the people who breach the terms of their employment contracts.

 

[TechnoMonk]

I suppose it's easier for Apple to go after the leakers than the people (e.g. Mark Gurman, Ming-Chi Kuo, etc) who write about the leaked info.

I don’t see how they will go after Gruman, Ming and others unless they signed Apple NDA and confidentiality agreement.

 

[chronogawd]

I love big brother.

 

[slatina]

Imagine ruining your own career because of a worthless journal app that people forgot soon after its release

 

[TechnoMonk]

Imagine ruining your own career because of a worthless journal app that people forgot soon after its release

I guess he got paid something. May be Gruman can give him a job.

 

[jgreg728]

Andrew Aude: “Forgive me for the harm I have caused this world. None may atone for my actions but me, and only in me shall their stain live on. I am thankful to have been caught, my fall cut short by those with wizened hands. All I can be is sorry, and that is all I am.”

Tim Cook: “I don’t think you meant it… Again.”

 

[Adora]

There is a Journal app?

 

[DotCom2]

Well what the heck did he think (or not) was going to happen?

 

[TechnoMonk]

Andrew Aude: “Forgive me for the harm I have caused this world. None may atone for my actions but me, and only in me shall their stain live on. I am thankful to have been caught, my fall cut short by those with wizened hands. All I can be is sorry, and that is all I am.”

Tim Cook: “I don’t think you meant it… Again.”

I would love to see the conditions Andrew signed to settle the case. They will probably never make the consent order public.

 

[tyrnnsrs]

It would be great if he posted a follow up tweet, 'One more thing', and then dropped one final leak

 

[genoendicott]

Sounds like Apple wrote this, handed it to him, and said "Say this and we'll drop it." lol

Oh you know there were 1000s of lawyer edits before this was approved.

 

[tyrnnsrs]

Well what the heck did he think (or not) was going to happen?

Probably didn't think that far ahead. He had the rush of being in the know and leaking it but likely didn't of what the potential ramifications of it would be if caught.

 

[Aeronauts]

Somewhat ironic that we’re all reading this on an forum that relies on leakers. I wish this guy well in the future. He committed a crime but it shouldn’t ruin the rest of his life.

 

[now i see it]

and there's no evidence that leaking any info actually harms sales.

 

[timborama]

Hopefully he spends the rest of his working life flipping burgers.

 

[Mrkevinfinnerty]

Walk the plank