The former employee was taken into custody last week following an FBI investigation. Their court-appointed attorney, David Haas, stated on Thursday that his client intends to plead not guilty once formal charges are filed. For now, the individual remains incarcerated pending a bail hearing scheduled for next week.
In a motion for release, Haas highlighted that his client has struggled with mental health issues since childhood and is currently under the care of a psychiatrist. The attorney expressed concerns that his client is not receiving adequate mental health treatment while in jail.
Disney has chosen not to comment on the ongoing case. The complaint outlines that the company detected changes made to the menus before they were sent to the restaurants, which included critical allergy information that could lead to potentially life-threatening consequences based on customers’ allergy severity.
As a result of the hacking, Disney was forced to take its menu creation software offline for over a week, incurring costs of at least $150,000. An internal investigation revealed that the employee, who was terminated from their position as menu production manager last June, was a potential suspect. The complaint indicated that the dismissal was “contentious” and not deemed amicable, with the employee responsible for creating and publishing menus for the company’s entire restaurant portfolio.
According to the complaint, only employees in similar roles would possess the access and knowledge required to carry out such attacks. When FBI agents conducted a search of the former Disney employee’s home last month, they reported that the individual denied any wrongdoing.
