A former Disney employee will plead guilty to hacking restaurant menus to exclude deadly allergens in addition to adding disturbing material.
Michael Scheuer, who once worked as a menu production manager, admitted to the crimes in a federal case. According to a court filing obtained by CNBC, he will plead guilty to one felony count for computer fraud and another for aggravated identity theft.
The filing claims Scheuer
hacked into the menu-creation software for the company’s restaurants. Once in, he would falsely state that food items did not contain certain food allergies, such as peanuts, that could have resulted in death.According to the filing, Scheuer made other destructive changes. He switched information about wine selections to include regions with areas that recently had mass shootings and added a swastika to a menu.
A criminal complaint also accused Scheuer of hacking the software for months after his June firing. These ongoing incidents led to federal agents raiding Scheuer’s residence last September.
A month prior, as written on his plea agreement, Scheuer launched a cyber attack that “continually” locked other Disney employees out of their company accounts. Most of the employees targeted had previous contact with their former colleagues.
Scheuer also harassed one victim after the raid.
Scheuer traveled to the victim’s residence, walked up to their doorstep and gave a thumbs up to their security camera. Disney provided security to the victims and temporarily placed them in a hotel for safety purposes.Scheuer’s lawyer, David Haas, said his client “is prepared to accept responsibility for his conduct. Unfortunately, he has mental health issues that were exacerbated when Disney fired him upon his return from paternity leave.”
Scheuer expects to receive a restitution order and fine upon his sentencing. As for Disney, it will no longer use the third-party system to create menus.
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