A former Walt Disney World worker added profanities and mistakes to the Orlando resort’s computer menus, a federal criminal complaint alleges.
After the employee was fired, he allegedly hacked servers at Disney World to manipulate computer menus by putting in profanities, changing prices and altering notifications to wrongly declare some items as safe for people with allergies, the complaint says.
Disney caught the menu changes—including the allergen information, with “potentially fatal consequences depending on the severity of the customers’ allergies”—before the menus were shipped to restaurants, according to the complaint.
The former worker was arrested last week following an investigation by the FBI.
What Has the Ex-Employee Said?
The former employee denied any wrongdoing when the FBI searched his house last month.
David Haas, the ex-worker’s court-appointed attorney, said Thursday that his client intended to plead not guilty once a formal indictment is filed.
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The former employee is currently being held in jail until at least a bond hearing scheduled for next week.
Haas said in a motion seeking the ex-worker’s release that his client had struggled with mental health issues since childhood and was currently seeing a psychiatrist.
“He is not receiving any mental health counseling or treatment in jail,” Haas said in the motion.
What Has Disney Said?
Disney said Thursday that it wasn’t speaking on the case.
An internal investigation conducted by Disney found that the former worker was a potential suspect. He was fired last June from his job as a menu production manager.
The termination was “contentious and not considered to be amicable,” and his job responsibilities included the creation and publishing of menus for Disney’s entire restaurant portfolio, according to the criminal complaint.
The complaint said that only workers in his position or similar positions “would have the accesses and knowledge to carry out the attacks.”
Disney World Dining
Disney World is a global tourist hub. In 2023, over 48.77 million people visited the resort, according to Road Genius, a company that compares car rental prices. Magic Kingdom saw 17.72 million visitors in 2023, followed by EPCOT which saw 11.98 million, then Hollywood Studios, which saw 10.3 million and Animal Kingdom, which saw 8.77 million, Road Genius said.
There are over 400 dining options across Walt Disney World, including 25 fine/signature dining restaurants, 13 dining options that feature Disney characters, 130 table service restaurants and 134 quick service options.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.