ByteDance Sues Former Intern for Alleged Code Tampering, Seeks $1.1 Million
ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, has filed a lawsuit against a former doctoral intern surnamed Tian in Beijing’s Haidian District People’s Court. The tech giant alleges that Tian maliciously tampered with code during an internal model training project within its commercialization tech team in June and July 2024. ByteDance is seeking RMB 8 million (approximately $1.1 million) in damages, RMB 20,000 in related expenses, and a public apology. The company claims the intern’s actions, motivated by dissatisfaction with resource allocation, interfered with research initiatives but did not impact official projects or broader business operations. Tian was dismissed in August 2024 for misconduct and reportedly denied involvement despite ByteDance reporting the incident to his university. Legal experts suggest the compensation demand reflects direct losses, such as wasted computing power. ByteDance emphasized that this legal action underscores its zero-tolerance policy regarding internal security breaches and indicated it might pursue criminal charges if evidence supports intentional damage. This case highlights growing concerns over internal security and intellectual property protection within major technology firms.
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ByteDance Sues Former Intern for Alleged Code Tampering, Seeks $1.1 Million
ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, has filed a lawsuit against a former doctoral intern surnamed Tian in Beijing’s Haidian District People’s Court. The tech giant alleges that Tian maliciously tampered with code during an internal model training project within its commercialization tech team in June and July 2024. ByteDance is seeking RMB 8 million (approximately $1.1 million) in damages, RMB 20,000 in related expenses, and a public apology. The company claims the intern’s actions, motivated by dissatisfaction with resource allocation, interfered with research initiatives but did not impact official projects or broader business operations. Tian was dismissed in August 2024 for misconduct and reportedly denied involvement despite ByteDance reporting the incident to his university. Legal experts suggest the compensation demand reflects direct losses, such as wasted computing power. ByteDance emphasized that this legal action underscores its zero-tolerance policy regarding internal security breaches and indicated it might pursue criminal charges if evidence supports intentional damage. This case highlights growing concerns over internal security and intellectual property protection within major technology firms.
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