TL;DR
- Apple is suing YouTuber Jon Prosser for Front Page Tech for allegedly accessing a development iPhone and leaking iOS 26 details months before launch.
- The lawsuit accuses him and a collaborator of a conspiracy to misappropriate trade secrets and secretly record unreleased features.
- It’s an unusually aggressive legal move for a tech company, one we’ve never seen from an Android brand.
Apple is generally better than most Android brands at keeping its unreleased products and software under wraps. While leaks around upcoming Apple launches have become more common in recent years, it’s still rare for the full picture of a new iPhone or iOS update to emerge before the company unveils it. For the most part, neither Apple nor Android OEMs react strongly to leaks, aside from the occasional DMCA takedown, like we’ve seen from Samsung. However, a recent set of leaks from Apple-focused YouTuber Jon Prosser (Front Page Tech) seems to have crossed a line, and the Cupertino company is now responding with a lawsuit (via MacRumors).
Apple claims that Prosser’s iOS 19 leaks (which turned out to be leaks about iOS 26) were not based on tips or speculation, but gained unlawfully through unauthorized access to a development iPhone handled by a now-fired employee, Ethan Lipnik.
The lawsuit alleges Prosser conspired with Michael Ramacciotti, a tech product analyst and video editor, and gained access to Lipnik’s device using his passcode. The company claims the duo used location-tracking to determine when Lipnik “would be gone for an extended period.” Ramacciotti then allegedly broke into Lipnik’s iPhone and made a FaceTime call to Prosser, who recorded it to create videos showcasing the upcoming iOS redesign. It’s the kind of theatrics you’d expect from a spy thriller, not smartphone coverage.
Meanwhile, Prosser categorically denies Apple’s claims in the lawsuit. In a post on X, the YouTuber wrote:
This is not how the situation played out on my end. Luckily have receipts for that. I did not plot to access anyone’s phone. I did not have any passwords. I was unaware of how the information was obtained. Looking forward to speaking with Apple on this.
Prosser also posted a chat screenshot indicating he was offered the materials and did not conspire to get them.
Over in Android land, leaks aren’t taken as seriously as this. Google’s Pixel phones often leak months in advance, sometimes even in full reviews from Vietnamese YouTubers. Samsung and OnePlus also suffer regular software and hardware leaks that are highly accurate. Yet, the response is rarely this severe or legal.
Apple’s lawsuit shows the company is taking leaks from employees very seriously now. The company claims it learned the details of the scheme in Ramacciotti’s own words through an audio message he sent to Lipnik, which he shared with the company. Apple also notes that Ramacciotti admitted to the scheme and told the company that Prosser had promised to “find out a way for him to get payment.”
Apple is not only seeking damages now but also pushing for an injunction to prevent any further disclosure of its trade secrets based on the information leaked through Lipnik’s development iPhone.
