• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

2

Meet a 71-year-old who retired as a radiologist and professor, and now runs a banana-skewer business: ‘I never want to retire. Why would you do that?’

3

Hilton received 12,000 Gen Z applications for just 72 internship spots—its CHRO says AI has made the hospitality gigs more competitive

1

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

2

Meet a 71-year-old who retired as a radiologist and professor, and now runs a banana-skewer business: ‘I never want to retire. Why would you do that?’

3

Hilton received 12,000 Gen Z applications for just 72 internship spots—its CHRO says AI has made the hospitality gigs more competitive

Tesla Sues Former Employee It Says Stole Data

By
Sarah Gray
Sarah Gray
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Sarah Gray
Sarah Gray
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 20, 2018, 3:09 PM ET
Elon Musk, chairman and CEO of Tesla Motors
NEWPORT BEACH, CA- 070110- Elon Musk, during the opening of a Tesla Motors store in Newport Beach, CA. Musk is an American engineer and entrepreneur heritage best known for co-founding PayPal, SpaceX and Tesla Motors. He is currently the CEO and CTO of SpaceX, CEO and Product Architect of Tesla Motors and Chairman of SolarCity. Photo by J. Emilio Flores/CORBIS (Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Corbis via Getty Images)J.Emilio Flores—Corbis via Getty Images
Google source logo
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Tesla filed a lawsuit against former employee Martin Tripp, alleging that he stole gigabytes worth of data and made false reports to the media.

“Tesla has only begun to understand the full scope of Tripp’s illegal activity, but he has thus far admitted to writing software that hacked Tesla’s manufacturing operating system (“MOS”) and to transferring several gigabytes of Tesla data to outside entities,” the lawsuit, first reported by CNBC, claims. “This includes dozens of confidential photographs and a video of Tesla’s manufacturing systems.”

According to the lawsuit, filed on Wednesday in a U.S. District Court in Nevada, Tripp was hired as a process technician at Tesla’s Nevada Gigafactory in October of 2017. Prior to starting at Tesla, he signed an agreement not to share confidential or proprietary information. The lawsuit alleges that after he was reassigned to a different position for reportedly being “disruptive and combative,” Tripp retaliated against the company.

Investigators with Tesla recently interviewed Tripp about alleged misconduct. After presenting him with evidence, “Tripp admitted to writing software that hacked Tesla’s MOS and to transferring several gigabytes of confidential and proprietary Tesla data to entities outside the company,” the lawsuit claims.

It also alleges that Tripp authored hacking software that was placed on the computer systems of three other employees to continuously export data from these computers to third parties.

In addition to the claims of hacking and stealing data, the lawsuit alleges that Tripp also made false statements to the media about batteries, “scrap” materials, and Gigafactory delays.

 

About the Author
By Sarah Gray
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in


Most Popular

Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

    Latest in


    Most Popular

    © 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
    FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.