Fired Disney employee Michael Scheuer arrested for changing menu: Feds

Michael Scheuer, a fired Disney employee, allegedly manipulated the company’s restaurant menus, including adding false information about allergens.

A is discontinued Walt Disney World The employee is accused of manipulating the theme park restaurant’s menu, including adding profanity, changing prices and inserting false allergen information that could have been “fatal for those with peanut allergies,” according to federal authorities.

Michael Scheuer, who worked as a “menu production manager” at Walt Disney World until he was fired June 13, is charged with computer fraud, according to Florida federal court records.

Scheuer was fired from theme park in Florida for “improper conduct,” according to a federal complaint filed in the Middle District of Florida. Disney, referred to in the complaint as “Company A,” told authorities the firing was contentious and not considered “amicable.”

As part of his duties, Scheuer was responsible for creating and publishing menus for the entire Disney restaurant portfolio, according to the complaint. It will do this by using secure Disney File Transfer Protocol servers, which are a secure method of transferring files between computers, the document continues.

“Only employees in Scheuer’s position, or in a position similar to Scheuer’s, would have had the access and knowledge to carry out the attacks described below in the manner in which they were carried out,” the complaint states.

USA TODAY reached out to Disney on Wednesday but did not receive a response.

“Scheuer has a disability that has affected his work at Disney”

David Haas, Scheuer’s attorney, shared a statement with USA TODAY saying, “The criminal charges confirm that no one was injured or harmed by any menu changes. Mr. Scheuer has a disability that has affected his work at Disney.”

Haas’ statement went on to explain that Scheuer had “a medical condition that led to his suspension.” After that incident, “Disney did not respond to his inquiries as to why he was suspended, and his suspension was inexplicably changed to dismissal,” Haas said.

“Disney declined to provide an answer as to why he was fired and did not make any accommodations for him,” the statement said. “He subsequently filed a complaint with the EEOC. I look forward to vigorously presenting my client’s side of the story.”

Scheuer has “struggled with mental health issues since childhood” and “has been actively seeing a psychiatrist for the past three years,” according to his motion for pretrial release.

How did Michael Scheuer allegedly manipulate the Disney menu?

According to the indictment, over a three-month period, Disney was the victim of “multiple computer intrusions on servers” related to the menu program used by Scheuer. The company’s intrusion became known on July 9, and the court proceedings were ongoing.

Scheuer used his “personal computer to carry out the attacks,” the complaint states. He also used mobile devices to commit his crimes, according to the court document, which he described as “sophisticated in nature.”

According to the complaint, in addition to manipulating menus, Scheuer attempted to disable certain accounts by launching denial-of-service attacks against them.

How did Michael Scheuer end up?

The FBI searched Scheuer’s home on Sept. 23, the complaint says. When the agents arrived, Scheuer said Disney tried to “frame him because they were worried about him and the conditions under which he was released.”

Scheuer told agents that “he was surprised to see the FBI,” but “he wouldn’t be surprised if the sheriff’s office came to him and asked him to stop sending emails that could be perceived as threats.” according to the complaint.

The fired employee admitted to using his personal Google Chrome profile to conduct Disney-related activities while he was employed there, the charging document said. He could not definitively say whether he had access to the company’s systems after his dismissal because he could have accessed them to obtain pay slips and other financial information.

Four personal computers were seized from Scheuer’s home, all containing a virtual private network (VPN) used in one or more cyber incidents, according to the complaint.

According to court records, Scheuer remains in custody pending a bail hearing on Nov. 5.