Jon Prosser Sued by Apple Over iOS 26 Leaks
Credit: Ascannio / Adobe Stock
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Earlier this year, YouTuber Jon Prosser posted multiple videos on the streaming service that showcased what he claimed to be recreated renderings of Apple’s upcoming iPhone operating system, which was then expected to be called iOS 19. It was later revealed as iOS 26 when Apple officially unveiled it during its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC25) in June.
In the first Prosser video, he showed a redesigned Camera app that featured a simpler interface, allowing users to move quickly between photo and video modes. Then, during a March episode of his Genius Bar podcast, he showed off the new Messages app, with rounded keyboard corners and round navigation buttons at the top of the screen.
Finally, an April Prosser video provided a closer look at the Liquid Glass interface language, which was unveiled at WWDC. The footage showed iOS 26’s glass-like, rounder interface elements, pill-shaped tab bars at the bottom of select Apple apps, and other aspects of the new design language. Prosser said at the time that he used artist’s renders in the video in place of actual screenshots to protect the source of the leak.
While some of what Prosser showed didn’t exactly match the final design of iOS 26, most of it was pretty close. Apple didn’t take kindly to that, as the Cupertino firm filed a lawsuit on Thursday against Prosser and Michael Ramacciotti for misappropriation of trade secrets.
Apple’s filing includes information outlining what it says is the series of events that led to Prosser’s leaks, which centers on a development iPhone possessed by Ramacciotti’s friend and Apple employee, Ethan Lipnik.
Apple says Prosser and Ramacciotti conspired to acquire Lipnik’s passcode to access the device, then used location tracking to determine when the Apple employee would be away for an extended period. Prosser allegedly offered Ramacciotti money to assist him in accessing the development iPhone that was running what would eventually become iOS 26.
Apple alleges that Ramacciotti got his hands on the development iPhone, then made a FaceTime call to Prosser, during which he showed off the new operating system running on the device. Prosser then recorded the call using screen capture tools, shared those videos with other parties, and also used them to create renders of the software to create his YouTube videos.
Apple said that Lipnik’s iPhone held a “significant amount of additional Apple trade secret information that has not yet been publicly disclosed.” The iPhone maker says it does not know how much of that information Prosser and Ramacciotti have in their possession.
Apple has filed a lawsuit to protect its trade secrets and block any further exposure of the company’s confidential information about its devices, and is seeking damages for the duo’s misappropriation of these trade secrets.
Apple has fired Lipnik over his failure to protect the development of Apple’s unreleased software and devices. Lipnik allegedly failed to notify Apple of the breach, despite being informed by friends who had seen the videos that they recognized his apartment in the background, which was recorded during the FaceTime call. Apple instead learned of the leaks via an anonymous email.
For his part, Prosser has since replied to tweets by MacRumors about their article on this story. He challenges Apple’s side, claiming “This is not how things went down on my end,” and that he is “looking forward to being able to speak to Apple about it.”
