Ex-Disney Employee Pleads Guilty to Bizarre Menu Hacking Scheme

A former Walt Disney World employee has pleaded guilty to federal charges after “hacking” the resort’s menus, according to a complaint filed in Florida federal court.

Michael Scheurer pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft and “knowingly transmitting a program, information, code, and command and intentionally causing damage without authorization to a protected computer.” Scheurer hacked into the menus of various Disney World restaurants, changing the prices, removing allergy information from food items, and adding profanities. Disney estimates that the damages exceeded $150,000.

Scheurer, who produced and distributed all of the company's menus, was terminated from his position on June 13, 2024, over “misconduct.” His departure was “contentious…and not considered to be amicable,” the complaint read, calling Sheurer a “threat actor.” It went on to say that his menu changes “threatened public health and safety."

"Namely, the threat actor manipulated the allergen information on menus by adding information to some allergen notifications that indicated certain menu items were safe for individuals with peanut allergies, when in fact they could be deadly to those with peanut allergies," the complaint explained.

For the program transmission charge, Scheurer is facing up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a maximum fine of $250,000. He’s also being fined a $100 “special assessment” for knowingly transmitting a malicious code or program and causing intentional damage to a protected computer without authorization. The aggravated identity theft charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison along with a $250,000 fine, up to a year of supervised release, and another $100 special assessment fee.