The former Walt Disney World Cast Member who hacked the resort’s menus and changed allergen information has been sentenced to three years in prison.
Ex-Cast Member Sentenced for Hacking Menus
In January, Michael Scheuer pleaded guilty to knowingly transmitting a program, code, or command to a protected computer and intentionally causing damage, and for committing aggravated identity theft. U.S. District Judge Julie Sneed sentenced him to three years in federal prison, plus ordered him to forfeit his computer and pay $687,776.50 in restitution to the victims. (via WFTV 9)
WDWNT initially reported on the case in October 2024. Scheuer, a menu production manager for Walt Disney World, was fired in June 2024 but continued to access the menu system on personal devices for three months. According to the lawsuit against him (via Scribd), Scheuer changed menus in retaliation for his firing, including profanity and changing fronts.
More dangerously, Scheuer “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.”
Scheuer also changed the information for wine regions to be the locations of recent mass shootings, added a swastika to one menu, and launched denial-of-service (DOS) attacks to lock Cast Members out of their accounts. Scheuer visited the home of one of his DOS targets at night, giving a thumbs-up to a security camera before leaving. Disney provided security to the target and moved them to a hotel for safety.
The FBI Tampa Division was forced to intervene, raiding Scheuer’s residence and seizing his electronics.
Special Agent in Charge Matthew Fodor said, “Formidable relationships with the private sector are a pillar of the FBI’s Cyber Strategy. Through the strength in our partnerships, our Cyber Task Force swiftly identified Mr. Scheuer and disrupted his ability to continue threatening the public. We are committed to safeguarding a robust Cyber Strategy to unmask malicious cyber actors to ensure justice is served.” (via WFTV 9)
After news of Scheuer’s acts broke, his attorney told NBC News that the “allegations acknowledge that no one was injured or harmed” and that Scheuer “has a disability that he believes impacted his termination from Disney.”
Disney stopped using the third-party menu application that Scheuer manipulated and said it “has moved to a manual menu approval and distribution process while a new system is developed.”
For the latest Disney Parks news and info, follow WDW News Today on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.