Apple threatens to fire employee over viral TikTok video  

Five million views in 24 hours

Paris Campbell is an Apple employee who posts videos on TikTok about the company and iPhones. Now, Apple is threatening her with dismissal, after a video of hers that went viral, gathering 5 million views in 24 hours, while at this time it exceeds 7 million views.

In her video, Campbell gives advice to another TikTok user who lost her iPhone and then received threatening messages saying her personal data would be put up for sale on the black market if she didn’t remove her iPhone from her Apple ID. Campbell advised the woman to ignore the messages since there is no way they can access her data and apparently they want her to remove her Apple ID so they can sell her iPhone.

I can’t tell you exactly how I know this, but I can tell you that I am a certified hardware engineer for a company that likes to talk about fruit. Your phone is practically useless to them and you are the only person who can save them. I suggest you don’t.

Apple’s social media policy warns employees not to post about customers, colleagues or confidential information, but does not prohibit them from posting more general information about technology. Specifically, it states that ” we want you to be yourself, but you must show respect in posts, tweets and other online communications” .

 Campbell therefore received a message from her manager who threatened her with disciplinary action and even dismissal if she did not take down her post. So he left the post as it is and the next day he uploaded a new video with the title ” dear Apple “, in which he reveals that he is indeed an Apple employee and is waiting to see if he will be fired.

I have never admitted to being an Apple employee until this video. The funny thing is, after looking at the social media policy, it doesn’t say anywhere that I can’t disclose that I’m an Apple employee publicly, just that I shouldn’t do it in a way that reflects poorly on the company.

For the record, Apple last year fired two activist employees with large social media followings for disclosing confidential information. However, Campbell didn’t include anything in her videos that isn’t already publicly available.

I find Apple’s response antithetical to what we stand for as a company, in that we tell people to think differently, innovate and find creative solutions. I don’t have all this knowledge because I just work at Apple, but because I have a long technical training and history. That’s why they hired me.

Apple has yet to comment on the incident.