A tale of internal corporate intrigue between two HR technology firms has one circulating an affidavit that includes a purported corporate spy’s confession and the other hitting back, saying it looks forward to its day in court.
The employee at the center of the drama lives in Ireland and in the affidavit provided by Rippling, said he was engaged as a corporate spy by competitor Deel and sent a variety of internal Rippling information to Deel.
The document, which Rippling said is an affidavit filed in Ireland’s High Court, echoes much of what the firm alleged in a lawsuit last month: Following various leaks — including some involving employees’ personal information that Deel allegedly used to try and poach key personnel — Rippling staged a “honeypot” test to attract the suspected mole. Specifically, it informed two members of Deel’s senior leadership team and its outside counsel that Rippling employees were discussing damaging information about Deel in a Slack channel called “d-defectors.”
In the document, the alleged mole said Alex Bouaziz, Deel’s founder and CEO, told him to search for the Slack channel; a few minutes later, Bouaziz reversed his instructions, saying it might be a trap, but it was too late. HR Dive could not reach a representative for Bouaziz for comment.
Upon being served with a court order requiring inspection of his devices, the suspected mole went to the bathroom and performed a factory reset on his phone, the lawsuit alleged. Deel subsequently offered to help him and his family flee the country, the Rippling-provided document says. The alleged spy’s attorney did not respond to a request for comment.
The alleged mole won’t be punished for wiping — and then later destroying — his phone, in violation of the court order, the Irish Times reported Thursday. The alleged spy is cooperating with Rippling’s legal team, the newspaper reported, and while a judge said his actions have done damage to the litigation, he has since complied with court directions.
A representative for Deel said the company “looks forward to its day in Court where Rippling and [the alleged mole’s] claims will be debunked.” The firm’s response to the lawsuit is due May 7.
