Former Disney World employee sentenced to 3 years in prison for hacking menus

ORLANDO, Fla. (WFLA) – A former Disney World employee was sentenced to three years in federal prison for hacking into Walt Disney World’s computer system to manipulate menu information.

In July 2024, Disney became aware that Michael Scheuer, a former employee, had began accessing their menu system after he had been terminated for misconduct, according to a federal complaint.

Scheuer, 40, was previously employed at the company as a “menu product manager,” creating and publishing menus using a third-party computer system that was designed exclusively for Disney, the complaint said. In addition to menu creation, the system “has several other functionalities, such as pricing, menu management, and inventory management,” according to the complaint.

Scheuer was later accused of hacking back into the software, where he made some pages inaccessible, changed fonts, and added profanity. He had also allegedly “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 alleged.

In addition to manipulating the menus, Scheuer allegedly launched denial-of-service attacks aimed at disabling 14 employee accounts and hid his identity and location using a VPN. He was also accused of altering the information regarding wine regions on the menus, instead referencing the locations of mass shootings, the DOJ said.

Along with his three-year prison sentence, a U.S. District Judge in Orlando ordered Scheuer to pay $687,776.50 in restitution and give up his computer, per the U.S Attorney’s Office of the Middle District of Florida.