Google Employee Accused Of Using Confidential Data To Win $1.2m On Betting Platform
A Google engineer has been charged in the United States over allegations that he used confidential company information to make more than $1.2 million from bets placed on cryptocurrency-based prediction platform Polymarket.
US prosecutors identified the suspect as Michele Spagnuolo, an Italian citizen residing in Switzerland, who was arrested on Wednesday and later appeared before a federal court in New York.
According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, Spagnuolo allegedly exploited privileged access to internal Google information to place strategic bets on future online trends and public interest topics.
Authorities claimed the engineer, who reportedly worked at Google for over 12 years in information security, used unreleased company data between October and December 2025 to place about $2.7 million worth of wagers connected to Google-related outcomes.
Investigators alleged that the bets generated profits exceeding $1 million.
Google confirmed the employee has been placed on leave while investigations continue.
A spokesperson for the tech company said it was cooperating with law enforcement agencies and stressed that using confidential corporate information for personal financial gain violates company policies.
The spokesperson added that the information allegedly accessed came from internal marketing materials available to employees through company tools.
Polymarket also acknowledged assisting investigators in the case.
A representative of the platform stated that cryptocurrency transactions are transparent and traceable through blockchain technology, making it difficult for unlawful activities to remain hidden.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation reportedly linked Spagnuolo to multiple betting accounts after discovering one account registered with an Italian identification document.
Court filings revealed that one of the most profitable bets allegedly involved predicting who would become the most searched person on Google in 2025.
Prosecutors claimed Spagnuolo correctly backed singer D4vd at a time when the odds of such an outcome were considered extremely low.
The filings further alleged that he had prior knowledge of Google’s internal search trend data before it became publicly available.
Reports also stated that he placed bets against public figures including Bianca Censori and US President Donald Trump.
Spagnuolo has not publicly commented on the allegations.
ABC News reported that he has since been released on a $2.25 million bond pending further legal proceedings.
