On Tuesday evening, Apple CEO Tim Cook sent an email to all Apple employees about an all-hands meeting that was leaked to journalists last week. He emphasized that Apple is doing “everything in its power” to identify those who leaked.” He added that “people who leak confidential information do not belong” at Apple.

During a global employee meeting on September 17, Cook announced that Apple would stop short of a vaccine mandate by requiring frequent COVID-19 testing for unvaccinated employees. He also said he was “looking forward to moving forward”, with reference to the Epic v. Apple antitrust lawsuit and its verdict.

Shortly after the meeting, both these bits of information leaked to The Verge and hence to the general public. Cook drew a parallel with the product leaks that have plagued Apple for years. In his email, Cook repeatedly mentions that he’s “frustrated” with leaks.

Here’s a transcription of the entire email Cook sent out to Apple employees:

“Dear Team,

It was great to connect with you at the global employee meeting on Friday. There was much to celebrate, from our remarkable new product line-up to our values-driven work around climate change, racial equity, and privacy. It was a good opportunity to reflect on our many accomplishments and to have a discussion about what’s been on your mind.

I’m writing today because I’ve heard from so many of you were incredibly frustrated to see the contents of the meeting leak to reporters. This comes after a product launch in which most of the details of our announcements were also leaked to the press.

I want you to know that I share your frustration. These opportunities to connect as a team are really important. But they only work if we can trust that the content will stay within Apple. I want to reassure you that we are doing everything in our power to identify those who leaked. As you know, we do not tolerate disclosures of confidential information, whether it’s product IP or the details of a confidential meeting. We know that the leakers constitute a small number of people. We also know that people who leak confidential information do not belong here.

As we look forward, I want to thank you for all you’ve done to make our products a reality and all you will do to get them into customers’ hands. Yesterday we released iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and watchOS 8, and Friday marks the moment when we share some of our incredible new products with the world. There’s nothing better than that. We’ll continue to measure our contributions in the lives we change, the connections we foster, and the work we do to leave the world a better place.

Thank you,

Tim”

The very fact that a memo criticizing leaks has leaked makes us wonder how effective Apple’s countermeasures would have to be! Do you think Apple will be able to “plug” leaks entirely? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.