He Got the MrBeast Blueprint… and a Trade Secret Lawsuit

Imagine getting your hands on the ultimate creator cheat code — the behind-the-scenes playbook MrBeast uses to dominate YouTube. Now imagine going viral not for using it, but for allegedly walking off with it. That’s exactly what’s unfolding with Leroy Nabors, a former IT contractor turned full-time employee at MrBeast YouTube LLC (“Beast”) — the content machine built by digital juggernaut, Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast. According to a newly filed federal lawsuit in North Carolina, Nabors is accused of swiping thousands of confidential files, including trade secrets detailing how Donaldson and his team develops its uniquely successful videos.

The complaint alleges that Nabors stole thousands of confidential files and planted hidden cameras throughout MrBeast’s offices. Among the files? Financials, investor cap tables, and maybe most valuable of all — the closely-guarded strategies behind how MrBeast churns out viral YouTube videos unlike most others in the world. Nabors, who joined the company as a contractor in July 2023 and went full-time by February 2024, allegedly broke multiple agreements, including an NDA. He also subcontracted IT work to Vine Networks LLC, a company run by his daughter, giving him full access to the backend systems powering Beast’s massive media machine. Despite claiming he wiped the files, Nabors allegedly kept syncing data to a personal Dropbox account and has refused to return materials. Beast also claims it discovered a rogue mini-PC hooked up to their server with remote-access software — all traced back to Nabors — plus several hidden cameras, which no one else on staff recalls installing. The feeds, the company says, may still be controlled by Nabors or his daughter’s company.

Now heading into mediation, the lawsuit demands damages and a permanent injunction to force Nabors to return everything he allegedly took. Beast says the stolen data contains trade secrets protected under federal and state law — and that a leak could torpedo investor trust, blow up partnerships, and expose the very formula that’s kept MrBeast miles ahead in the content game.

While going viral is usually the goal in the creator economy, this isn’t the kind of viral Leroy Nabors was aiming for. And much of this drama might’ve been avoided with a better grasp of the basics: trade secrets are protected by federal law — specifically, the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) — and both employees and employers have responsibilities under it. For Nabors, that means understanding that copying, retaining, or disclosing confidential business strategies can land you in serious legal trouble. For Beast, it’s a wake-up call: even the most innovative content empire needs strong internal controls. Training staff, enforcing NDAs, and implementing DTSA-consistent safeguards — like monitoring data access and restricting subcontractor permissions — aren’t just legal niceties. They’re essential defenses in a world where the true value often lies not just in the content, but in the strategy behind it.

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