Lady Reveals On TikTok That She Took Company Training Documents When She Resigned
She trolled them.
A 28-year-old woman just turned her resignation into a viral TikTok saga, and now the comments are doing more damage than the job itself. The clip racked up millions of views, with people zooming in on one messy detail: she revealed she took company training documents when she left.
In the video, she basically framed it as no big deal, then followed up when the backlash hit. That’s where it got complicated, because commenters warned that taking corporate info or physical materials without permission can turn a “personal story” into a legal headache, fast.
And once the threat intelligence manager example about a laid-off employee and a competitor surfaced, the internet had a new question to chew on, how far is too far when you’re posting your exit drama online.
She's snitching on... herself.
@_queerbiganThat first TikTok made her former employer’s training materials the main character, and the comment section immediately started arguing whether she crossed a line.
Since the video went viral, many commenters have shared their thoughts on whether she had the right to take the documents.
Some commenters were doubtful.
@_queerbiganHere's more undoubtful comments.
@_queerbigan
Some opined that she was exposing herself to legal action by talking about it online.
@_queerbigan
Then she posted a follow-up saying she doubts her former employer would take action, which only made the “what if they do?” crowd louder.
This is like the worker who labeled their lunch to expose a thief, and it spiraled fast.
The whole debate got real when Jon Heimerl described how a competitor offer got pulled after proprietary R and D info allegedly showed up.
More than 2.9 million people watched the video after it went viral. In response to the criticism the post attracted, she posted a follow-up video saying that she doubts her former employer would take any action against her.
"The situation is really not as crazy as you all are making it seem," she said. "But thanks for thinking my life is exciting."
Here's the video that's now deleted on TikTok.
Now you’re left staring at the same fork in the road, whether her deleted TikTok helped her, or just created a trail her ex-employer could point to.
Jon Heimerl, manager of the threat intelligence team at NTT Security, says departing employees risk getting into trouble when they take corporate information or physical assets without their employer's permission.
"I know a company that laid off an employee who then walked into a competitor's office with proprietary information about a big R&D project...
The company sent a letter to the competitor from a lawyer that said, 'We know you hired this employee. We have proof that he took proprietary information with him, and we are going to sue you and the employee.'
The competitor withdrew its employment offer, and it took the ex-employee twelve months to find another job," Heimerl said.
In Summary...
Even if you dislike your job and your boss, it is best to resign in a way that upholds your professional reputation and ensures that you will continue to have excellent ties with your employer in the future.
This way, you keep the door open for future opportunities and recommendations. OP could've handled the situation better, in my opinion.
What do you think?
The only thing more explosive than resigning is resigning on camera with company documents in the background.
Before you judge her TikTok, read how one employee handled a coworker stealing office fridge lunches, should I report the lunch thief.
