Google engineer Michele Spagnuolo faces federal charges after allegedly earning $1.2 million through illegal insider trading on Polymarket. Prosecutors claim the software engineer used restricted search data to bet on who would be the most searched people of 2025, violating securities laws with nonpublic information Google limits to select employees.

The criminal complaint, unsealed Wednesday, alleges Spagnuolo made fraudulent wagers based on confidential Google data that revealed musicians Kendrick Lamar and d4vd ranked among the top 5 most searched people. Prosecutors accuse him of both fraud and money laundering related to his activities on the prediction market platform last year, marking one of the first cases involving major tech company data and cryptocurrency-based prediction markets.

This case highlights the growing intersection of Big Tech data and financial markets, raising concerns about how companies protect valuable information. Polymarket, a crypto-based prediction platform, faces scrutiny as regulators increasingly examine digital markets where insider trading might be harder to detect than in traditional financial systems. The prosecution signals a new front in enforcement efforts targeting misuse of proprietary corporate data.