FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried will be allowed to use a flip phone with "no internet capabilities" as part of modifications to his conditions of release, prosecutors said.
In a letter sent Friday to US District Judge Lewis Kaplan, seen by Insider, prosecutors outlined the proposed changes that will limit Bankman-Fried to text messages and voice calls following allegations that he had talked to former employees on Signal, an encrypted messaging app.
His use of Signal and virtual private networks (VPNs) angered the judge, who threatened to revoke Bankman-Fried's bail ahead of his October trial over the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange.
He will be allowed to use "a flip phone or other non-smartphone with either no internet capabilities or internet capabilities disabled," prosecutors wrote. However, Bankman-Fried cannot communicate with "current or former employees of FTX or Alameda."
He can also use a laptop with limited functionality and must log on through a VPN that allows access to websites for two purposes: to prepare for his defense, and those that prosecutors deem pose no danger. Those sites include Netflix, Doordash, Uber Eats, Major League Baseball, and the National Football League.
Security software logging his online activities must be installed and prosecutors have the right to do periodic checks.
The judge must agree to the proposed changes before they take effect.
Bankman-Fried, who pleaded not guilty, was released on a $250 million bond sponsored by two men who appear to have ties to Stanford University, where Bankman-Fried's parents work. He is confined to his parents' house with a monitoring device around his ankle.
His parents are also required to provide sworn statements listing serial numbers and MAC addresses for their respective iPhones, Apple laptops, and a shared desktop iMac. They will also be required to install security software on their devices that will take periodic videos and selfies of them, the letter stated.
Representatives for Bankman-Fried declined to comment.
Correction: March 8, 2023 — This article has been updated to reflect that the changes to Sam Bankman-Fried's conditions of release are yet to take effect as the judge must first agree to them.
