Mashable: If your phone's battery has ever died unexpectedly fast while you were using Facebook or Messenger, it may not be an accident.

If your phone's battery has ever died unexpectedly fast while you were using Facebook or Messenger, it may not be an accident. A former data scientist at Meta claims that, as part of its internal app testing, the business can discreetly drain users' Android and iPhone batteries.

According to a complaint filed by a former Facebook employee, the social media platform can sneakily drain its users' cellphone batteries.

Data scientist George Hayward claims that "negative testing" allows tech companies to "surreptitiously" drain a user's mobile power in order to test features or issues like the app's performance or how quickly an image might load.

Claiming he was sacked in November for refusing to participate in negative testing, Hayward, 33, says in a case filed in Manhattan Federal Court that he was wrongfully terminated.

According to NYPost report, Hayward started working for a six-figure salary in October 2019. He was part of the team of the Facebook Messenger app, which is an essential communication tool in many regions since it allows users to exchange messages, make phone calls, and even make video calls to one another. According to the Digital 2021 Global Overview Report, Messenger is the fourth most popular social media network with 1.3 billion monthly active users.

The case against Facebook's parent company, Meta Platforms, claims that cutting off someone's phone batteries puts them at risk, especially in situations when they need to speak with others, including the police or other emergency responders who could be anyone.

He refused to do this test, and that telling his employer "No, that's illegal" was not warmly received.

He claims he is unaware of how many people have been affected by Facebook's negative testing but is convinced the company engages in the exercise because he was given an internal training document titled "How to Run Thoughtful Negative Tests," which detailed the company's involvement in such experiments.

It was the worst document he had ever seen in his line of work, he added.

Dan Kaiser, Hayward's attorney, claimed that most individuals had no idea that Facebook or other social media corporations can purposely drain a cellphone battery.

The attorney for Hayward stated that his client is confident in the accusations and has withdrawn the complaint, which sought unspecified damages because Hayward is obligated to go to arbitration.