Trust is the backbone of any workplace. Especially in startups. But what happens when that trust is misused within days of joining? A shocking incident involving a newly hired employee and ₹2 lakh worth of branded shoes has sparked debate across the startup ecosystem. What started as backend access quickly turned into a costly lesson in digital security and internal controls.
A freshly hired employee apparently created many 100% discount codes, used them to order branded shoes worth around ₹2 lakh, and then departed the company before anyone could figure out what had happened. This strange story has left both employers and internet users in disbelief. What began as ordinary backend access swiftly became an expensive vulnerability and a warning about digital accountability, supervision, and trust in the workplace.
Was it a deliberate act of fraud or a cunning exploitation of a system flaw? Online discussion regarding recruiting procedures, internal controls, and how susceptible businesses are in the era of e-commerce has been triggered by the occurrence.
This narrative has all the components of a corporate thriller, yet it’s true — from joy over a new position to an unexpected departure.
What Exactly Happened?
We hired a CS person a couple of months ago. Within the first week of joining he made INR 2L of 100% discount orders – sent to his friends and quit in a week.
When caught – initially he decided to cooperate and returned half the shoes but the other half were used etc.
Then he… https://t.co/OyxgNOq2OP
— Arjun (@arjuns__) February 21, 2026
Singh claims that a few months ago, the business employed a computer science specialist. However, the employee allegedly abused backend access to create numerous full-discount coupons within days of starting work.
“A few months ago, we brought on a computer science specialist,” Singh wrote in his post. “He made INR 2L of 100% discount orders within the first week of joining, sent them to his friends and quit in a week.” The employee’s friends and relatives received the orders, which were purportedly valued at ₹2 lakh.
Did The Company Recover The Loss?
The business confronted the worker after identifying the problem. He first consented to assist and return the goods.
Singh stated, “At first, he chose to cooperate and returned half the shoes, but the other half were used, etc.” “After we told him to return the goods or pay us back, he began threatening us with legal notices that we were harassing him!”
The remaining sneakers could not be recovered because they had already been used, but half of them were retrieved. When the former employee allegedly started threatening the business with legal action, alleging harassment, the situation worsened.
Brand Learned A Lesson
Gully Labs was forced by the incident to fortify its internal procedures and implement more stringent security measures in order to stop future abuses of this kind. Singh said that the episode served as a teaching tool for the expanding company.
Similar internal security issues were brought up in a tweet by another businessman, Akshay Jain, to which Singh was replying.
“Brands face a new set of obstacles when they expand. I never imagined that security concerns would force me to protect client information and order exports from members of the same company,” Jain commented on X. “It adds complexity but there’s no choice.” His post highlighted a larger problem: it gets more difficult to control internal access to critical data as businesses grow.
Is This An Issue For The Entire Industry?
You won’t believe but that’s how Jabong got shutdown. They used to have flat 30% unlimited employees discount code and all their employees use to sell those discount codes to all family, friends, friends of friends and do unrecoverable damage to company.
— Ayush Tyagi 🇮🇳 (@AyushBhajpayi) February 21, 2026
The conversation soon grew beyond the experience of a single organization. Users of social media contributed their own thoughts.
One member on X wrote, “Difficulties of a low trust society.”
A previous e-commerce instance was mentioned in another comment: “You won’t believe but that’s how Jabong got shut down.” They used to have a flat 30% unlimited employee discount code which all of their employees used to sell to friends, relatives, and friends of friends, causing irreversible harm to the business, according to another.
Discussions over how employee discount plans might result in significant financial losses if they are not properly controlled were rekindled by the mention of Jabong.
What Is The Focus Of This Incident?
This post highlights a rising difficulty for startups: striking a balance between supervision and trust. Lean teams and open-access technologies are frequently used by startups, but as operations grow there is a greater chance of abuse.
The message is evident for many founders: client trust is just as vital as internal security.
This is not just a story about discount codes and sneakers. It is about systems. About oversight. About the cost of assuming trust without checks in place. Startups thrive on speed and flexibility. But as this episode shows, growth without internal controls can quickly become expensive. In today’s digital-first businesses, access is power. And unmanaged access can turn into a serious liability.
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