Apple agrees to pay $95M in Siri privacy lawsuit
By: Eric Lagatta
USA Today
..... Apple has agreed to pay $95 million in a class-action lawsuit to uses who say some of their conversation were unwittingly recorded and shared by the company's voice-activated Siri assistant.
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The proposed settlement, which must still be approved by a federal judge, was filed December 31 [2024] in federal court in Oakland, California. Apple denied wrongdoing while agreeing to the settlement, which could pay many U.S. Apple customers up to $20 per Siri-enabled device.
..... Customers in the lawsuit said that many of tier conversations were captured by the Siri voice assistant without their knowledge or consent, and they accused Apple of violating their privacy by sharing those recordings with third parties.
..... If the settlement is approved, it would end a five-year battle.
..... Voice assistants like Siri are designed to respond to user queries when people use a phase - such as "Hey, Siri" - to trigger them.
..... But mobile device owners included in the class action lawsuit complained that Siri could be inadvertently activated, allowed Apple to routinely record conversations that suers thought were private. Those conversations were then alleged to have been disclosed to third parties, such as advertisers, according to the lawsuit.
..... Two plaintiffs said their mentions of Air Jordan sneakers and Olive Garden restaurants, triggered ads for those products. Another said he got ads for a brand-name surgical treatment after discussing it, he thought privately, with his doctor, Reuters reported.
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The initial calls-action suit against Apple came after a 2019 report from the Guardian found that Apple third-party contractors regularly heard confidential information.
..... Apple said in a statement to the Guardian at the time that only a small portion of data was shared to help improve Siri. However, a whistle-blower told the outlet that accidental activations were common, claiming that a sound as mundane as a zipper could trigger siri.
..... Apple customers who brought a Siri-enabled device between September 17, 2014, and December 31, 2024, may qualify for a share of the proposed settlement.
...... The class period began in the year when Apple incorporated the "Hey, Siri" feature - which allows suers to active the assistant by speaking wake words rather than pressing a button - that customers allege led to the unauthorized recordings.
..... Class members, estimated in the tens of millions, may submit claims for up to five Siri-enabled products, potentially receiving up to $20 per device.
..... Claimants must also confirm under oath that they have experienced Siri listening to a "conversation intended to be private. Those who take settlement money also forfeit their right to sue Apple for related claims.
..... The terms of the settlement would also require Apple to "confirm" the deletion of Siri audio recordings it collected before October 2019 and publish a web page that better explains the company's opt-in "Improve Siri" program.
Contributing: Reuters.