In brief
In a preliminary agreement, Apple has decided to pay $95 million to resolve legal claims over its virtual assistant Siri, accused of listening to users without their consent. This settlement comes amid allegations that voice recordings from Siri interactions were improperly shared with advertisers. While Apple has denied any wrongdoing and committed to deleting certain audio recordings, claimants assert that the company recorded voice data even when users did not trigger Siri with the wake phrase “Hey, Siri.”
Apple faced a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of affected consumers, proposing a decision date of February 14 in an Oakland, California court. If the settlement is approved, eligible claimants in the U.S. could receive up to $20 for each Siri-enabled device owned between 2014 and 2019. Legal fees from the settlement may amount to about $30 million, with lawyers receiving 30% of the total payout. By settling, Apple avoids the unpredictability of a longer court trial and the potential for a larger financial penalty. The company has recently faced multiple class action lawsuits, including a $500 million settlement for allegedly slowing down iPhones and a nearly $490 million agreement related to another class action in the UK.
