In order to resolve a lawsuit alleging that the privacy-conscious firm used its virtual assistant Sirito to eavesdrop on users of its iPhone and other popular devices, Apple has agreed to pay $95 million.
A five-year-old lawsuit centered on claims that Apple secretly turned on Siri to record conversations through iPhones and other devices with the virtual assistant for over ten years would be settled by the proposed settlement, which was filed Tuesday in a federal court in Oakland, California.
Even when users did not attempt to engage the virtual assistant using the Hey, Siri trigger phrases, the purported recordings allegedly took place. According to the lawsuit, some of the recorded chats were subsequently given to advertisers in an effort to market their goods to customers who were more likely to be interested in them.
The claims of a spying Siri ran counter to Apple’s longstanding pledge to safeguard its users’ privacy, which CEO Tim Cook has frequently presented as a struggle to uphold a basic human right.
In the deal, which still needs to be approved by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White, Apple is not admitting any wrongdoing. The case’s attorneys have suggested holding a court hearing in Oakland on February 14 to go over the terms.
Tens of millions of customers who purchased iPhones and other Apple products between September 17, 2014, and the end of last year may submit claims if the settlement is accepted. Up to $20 could be given to each customer for each Siri-enabled device covered by the settlement; however, the amount paid may be lowered or raised based on the number of claims. Court filings anticipate that only 3 to 5 percent of eligible consumers will file claims.
The number of devices on which eligible consumers may seek compensation will be restricted to five.
A portion of the $705 billion in revenues that Apple has kept since September 2014 is represented by the settlement. Additionally, it’s a small portion of the about $1.5 billion that the consumer lawyers had calculated Apple may have to pay if the firm had been found to have violated eavesdropping and other privacy laws in a trial.
According to court filings, the lawsuit’s attorneys may request up to $29.6 million from the settlement money to pay for their fees and other costs.
— The Associated Press’s Michael Liedtke
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