Apple is preparing to pay $95 million to settle a five-year-old lawsuit alleging the iPhone maker invaded the privacy of Siri users.
The lawsuit, filed in August 2019, alleges that the tech giant illegally recorded the private conversations of its digital assistant users without their consent.
“The settlement, if approved, will resolve plaintiffs’ allegations that the confidential or private communications of Siri device purchasers were obtained by Apple and/or shared with third parties without their consent as a result of an inadvertent activation of Siri .”
Apple will also be required to confirm that it has “permanently deleted individual Siri audio recordings collected by Apple prior to October 2019” within six months of the settlement being approved.
Additionally, the settlement, if approved, would require the iPhone maker to publish information explaining to users how to sign up for a feature known as “Improve Siri,” which will allow Apple to view audio clips of the digital assistant’s interactions with with the aim of refining and advancing Siri. . Apple will also have to disclose what kind of data it collects through the Enhance Siri feature for those who opt in.
In the lawsuit, lead plaintiffs Fumiko Lopez and AL (who was a minor at the time the lawsuit was filed) allege that Apple illegally spied on them while they used Siri on the iPhone XR and iPhone 6, respectively.
“…Apple and these Siri devices unlawfully recorded Plaintiffs Lopez and AL without their consent on multiple occasions, including when they failed to say a wake phrase.
At no time did plaintiffs consent to these unlawful recordings. Apple doesn’t disclose that Siri devices record conversations that aren’t preceded by a wake phrase or gesture. Plaintiffs Lopez and AL therefore did not consent to being recorded by their Siri devices, respectively. Furthermore, Apple could not have obtained consent from plaintiff AL, a minor without an Apple account.”
A hearing has been proposed for February 14 to review the settlement terms.
Don’t miss a beat – Subscribe to receive email alerts straight to your inbox
Check price action
Follow us further XFacebook and Telegram
Surf to the Daily Hodl mix
Generated image: Midjourney
