Apple to Pay $95M to Settle Lawsuit Accusing Siri of Spying

Apple has agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action lawsuit that alleged private communications by current or former users of devices carrying the Siri virtual assistant were recorded by the tech giant.

The proposed settlement was filed on Dec. 31, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, per the Associated Press.

The preliminary agreement, which must be approved by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White, would signal the end of a five-year legal battle after a number of customers filed a lawsuit accusing Siri of recording their conversations without their knowledge or consent.

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“Individuals who have purchased or used Siri Devices and interacted with Siri have not consented to Apple recording conversations where 'Hey Siri' was not uttered or where they did not otherwise perform a gesture intending to activate Siri, such as pressing and holding down the home button on a device for a certain period of time. Similarly, minors who did not purchase Apple products or set them up in their homes have not consented to these recordings,” according to the original 2019 complaint obtained by PEOPLE.

“Significantly, Apple knows that unauthorized recordings are common and as such tasks its human reviewers with, among other things, identifying whether Siri was deliberately activated or not,” the complaint later added. “Despite this, Apple has not informed consumers they are regularly being recorded without consent.”

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The original complaint also stated that had customers known that Apple were recording their conversations, they would have not purchased the Siri-enabled devices.

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According to the new proposed settlement filing, which was reviewed by PEOPLE, Apple agreed to pay $95 million into a settlement fund. It also noted that U.S.-based members of the settlement class include current and former Siri device customers whose confidential or private communications were obtained by Apple and/or shared with third parties through an unintended Siri activation from Sept. 17, 2014, through Dec. 31, 2024.

Once the agreement is approved by the court, settlement class members, which reportedly could number in the tens of millions, can submit claims for up to five Siri devices. Those who submit a valid claim may receive up to $20 per device.

The proposed settlement also stated that Apple has denied and continues to deny all alleged wrongdoing and liability, adding that “this Agreement shall not be construed in any fashion as an admission of liability or wrongdoing by Apple.” 

Read the original article on People