Apple agreed to pay $95m to settle a lawsuit accusing the company of turning Siri, its virtual assistant, into a spy that listened in on iPhone users and other popular devices as a betrayal of its long-standing commitment towards personal privacy.
There are still a few questions to answer about the proposed settlement that was filed earlier this week in federal court.
What was the case about?
The Wood Law Firm specializes in class action lawsuits. It filed a complaint against Apple shortly after The Guardian published an article claiming that Siri’s mic had been secretly turned on to record conversations without the users’ consent.
Apple released a software update in September 2014 that activated the virtual assistant with “Hey Siri” only. However, The Guardian reported that Siri was recording and listening to conversations at other times for the purpose of improving the company’s tech.
The story led to a lawsuit that later raised allegations Apple shared some of Siri’s secretly recorded conversations with advertisers who wanted to reach consumers more likely to purchase their products.
How many people will be covered by the settlement?
The U.S. government will pay claims for tens of millions of consumers who purchased or owned iPhones, iPads, and other devices with Siri between September 17, 2014, and the end of 2014.
What is the amount of money that eligible consumers will receive?
The settlement is still too early to say for sure, but each consumer will be limited to a maximum of $20 per Siri-enabled product. The final amount will depend on two factors: the number of claims, and the amount of settlement money that is used to pay for legal fees and other costs.
An administrator of claims estimates that only 3 to 5 percent of consumers who are eligible will submit claims. The attorneys in this case are currently seeking almost $30 million in legal fees and expenses. However, U.S. district judge Jeffrey White who oversees the case in Oakland could lower that figure. The settlement terms will be reviewed at a court hearing on February 14.
Has Apple broken laws?
Apple could have violated federal laws on wiretaps and other privacy statutes if the allegations were true. Apple, however, vehemently denied all allegations and claimed that the company would have been cleared if the case had gone to court.
The company did not immediately respond to Friday’s request for comment.
The lawyers representing the consumers claimed that Apple’s behavior was so egregious, that it could have been liable to pay $1.5 billion if the company lost the case.
Apple has not explained why it settled the case, but major companies have decided that it is more cost-effective to settle class action cases than continue to incur legal fees and risk bad publicity. Apple’s core value of privacy was also attacked in the lawsuit, which framed it as a fundamental human right.
Apple’s $95 million is a pittance. Since September 2014 the company has made total profits of over $700 billion. This streak of success has helped to propel Apple’s stock value up to $3.7 trillion.
Should I be concerned about the possibility that microphones in other devices could be used to spy on me?
Perhaps. In a San Jose federal court, in California, a case similar to that filed against Siri against Google is still active. The virtual assistant included in Android software has been widely used on smartphones for many years.
How do I disable Siri?
Follow these steps to turn off Apple’s Virtual Assistant:
- Settings Siri & Search.
- Press the Side button to activate Siri.
- When a pop-up appears, tap Turn off Siri.
To disable the microphone on your iPhone, you can do the following: Go to Settings and select the app. Then toggle the Microphone off.
