Apple has agreed to pay $95 million in cash to settle a class-action lawsuit filed by people who said the Siri voice assistant violated their privacy.
Reuters reports this.
Apple owners complained that the company regularly recorded their private conversations when they accidentally activated Siri, and disclosed them, among other things, to advertisers.
Voice assistants are typically activated when people use special words, such as “Hey Siri”. The two plaintiffs said their mentions of Olive Garden restaurants and Air Jordan sneakers in conversations then led to advertisements for those establishments and shoes.
Apple has already filed a preliminary settlement agreement in federal court in Oakland, California, and it now awaits approval by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White.
If the agreement is approved, the compensation will apply to people in the US who had either an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, MacBook, iMac, HomePod, iPod touch, or Apple TV with Siri support between September 17, 2014, and December 31, 2024.
However, the user must meet another important criterion — swear that they accidentally activated Siri during a conversation that was supposed to be confidential. The maximum compensation amount per person is $20.
Reuters estimated that the $95 million in total compensation offered is roughly Appleʼs profit for nine hours. The companyʼs net profit in its most recent fiscal year was $93.74 billion.
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