Apple has agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging its Siri virtual assistant recorded users’ private conversations without consent, according to court documents filed Tuesday in Oakland federal court.
The settlement, which requires judicial approval, would resolve a five-year legal battle over claims that Siri was accidentally activated by trigger words and subsequently captured private discussions that were then shared with third parties, including advertisers.
Apple device owners eligible for up to $20 settlement
Under the proposed agreement, eligible users who owned Siri-enabled devices between September 17, 2014, and December 31, 2024, could receive up to $20 per device for up to five devices. To qualify, claimants must declare under oath that Siri activated without prompting during private conversations.
Several plaintiffs reported receiving targeted advertisements after Siri allegedly recorded their private discussions. One user claimed receiving surgical treatment ads after a confidential conversation with their doctor, while others reported seeing promotions for Air Jordan sneakers and Olive Garden restaurants following private mentions of these brands.
Apple required to delete Siri audio recordings, create webpage for “Improve Siri” program
The settlement also requires Apple to confirm the deletion of Siri audio recordings collected before October 2019 and create a webpage explaining its “Improve Siri” program. While agreeing to the settlement, Apple continues to deny any wrongdoing.
The issue stems from Apple’s 2014 introduction of the “Hey Siri” feature, which allowed hands-free activation of the virtual assistant. Users later discovered that Siri could mistakenly interpret other phrases as its wake words, leading to unintended recordings that were sometimes reviewed by human contractors worldwide.
