Apple has agreed to pay $95 million in cash to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit that claims its voice-activated Siri assistant violated users’ privacy.
A preliminary settlement was filed Tuesday night in federal court in Oakland, California, and requires the approval of U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White.
Mobile device owners complained that Apple routinely recorded their private conversations after they inadvertently activated Siri, revealing those conversations to third parties such as advertisers.
Voice assistants typically react when people use “warm words” like “Hey, Siri.”
The two plaintiffs said that mentions of Air Jordan shoes and the Olive Garden restaurant triggered advertising for those products. Another said he got it after discussing ads for a brand-name surgical treatment, he thought privately with his doctor.
The class period runs from 17 September 2014 to 31 December 2024. It started when Siri added a “Hey, Siri” feature that allegedly led to unauthorized recordings.
Class members, estimated to number in the millions, can receive up to $20 for each Siri-enabled device, such as iPhones and Apple Watches.
Apple denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company and its lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to similar requests. They can seek up to $28.5 million in fees plus $1.1 million in costs from the settlement fund.
The $95 million is roughly nine hours of profit for Apple, which had net income of $93.74 billion in its most recent fiscal year.
A similar lawsuit by users of Google’s voice assistant is pending in federal court in San Jose, California, in the same district as the Oakland court. The plaintiffs are represented by the same law firm as in the Apple case.