Apple
Agrees to Pay $95 Million to Settle Siri Privacy Lawsuit (Connecting the Dots: Apple & Soros Funding, All
Networking)
People
sued Apple over what they said was Siri’s unauthorized recording and disclosure
of their conversations.
The
Epoch Times
By
Zachary Stieber 1/2/2025 Updated:1/2/2025
Apple
has agreed to pay $95 million to settle a lawsuit filed over its Siri voice
assistant, according to a newly filed court document.
Lawyers
for people who sued Apple
after they said Siri recorded their conversations and shared the conversations
with advertisers told a federal court in California that Apple does not oppose
their proposed settlement, which features a payment of $95 million.
“The
Settlement, if approved, will resolve Plaintiffs’ allegations that Siri Device
purchasers’ confidential or private communications were obtained by Apple
and/or were shared with third parties without their consent as a result of an
unintended Siri activation,” the lawyers said in the Dec. 31 filing.
Plaintiffs
said
in the most recent version of their lawsuit that Apple illegally recorded their
confidential conversations despite promising that Siri would only listen to,
record, and share conversations with permission.
Plaintiffs
said that some of their conversations in their home that should not have been
recorded were used by Apple and its partners to target them with advertisements
for Olive Garden, Air Jordans, and other products.
“Because
the intercepted conversations took place in private to the exclusion of others,
only through Apple’s surreptitious recording could these specific
advertisements be pinpointed to Plaintiffs Lopez and A.L,” the suit stated.
Apple
said in filings that Siri lets users know when it is recording and that the
court should dismiss the suit.
A
federal judge only threw out part of the suit, leading to the new proposed
settlement.
Lawyers
for the plaintiffs said the court should certify a class that includes all
people who own or owned a Siri device, live in the United States and its
territories, and whose confidential communications were obtained by Apple “as a
result of unintended Siri activation” between Sept. 17, 2014, and the date of
the settlement. The former date is when Apple introduced the “Hey, Siri,”
activation feature.
A
notice sent to owners and former owners would direct them to submit a claim
form through www.Lopezvoiceassistantsettlement.com to get a chunk of the $95
million.
The
lawyers for the plaintiffs can seek up to $29.6 million for fees and expenses,
according to the proposed settlement.
As
part of the settlement, Apple will confirm within six months that it has
permanently deleted Siri audio recordings collected by the company prior to
October 2019. Apple must also post a webpage explaining how users can opt in to
an option to improve Siri on Siri devices, and detailing what information Apple
stores from users who decide to opt in.
Apple
and a lawyer representing the plaintiffs did not return The Epoch Times’
requests for comment.
U.S.
District Judge Jeffrey White must still approve the settlement.
Connecting
the Dots:
Wilmer
Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr was the lobby firm for Apple
Inc.
C. Boyden Gray was
a partner at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr and is a
director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).
Open Society Foundations was a funder
for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and
George Soros is the founder & chairman
for the Open Society Foundations and was the chairman for the Foundation
to Promote Open Society.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for
the Climate Reality Project.
Albert A. Gore Jr. is
the chairman for the Climate Reality Project and a director
at Apple Inc.
Steve Jobs was a
co-founder & chairman for Apple Inc. and married to Laurene
Powell Jobs.
Laurene Powell
Jobs was married to Steve Jobs and a director at the New
America Foundation.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for
the New America Foundation.
George Soros was the chairman
for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.
Eric
E. Schmidt is the chairman of the New America
Foundation, was a funder for the New America Foundation and a
director at Apple Inc.
Andrea Jung is
a director at Apple Inc. and was a trustee at the Committee
for Economic Development.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for
the Committee for Economic Development and the Aspen Institute
(think tank).
George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation
to Promote Open Society and is the founder & chairman for
the Open Society Foundations.
Open Society Foundations was a funder
for the Committee for Economic Development and the Bill,
Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation.
Bloomberg
Family Foundation was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think
tank) and the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation.
Walter Isaacson is
a director at the Bloomberg Family Foundation, the president &
CEO for the Aspen Institute (think tank) and the writer for
the Steve Jobs (2011 autobiography).
Lisa P. Jackson is
a director at the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation
and a VP for Apple Inc.
Open Society Foundations was a funder for
the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation and the Center
for American Progress.
George Soros is the founder
& chairman for the Open Society Foundations, was the chairman
for the Foundation to Promote Open Society and a supporter for
the Center for American Progress.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for
the Center for American Progress.
Apple Inc. was
a funder for the Center for American Progress.
Steve Jobs was the
co-founder & chairman for Apple Inc., authorized his biography
for Walter Isaacson to write and married to Laurene Powell
Jobs.
Walter Isaacson was
the writer for the Steve Jobs (2011 autobiography), is a director
at the Bloomberg Family Foundation and the president & CEO for
the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Bloomberg
Family Foundation was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think
tank).
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder
for the Aspen Institute (think tank) and New America Foundation.
George Soros was the chairman
for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.
Laurene Powell
Jobs was a director at the New America Foundation and married
to Steve Jobs.
Resources:
Past Research
DOJ
Lawsuit: Apple Monopolizes US Smartphone Market (Connecting the Dots: Apple,
DOJ, The Federal Trade Commission & Soros Funding, All Networking) (Past Research on Apple)
Thursday,
March 21, 2024
https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2024/03/doj-lawsuit-apple-monopolizes-us.html
How
Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs’ widow, has played a role in the rise of Kamala
Harris (Connecting the Dots: Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs, Apple, The FEC
& Soros Funding, All Networking) (Past Research
on Apple)
Thursday,
October 24, 2024
https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2024/10/how-laurene-powell-jobs-steve-jobs.html
Apple
to Spend $200 Million Supporting Corning Plant in Kentucky (Past Research on Apple)
Saturday,
May 13, 2017
https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2017/05/apple-to-spend-200-million-supporting.html
AI
to Flip the Switch on Google as Default Search Engine (Connecting the Dots:
Google, Apple, Stanford, Microsoft & Soros Funding, All Networking) (Past Research on Apple)
Wednesday,
August 7, 2024
https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2024/08/ai-to-flip-switch-on-google-as-default.html
No comments:
Post a Comment