Apple to pay $95m to settle Siri 'listening' lawsuit | BBC News

[@securoserv1405]

95 million dollars for something this serious is ridiculous

[@kkaka26]

To be fair, settling a lawsuit does not mean they're guilty.

[@Userhdiekejeheu7w]

yea because a company is going to pay $95m on something they didnt do

[@kkaka26]

@@Userhdiekejeheu7w you just said 95M is ridiculous. It’s nothing to them, sometimes big corporations prefer to pay a settlement instead of having their business and practices exposed in court

[@xray2785]

@@Userhdiekejeheu7w yes, this happens all the time. Because it removes the risk of the decision going against that party, and often it is cheaper to settle than to win

[@ry1023.3]

@@xray2785not always, in Theo case it’d have been better to win. The pr disaster will likely cause more damage. Settling, in the publics eyes, is an admission of guilt

[@TheGoldenboyo]

Just to give you full context...Apple's current net worth is $4T...which means that this $100m fine is equivalent to 1/50,000 of their overall net value. So if you had a *$100k salary,* imagine being fined *two dollars.* That's what this means. Yeah I'd say they've got away with it.

[@xray2785]

@@TheGoldenboyo if the law firm running the class action were confident that it would win, then it wouldn’t settle, and certainly not for only $95 million

[@BryantPP]

I guess the moral of that story is that we're coddled, lazy fucks who can't be bothered to figure things out for ourselves and rely on a device to do it for us. Meh... who cares right.

[@ry1023.3]

@@BryantPPit doesn’t do everything for you, especially Siri that thing can only answer the most basic basic questions

[@SparkTech-dcik]

If Apple's net worth was $4 billion and they were only fined $100 million, this would be a slight slap on the wrist. At this rate, there is a system that is signaling that corporations Fitness companies like Apple can 'buy' the right to violate the law without stirring up anything? It's worth pondering the meaning of fairness and responsibility in business.

[@ossBASHA]

Salary would be equal to revenue in the corporate world.

[@hongyu_he]

What most disappointing is that despite sniffing on my conversations for such a long time, Siri is still so dumb 😅

[@Xenc5]

Here are some results from the web:

[@24-Card]

PERFECT! 🍻

[@Mr_RA22]

Well said

[@arobyte]

I honestly think she got dumber over the years!

[@Lruiz3865]

This must be the cleverest comment ever 😂

[@Introverted100]

Apple: Customers spoke, and we listened

[@jasonhewitt1129]

Great stuff 😂

[@juice6521]

Heh

[@dkent3853]

That’s siriously funny!

[@zacklevy1449]

@@dkent3853🎉🎉🎉🎉😂😂😂 here’s another like for you as well as the other comment I liked 😂😂😂🎉🎉

[@StardustLegacyFighter]

Apple: You're hired!

[@D101-e1s]

I think we need to start sending CEO’s to jail for a minimum 2 years for misleading consumers!!

[@jessee-l1q]

only 2 years?

[@matthewJamesKendell]

Absolutely. Apple' criminality and corruption is evil.

[@TommyChardonneret]

@D101-e1s Yes, indeed, and maybe even longer MANDATORY TIME! But the prisons to which they SHOULD be sent are those with murderers, rapists, arsonists, etc AND NOT the "Club Fed" country club prisons in the USA set up to serve "white collar" multi-million dollar WALL STREET THIEVES and these sorts of wealthy interests' functionaries. There certainly are TWO systems of justice in the USA. But if there were only ONE KIND OF FEDERAL PRISON FOR ALL here, then so-called White Collar crime would PLUMET PRECIPITOUSLY!

[@H4NDCRAFTED]

They got too much ‘sauce’ on people , never gonna happen. Info is power

[@TommyChardonneret]

@D101-e1s Thought you and anyone else reading these comments would like to know that my previous favorable reply to your comment was briefly posted, but then "disappeared." As a former federal government attorney in Washington DC, I mentioned the separate country club "facilities" in which corporate thieves serve their time. Guess that was too much of a truth bomb for the overseers of this comment thread?

[@DaRkLoRd-rc5yu]

We all knew this was happening. we saw it happen in adverts showing for things that had been taked about near your phone. why did it take so long to prove it?

[@xray2785]

Nothing has been proven, that’s the whole point of the settlement, there is no admission of wrongdoing. Seeing adverts after discussing something is circumstantial evidence of best. There are a variety of ways that could’ve happened including through cookies.

[@JavenarchX]

Exactly. I always deduced that it was my friend's Apple phones that were triggering ad events...

[@ohmoflife1]

@@xray2785talked about isn’t the issue, not things looked up on the phone. Therefore cookies (etc.) have nothing to do with it.

[@BryantPP]

"we" were too busy playing Fortnite and shopping on Temu to care, by we I mean YOU... I NEVER enabled voice recognition on my iphone, or use/will ever use Alexa. I also have a strong suspicion Apple, or KZbin is tracking whether we are sitting in front of our screens, as soon as you get up an Ad immediately starts playing.

[@ry1023.3]

@@BryantPPwhy would they do that. If ad companies found out they did that, there could be a class action law suit

[@Trevlead]

This has happened to me more than once. Once my wife asked if you could still take a transatlantic trip on a passenger ship. I replied, that yes you could take the Queen May 2. The next day I started getting ads for the Queen Mary 2. I never had any cruise line advertising before in my life.

[@tulipsontheorgan]

Same but I have Siri disabled

[@alejandromartinez893]

Google Chrome does the same on a computer if you have a microphone.

[@simonsimon325]

The idea that it only affects people in the US must be wrong. I was in Spain in 2018, and the air con broke in the apartment, so we were having conversations about it. Next thing my brother is getting ads for air con related businesses on his phone. It's not like we googled it cuz it wasn't our responsibility to get it fixed, we were just talking about it. We live in the UK where air con just isn't a thing. We thought at the time it was a very unlikely coincidence that we'd suddenly get those ads right when we were having air con trouble at the only time that year it would have been possible. And certainly the only time we'd talk about air con.

[@graham1155]

It’s still happening

[@TheCrisses]

But is it Siri, or have people given other apps access to the mic? Alexa app, any Meta apps (Facebook Live, Messenger calls, Whats App…) , or any Google apps (including KZbin, Waze…), or anything related to X (like Spaces) could as easily end up doing the same. I'm wondering how the ads were delivered… how does one know it was Apple & Siri? Settling out of court doesn't mean Apple is guilty…it means Apple doesn't want to go to court and have to divulge information about their phone security.

[@singleorigin3194]

can't wait to get my 1 dollar 43 cents

[@BA-pz3lo]

Lmao we lost our rights for 1 dollar

[@robstuart1385]

.7 cents

[@benjoe999]

You will not. This is how they pay for politicians who are letting them to do what they want.

[@Eddygeek18]

It says at the end of the video, $20 per device.

[@singleorigin3194]

@Eddygeek18 thats an estimate depending on how mamy claims there are. It could be more than 20 less than 20 or buck 43 exactly lol

[@NILREM2146]

Paying to who ?

[@equalitypeace1695]

Good question . Paying to themselves

[@SBarbati]

This is the real question that people should be asking.

[@justinbennitt835]

It literally takes 20 seconds to find out who gets the money. Can't you even be bothered to search for answers to simple questions any more?

[@6thmason646]

@@justinbennitt835OP is asking as to highlight the concerns over us users as the victim but not getting any of the settlement rather than actually wanting to know the answer

[@d1and0n1y6]

Only in the US you can claim. If you are not, there is something you can do(not sure as of how tho)

[@juice6521]

Hey, Siri. Order me the new Galaxy phone.

[@wanderinggeri8477]

😂

[@StrangerDanger491]

Samsung do it too. Specifically the 'hey google' part of Android. On both Samsung and Motorola with Android I've noticed many ads and youtube video suggestions related soley to conversations I've had near my phone that are nothing like what the algorithm would typically suggest.

[@smittyvanjagermanjenson182]

Yes, flock to android, the ones who pay Apple to keep Google at the top of all search results, and do this listening to their customers thing at a much more efficient rate.

[@iAnasazi]

I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave.

[@GHnov]

​@@StrangerDanger491if you don't like it, TURN OFF ASSISTANT! At least when you turn it off, it's actually OFF.

[@Bolachas25]

Definitely not just in the US. Also in the UK.

[@KyleKeteku-cx7po]

Canada too

[@anfg7376]

and Djibouti

[@GamerNugget18]

@@anfg7376tf happening in djibouti dawggg 😭

[@simonsimon325]

We were in Spain in 2018 and the air con was faulty in the apartment, so naturally we were talking about it. Next thing my brother's getting air con related ads on his phone. As you know, air con just isn't a thing for Brits at home. It was an extraordinary coincidence that the only two week period of the year we would possibly talk about air con just happened to be the same time the ads showed up. It's not like we were googling it, we were just talking about the shite air con and how annoying it was.

[@H4NDCRAFTED]

Ligma too

[@domlisboa4024]

Ridiculous that this is just considered a problem in the USA. I have been an Apple customer for years and I constantly see ads or videos on KZbin that exactly match a conversation that I have just had. Most recently was last week. It’s disgusting that this happens everyone knows that it happens and governments do nothing about it.

[@thenecroyeti1]

It's because you're an NPC, in fact we all are. They don't need to listen to your conversations to read your mind, because they have such vast datasets linking all your online activity (social media, search, location, etc.), that the platforms can predict extremely accurately what types of goods/services you're in the market for.

[@rvdb7363]

​@@thenecroyeti1 yes! We crossed the point where they know a woman is pregnant before she does over a decade ago.

[@domlisboa4024]

@ you are incorrect. The last case was me discussing ready made doors vs custom made doors with a friend who wanted to buy one. I have never ever done an online search for this topic. The ad appeared within a couple of hours of the conversation. This type of thing happens all of the time. I have no social media accounts. The only online place where I actually write anything is here on KZbin to practice my English

[@DoubleDe]

You could just get rid of your phone

[@domlisboa4024]

@@DoubleDe that’s the same as saying move out of and abandon your home if you don’t like being robbed. What a strange thing to suggest.

[@Crawlerz2468]

wow 95 MILLION?! no way... they found it in their couch probably. I think they're missing three 0s on that fine.

[@xray2785]

@@Crawlerz2468 it’s not a fine there is no finding of wrongdoing. It’s an offer to settle with no admission of wrongdoing. Apple vehemently denies the allegations relating to sharing data with advertises, and quite frankly it’s not their business model to do that. Google and Meta however…

[@gooseywhispers]

Someone should go for jail for this

[@H4NDCRAFTED]

Yes , us for tolerating this , it’s not just Apple it’s obvious another big corp is doing this at a much worse level.

[@danielawendland1083]

Its not just apple.

[@smittyvanjagermanjenson182]

I'm just laughing at the fact that this sort of controversy is typically aimed at/reserved for Facebook/ Meta, then the most truly "your privacy is secure with us" company Apple is under this scrutiny lmao. Some people are idiots

[@LifeGeneralist]

Android doesn't claim it. Only Apple keep claiming that iPhones are super private, but it is the opposite

[@umer.on.youtube]

Fuck apple. Stop being slave to this unnovator country

[@kirishima638]

For Apple, $95m is an accounting error

[@neilkwok]

Why aren't we more outraged by this? 95 million only, seriously?! Is $20 per device the cost of someone's privacy?

[@JavenarchX]

I could tell this was happeing... They need to pay everyone.

[@denisemurphy3915]

But Siri will still be listening!

[@JerryLopezArtist]

exactly!

[@Walgriff]

95 MILLION? With an M? Is this a joke?

[@darv11]

Apple hasn't realized yet that it is CEO season.

[@pauljazzman408]

Oh dear Apple. They were supposed to be protect our privacy! Trust definitely lost. My wife always hated Siri. She was right!

[@VictorVictor-oq6dh]

I came up to a group of guys talking, and I said, “what are y’all doing? Watching the grass grow?” Next thing I know, I am seeing ads for lawnmowers.

[@aw8079]

a paltry sum for Apple. How about taking away some copyright protections as punishment instead of a fine?

[@ecto1996]

Apple is worth $3.8trillion, so $95m is peanuts.

[@kkaka26]

This is not a fine, they settled a lawsuit - They might not even be guilty to be fair. Actually the fact that it's so low kind of shows me they're not guilty. They probably settled to hide private stuff they don't want to show to the public.

[@Krytern]

​@@kkaka26Large amount if copium here

[@Scampi95]

It is the same in the UK too! iPhone 100% listens and the shows corresponding ads. It is an ourage.

[@JayP-Music]

Apple ain't the only ones doing it, how many times has your phone brought up adverts for things you've talked about but never searched for.

So 'who' gets the 95 million?

[@Moscow_Will_Burn]

The people who who brought the class action against Apple. Good for them. Shame more people don't do the same because Apple have been doing it globally for years and how they became so wealthy selling peoples data.

[@Secretgeek2012]

The lawyers.

[@Krytern]

​@@Moscow_Will_Burnno the lawyers get most of it

[@justinbennitt835]

@@Krytern true and false. As an individual beneficiary, the Wood Law Firm will be getting their fees, which will be more than a claim filed by any other individual. (U.S consumers who owned or purchased iPhones and other devices equipped with Siri from September 17, 2014, through the end of 2024.)

[@elgoognazo]

If it were Huawei, it would have been a much bigger problem

[@cesarsalgadosalgado2199]

A 4 trillion dollar company has spent over 10 years trying to make siri better and great and yet I haven't seen any changes and upgrades

[@brainites]

For more than a decade, I have lost track of how many times I have seen ads relating to recent OFFLINE conversations I have had mostly with user of Apple products.

[@shikshaplace5775]

For 10 years 😮

[@stewsaquarium1397]

Google is doing it all the time, I talk and then get an advertisement on what I am saying even though I have banned Google from my mic access.. MORE LAWSUITS!!!!!1

[@wokenflower]

What a world we live in.

[@Moscow_Will_Burn]

Why are you surprised that multi billion dollar mega corporations like Apple behave like this.

[@ouroborostechnologies696]

It doesn't listen at all.

[@domgee2487]

This kind of "listening" happens not just with Apple.

[@Narutocjgyci]

But they show themselves as a privacy focused company Android phone companies doesn't do that so we pretty much know that our conversation is being listened and sold

[@domgee2487]

@Narutocjgyci perhaps. But Samsung now offers the same supposed privacy safeguards. Still, Instagram always knows what I am talking about or searching for in my browsers haha

[@UT48D]

Lots of company settle lawsuits not because they actually didn’t something wrong. They often settle after weighing on the cost of litigation vs the cost of settle, the decision is made based on which one is cheaper. Plus class action lawsuits always benefits the lawyer significantly more than the customers they supposedly represent, that’s why lawyers love filing those lawsuits against giant companies, 30% of 95M is a good payday for those guys.

[@mark9294]

I was at the cheese counter on New Year’s Eve for pretty much the first time in order to buy some cheese for a fondue. The guy asks if I can pull up a recipe for a fondue, I did and it included nutmeg (“Muskatnuss” in German) as an ingredient. This for some reason reminded the clerk of an old Louis de Funes comedy where the phrase “Muskatnuss, Herr Müller!” is said to comedic effect. He said that phrase to me and told me to look it up on KZbin (which I had no intention of doing). Two days later, my KZbin feed has the “Muskatnuss, Herr Müller” clip at the top of my suggested feed.

[@rafaelacash7]

yes, they do indeed listen to us. This shouldn’t even be a surprise lol

[@SMunro]

Google/android devices are doing the same thing.

[@Steven-wq8tx]

They’re worse about it too lol like your Gmail, KZbin, Facebook Instagram all linked together to send you targeted ads at anything you search. If you’ve got a Google home in your house I’d assume they’re listening too. But I thought Apple had the security on lock and it was my Google home doing the listening. Now I’m finding out it’s my iphone listening too?

[@smittyvanjagermanjenson182]

​@@Steven-wq8txhow are you just now figuring this out 😂 this technology is all the same

[@amangupta2905]

Everyone knows this.

[@tekarock]

This was happening in Australia too or should I say, it’s still happening in Australia

[@trepak2952]

They should pay $95m per day for ten years, not just one-off.

[@ahstories111]

Obviously Siri is listening, we knew this. That’s how she responds to “Hey Siri.”

[@parthsethia4223]

This is a scandal

[@dkent3853]

Siriously!

[@ouroborostechnologies696]

It doesn't listen at all. They're paying it because it's cheater than fighting it.

[@rebeccamwose]

Siri listening to underage minors? And then directing them to stores? Wow... what next?

[@Paulb2386]

Paying someone £95 million for invading our privacy. Typical.

[@unvaccinatedAndPureBlood]

95 mil is not enough. 95 mil to who? Government??

[@Krytern]

No not the government. Don't you know how class action lawsuits work?

[@justinbennitt835]

I's amazing isn't it. People appear to have lost the ability to do a simple web search to find answers to the most basic questions 🤣

[@julianlawrence-ball2279]

That’s the equivalent of a small business with $180,000 profits being fined $95

[@matthewcollins5111]

apple to pay the goverment 77m. yet the crime was commited to the general public.

[@cory4682]

I never had Siri,always made sure not to have it on or to buy a Smart tv.

[@Krytern]

Smart TVs listen too mate

[@shortguys1236]

I think I heard that they even recorded even if siri is off.

[@DavidPalmer707]

0:22 - Did you really just trigger my Siri-in a report about eavesdropping? 🤦🏻

[@thehonourabledoglasmcpoodl1778]

Haha yup, it totally happened 😆

[@Moscow_Will_Burn]

Yes. Millions of phones started recording and people got recommendations for the BBC

[@MelJandric]

This is happening with all phones, not just Apple. My Motorola is always in a closed cover so it can't listen to me. Once I had it open while my wife was buying shoes.... guess what ads started showing up while we were still at the store....? Any device that has a mic is _always_ listening, Hey Google, hey Alexa, your door camera, your car.... get used to it.

[@mtr20003]

$20 for invading your privacy? Outrageous!

[@jennaholzer]

But they aren’t going to stop listening, still happening a lot

[@NileshParmar]

Thats happened in the uk too. We tested this at work

[@Samayil_2024]

Have they stopped? That is the question...

[@mark9294]

Definitely not.

[@smittyvanjagermanjenson182]

Why would they? You already believed them for this long lmao

[@Soyodi]

So who gets the money?

[@philharrison2991]

Same with Facebook, Microsoft, Google and all other corporations

[@XTSu-sl1bb]

Of course they’ve been doing it worldwide. Why would they develop it just for the American market it’s obviously an all phones.

[@darthmarticusLFC]

Well obviously it’s always recording and listening. I had always assumed this

[@blissghmedia]

How do I redeem my 0.70c? 😂

[@justinbennitt835]

the estimate is approx' $20

[@bravokarthik4329]

There's no such thing as 100% cyber security 😂😂😂😂😂

[@brainites]

When people ask me about secure systems, I tell them the only way they can't be hacked/eavesdropped is probably to go and live in a cave with no modern devices.

[@christianmendoza3655]

I’ve been noticing these for years, like a minute after I talked about something, an ad for it shows up.

[@ST-cf6gm]

I knew it, I used to do it with my wife on purpose (talk about a item we needed when we don’t) and ads used to come up the day after or something for the thing(s) we spoke about 😂😂 It’s not only the US

[@Farahman8]

95 mil. dollars is nothing. They have made at least 95 billion dollars from advertising.

[@alexduarte7]

Where is my share?

[@lindy5]

It happens with other items too as when I'm watching a movie, and there's a certain trigger word on TV the device lights up.

[@BsERoss]

Not enough.

[@NeedleWorkerMore]

Whoever sued will get that $95M

[@oingpla]

Free storage please, which of course you can look through at your will.

[@Portato19]

I'm pretty sure someone had already tested it. Becuase after they talked about certain products near their phone, the ad about the products appeared in their shopping app

[@PCSurf-gm8mt]

This fine shows the Gov and Judge should be sued instead for backing corporations

[@MatNewtonTrio]

That 95 million will hit them hard. Absolutely laughable.

[@matthewJamesKendell]

They make on average 150 million in one day so yeah doubt Tim Cook will loose any sleep.

[@indicaonly2143]

2:40 we have been knowing this for a loooong time. People r so nieve

[@ouroborostechnologies696]

It doesn't listen at all.

[@robertcarroll9409]

Hey Siri, how can I find $95 Million really quickly?

[@joestrat2723]

Corporate greed needs to be checked. This isn't the answer.

[@jcmusic5150]

Agreed. It just keeps getting worse. It seems there's no level that psychopathic corporations won't lower themselves to in order to make more money.

[@ryanredford6885]

It's the same with Samsung been saying for years you talk about a shed for example then your phone is flooded with advertising

[@MarkPMus]

That’s a blooming cheek! Apple stand to make a lot more than $95m out of selling data, and to give back $20 per device is insulting. It makes it worth their while breaching the trust of customers. Do Apple even have any comments to make about this?

[@benjamindover4337]

It should be more like $20,000 per person paid out. $20 is quite literally an insult.

[@oo0Spyder0oo]

This isn’t just apple is it? Alexa and google suddenly start suggesting stuff when I’ve never used their keywords either. I see recommendations pop up on Alexa after conversations, they just haven’t had someone take them to task yet.

[@memyselfi5077]

Nope, it isn’t only in the US….

[@ouroborostechnologies696]

It doesn't listen at all.

[@marinaloland3696]

Disgraceful, it is a criminal offence in the UK to record someone without their consent. 98m is peanuts to apple. Make sure you delete siri on your iphone

[@junaidali5137]

Who does the money go to?

[@gisellamarquez]

It is worldwide …come on you haven’t noticed they are listening to you ?!! You say something without even looking for it in your phone and you get ads of what you talked !

[@samjenkins529]

So who gets the money

[@SnazzyBoxx]

Siri responds sometimes even if you don’t say “hey Siri”

[@GamerGamer-o9u]

People surprised when they see ads from companies that spend the most money on ads

[@monkefoahead]

I think all phones do this not just apple products but what do i know

[@drmatarkin2100]

What do we get?

[@stewsaquarium1397]

Im in Australia and they are definitely doing it here too. Advertisements always comes up after things I say.

[@stewsaquarium1397]

The way that you know is when you are getting advertisement on things you said!!! Advertisement you don't usually see often

[@Emmy-iz3c]

Bbc is hugely inconsistent

[@bulwarkjm2]

3:05 "Consumers here will get up to $20 per device" for up to 10 years? So people agreed that they were ok with Apple spying on them as long as they were paid $2 year? Did I understand that correctly?

[@sakhimohammad4609]

Consumer will get “$20” LOL. I have to prepare my shopping list. And also, I will be going to world tour with this large amount “$20” 😂 2:57

[@AshrafAhmed-n4b]

KZbin been doing it. 😮

[@Ryanhelpmeunderstand]

Where’s my cut of this money?

[@psykoj]

if you've ever received a lawsuit settlement before, it will probably be like $0.50 that you end up with. I'm imagining 95 million customers getting $1 each at best lol

[@Ryanhelpmeunderstand]

My point is why weren’t we all notified of this? We should all get at least $20,000 each. But I understand what you are saying. You are right.

[@psykoj]

@@Ryanhelpmeunderstand I think the video mentions $20 each. Sad

[@Chuck-Norris1]

I’m in India and it happens to me. Every brand me and my friends talk about, ads of the same gets recommended

[@hamzasherasmat6593]

I thought apple was "secure"?

[@SuperPdf]

I already knew this was happening when I wanted to shop for a new desk and within 3 days, there would be ads on my social media about new desks

[@samuelsedit]

The device is always listening

[@williama-d6]

Ok is that why Siri on my iPod touch has been activating it’s self all these years

[@jonkraft7428]

We need to remember that the users are not the consumers. The users are not the customers. The users are the product.

[@marp155]

Im still surprised that people are surprised with that kind of dodgy things from top companies

[@_AdventureClub_]

Apple makes profits, people pay, Government takes its cut.