Apple's Saga of Siri-ous Privacy Concerns Finally Settles
She can definitely be really useful at times, like when you tell her to add artichokes to your grocery list. Sometimes, she’s ludicrously inept, like when she comes back with a "Here's what I found on the web for 'Call Mom.’” But love her or hate her, use her or abuse her, Siri is nothing if not a good listener.
Sometimes, maybe too good. A California resident recently filed a lawsuit against Apple on behalf of her daughter, which soon turned into a class action on behalf of the many Americans frustrated with Siri's snooping.
Snoopy Siri
The voice-recognition software Siri has been a staple feature on Apple devices since its introduction in 2011. Designed as an "intelligent assistant," Siri enables users to perform a variety of tasks using voice commands, such as asking questions, setting alarms, playing music, and controlling smart home devices.
Siri is pre-installed on a range of Apple products, including iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and more, and is activated by the utterance of a “wake phrase”, typically "Hey Siri," or by performing specific gestures like pressing a button. Once activated, Siri records the user's voice, translates it into code, and processes it to deliver the requested information or perform the task.
It won’t surprise you that there are a lot of Apple loyalists out there, and the company’s marketing team is largely to thank for that. Apple has consistently marketed itself as a company that prioritizes user privacy, famously declaring "Privacy. That's iPhone" in its advertising campaigns and asserting that what happens on an iPhone stays on an iPhone. This messaging has fostered trust among consumers who believed their personal data and conversations were secure.
Specifically with Siri, Apple has marketed the software as a secure and private service, emphasizing that user data is not linked to Apple IDs and is analyzed in secure facilities. However, recent revelations have cast doubt on these claims.
Whistleblower Outs Apple Practices
Despite Apple's assurances that Siri only listens for the wake phrase, reports have emerged suggesting that the software sometimes records conversations without user consent, raising significant privacy concerns.
According to a report by The Guardian, a whistleblower has disclosed that a significant number of these recordings were captured without the activation of the "Hey Siri" wake phrase or any deliberate user interaction. These unauthorized recordings reportedly include highly sensitive and private conversations, such as confidential medical discussions, business negotiations, and even intimate exchanges between couples.
The whistleblower further revealed that these recordings are not only stored but are also sent to human contractors for analysis, raising serious privacy concerns. Despite Apple's assurances that Siri only activates with a clear trigger, it appears that the devices can be inadvertently activated by mundane sounds or gestures, leading to the capture of unintended audio.
This practice has sparked outrage among privacy advocates and users alike, who feel betrayed by a company that has long touted its commitment to user privacy. Privacy advocates argue that such practices not only violate privacy laws but also undermine consumer trust in technology companies. Users, in turn, express concerns over the potential misuse of their private information and the implications of being unknowingly surveilled in their own homes.
Class Action Filed Years Ago
The representative plaintiff is Fumiko Lopez of San Bernardino County, California. She’s the mother of a minor daughter who is going by “A.L.” to preserve anonymity. Both mother and daughter interacted with Siri software on Apple devices such as the iPhone XR and iPhone 6. When Lopez found out about Apple’s less-than-robust privacy practices, she filed a lawsuit against the company on behalf of not only her family, but "all individual current or former owners or purchasers of a Siri Device, who reside in the United States and its territories, whose confidential or private communications were obtained by Apple and/or were shared with third parties as a result of an unintended Siri activation between September 17, 2014 to the Settlement Date."
That was a couple of years ago. Last year, it was revealed that after the complaint was filed, Apple deleted audio recordings of interactions with its Siri voice assistant (which are crucial to the case). Magistrate Judge Sallie Kim of the Northern District of California was not happy about it.
The upshot for Apple was that it lost potential defenses to the lawsuit. Due to its misconduct in deleting evidence, Apple was prohibited from arguing that the plaintiffs lacked standing because they could not prove false triggers occurred. Additionally, Apple was barred from contesting class-wide damages or its intent based on the deleted recordings. The court highlighted that Apple could have distinguished unintentional recordings and failed to inform the court about their deletion.
Settlement: Apple Might Owe You Money
Last week, Apple agreed to a $95 million settlement with the plaintiff class, while still denying any wrongdoing.
If approved by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White, the settlement will compensate affected users with up to $20 per Siri-enabled device, such as iPhones and Apple Watches. The settlement fund may also cover up to $28.5 million in legal fees and $1.1 million in expenses. The settlement amount represents a fraction of Apple's annual profits, which totaled $93.74 billion in its latest fiscal year.
As the settlement awaits judicial approval, if you’ve used Apple products in the last decade, we encourage you to stay informed about their eligibility for compensation. And for everyone else, watch out what you say around your iPhone.
Related Resources:
- Watch Out, Apple (FindLaw's Law and Daily Life)
- Apple Accused of Pay Inequity, Monitoring Employees' Personal Devices (FindLaw's Courtside)
- Will the DoJ Take a Bite Out of Apple? (FindLaw's Courtside)
