Siri was the target of a privacy lawsuit.
Potential members of a class-action lawsuit are being told to apply for their share of a now-approved $95 million settlement, if they owned a device with Siri that could’ve recorded a private conversation.
Emails are being sent out to consumers about a “Lopez Voice Assistant Class Action Settlement,” explaining that the recipient could be owed some money. Following after the agreement by Apple to settle a class-action lawsuit, the time has now come for payments to be made.
The email, seen by AppleInsider, advises that the recipient is identified as potentially being a member of the settlement class, based on Apple’s records, and could be entitled to receive the patent.
Specifically, the settlement class is defined as a current or former owner or purchaser of a Siri-enabled device, who also resides in the United States. They must also believe that their confidential or private communications were obtained by Apple and possibly shared by third parties following an unintended Siri activation, between September 17, 2014 and December 31, 2024.
The agreed settlement is a fund valued at $95 million. While this sounds like a lot, it’s really not much overall, since there has to be the deduction of court-approved attorneys’ fees and expenses, service awards, and the costs associated with notice and settlement administration.
As for how much someone could get, the amount depends on what’s left after those deductions and how many people apply to the fund. Class members can submit claims for up to five Siri-enabled devices that they claim to have had an unexpected Siri activation during a private conversation.
Valid claims will receive a pro-rata portion of the net settlement amount, up to a cap of $20 per device. That means each class member could receive up to $100, though the final figure will probably be a lot less.
Making a claim
Claims can be made through a dedicated website for the settlement, with forms needed to be completed and submitted by July 2, 2025. Postal claims can also be submitted, but need to be post-marked by July 2, 2025.
The emails include Claim Identification Codes and Confirmation Codes, which should be used during the claim process. Instructions are also provided for those who don’t have either code, but believe they should be part of the settlement class.
Consumers must apply to be part of the class to receive the payment, as they won’t receive an automatic payment if they do nothing.
People who object to the settlement can also do so by July 2, 2025, head of a final approval hearing on August 1, 2025. It’s also possible for class members to exclude themselves from the settlement, and they must do so if they plan to sue Apple separately.
Allegations denial
While Apple has agreed to settle the lawsuit, it still denies that it did anything improper or unlawful. The settlement is not an admission of guilt or wrongdoing by Apple, the settlement notice states.
The lawsuit goes back to 2019, which claimed that Apple had unlawfully recorded conversations without the user’s permission. This was apparently carried out through Siri.
There were accusations that, following the discussion of products such as Air Jordan or Olive Garden, that ads were served to consumers for those and connected products. This despite Apple’s privacy systems stepping in to prevent such targeted advertising from taking place based on Siri’s recordings.
The suit was filed after reports surfaced claiming that human contractors were used by Apple to review private or sensitive recordings, made as part of a quality assurance program to improve Siri accuracy. A small number of recordings were passed on to the contractors of a third-party firm.
Following the reports, Apple suspended the program as it reviewed the possibility of Siri accidentally recording users. Eventually it became an opt-in program that also made it easier for users to delete the recordings.
An initial version of the lawsuit was thrown out in 2021, due to the plaintiffs apparently failing to provide sufficient facts to support the lawsuit’s claims. The lawyers and consumers were granted permission to revise and review the complaint leading to the second lawsuit.
Eventually, Apple filed to agree to a $95 million settlement in January 2025.
