eBay has compensated a couple with nearly £37.5 million following their allegations that former company staff had menaced and harassed them by sending disturbing deliveries like insects and a gory pig Halloween mask.
David and Ina Steiner, residing in Massachusetts, reached a settlement with the online retail platform after an agreement was made in February, avoiding a trial.
The founders of EcommerceBytes, a newsletter focusing on the e-commerce sector, have now finalized the deal, which also includes £5.27 million earmarked for charitable causes.
According to lawyer Christopher Murphy, this resolution serves as a message that attempts by large corporations to silence speech and the media will not be accepted. Murphy emphasized that his clients insisted on being able to openly discuss the incidents during the settlement.
The settlement marks the conclusion of over six years of legal actions resulting from the harassment campaign.
In a lawsuit filed in a Boston court in 2021, the Steiners accused eBay of conspiring to intimidate, threaten, and silence them in an effort to obstruct their reporting on the company.
The couple, who operate a newsletter reporting on e-commerce, detailed incidents of cyberstalking, death threats, and surveillance carried out by former eBay employees.
As part of the settlement, eBay is required to issue a public apology addressing the behavior of former executives involved in the case. The company admitted that the actions of these ex-employees were inappropriate and vowed to address the Steiners’ grievances.
eBay reiterated its apology, acknowledging the misconduct by former CEO Devin Wenig, former Chief Communications Officer Steve Wymer, and former Senior Vice President Wendy Jones, and emphasized that the behavior did not reflect the company’s values.
In a separate development, seven former eBay employees were charged in 2020 for orchestrating a harassment campaign against the Steiners due to negative coverage in their newsletter. Most of the defendants pleaded guilty to charges such as conspiracy and cyberstalking, receiving prison sentences or home confinement.
Additionally, eBay agreed to pay a $3 million criminal penalty in 2024 under a deferred prosecution agreement with federal authorities.
Prosecutors revealed that the harassment included sending anonymous deliveries of live insects, a funeral wreath, and a bloody pig mask to the couple’s residence. The employees also attempted to plant a GPS device on the couple’s vehicle and sent explicit material to a neighbor in the husband’s name.
In a statement, Murphy highlighted the absence of a confidentiality clause in the settlement, criticizing the practice of wrongdoers attempting to buy silence with compensations. He emphasized that this resolution sends a strong message that corporations and their executives will face consequences for such misconduct.