If You Always Felt Like Siri Was Recording You, Apple May Owe You Money in a Class Action Lawsuit
A third party contractor might have been recording conversations after Siri was accidentally activated.
Published May 12 2025, 1:04 p.m. ET
You know what they say: You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. If you're Apple, Inc., sometimes you can't be a successful company without settling a few class action lawsuits. The mega tech company was founded in 1976, and since that time, it has settled numerous class action lawsuits. They've involved issues surrounding unlimited live-telephone support on certain products, iPod battery life, and iTunes price-switching, to name a few.
To no one's surprise, Apple has also been on the receiving end of class action lawsuits that touched on privacy issues. Famously, in 2014, Apple settled a $100 million lawsuit wherein U2's album "Songs of Innocence" was automatically added to iTunes accounts without permission from users. Over a decade later, the tech giant was being sued over Siri's Lopez Voice Assistant. Is this one legit? Here's what we know.
Is the Lopez Voice Assistant settlement legit?
Yes, the Lopez Voice Assistant settlement is legit and started with a July 2019 article in The Guardian about Apple contractors hearing confidential details in Siri recordings. Apple told the outlet that a "small portion of Siri requests are analyzed to improve Siri and dictation" in secure facilities where reviewers are "under the obligation to adhere to Apple’s strict confidentiality requirements."
A whistleblower who works for the contracted firm spoke with The Guardian anonymously regarding their concerns about the frequency of these personal recordings. "There have been countless instances of recordings featuring private discussions between doctors and patients, business deals, seemingly criminal dealings, sexual encounters, and so on," they revealed. Said recordings also show the users' location data, contact details, and app data.
The lawsuit was filed on March 17, 2021, and states anyone who purchased an Apple device with Siri on it between Sept. 17, 2014, and Dec. 31, 2024, may be eligible to receive part of a $95 million settlement. This includes iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, MacBooks, iMacs, HomePods, iPod touches, and Apple TVs. Apple has denied the allegations to USA Today.
Here's how to submit a claim for the Lopez Voice Assistant settlement.
Anyone who believes they are eligible to receive a payment from the Lopez Voice Assistant settlement must submit a claim form on the lawsuit's website. Some people have already received a Claimant ID Code and Confirmation Code in the mail or via email. If so, you will be given the opportunity to enter them on the form. If not, you can click "New Claim" on the form.
The claim form requires you to update your current contact information and confirm a few things under oath. The first is that you purchased a Siri-enabled device between Sept. 17, 2014, and Dec. 31, 2024, in the United States or one of its territories. Second, you have to show that you experienced an "unintended Siri activation." Finally, this accidental activation happened while you were having a private conversation. A court hearing to approve the settlement is scheduled for Aug. 1, 2025.