Clarification from Apple. Settlement of Siri privacy lawsuit did not mean it actually sold data collected by voice assistant

Apple has issued a clarification after it settled a privacy lawsuit last week, concerning its voice-activated Siri personal assistant.

Reuters reported that Apple clarified on Wednesday that it has never sold the data collected by Siri, or used it to create marketing profiles.

Last week Apple had agreed to pay $95 million in cash to settle a proposed class action lawsuit that alleged that Siri had violated users’ privacy, after it had been unintentionally activated during private conversations.

Apple settlement

In its settlement, Apple denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle.

The lawsuit stems from when mobile device owners had complained that Apple routinely recorded their private conversations after they activated Siri unintentionally, and disclosed these conversations to third parties such as advertisers.

Voice assistants typically react when people use “hot words” or “wake words” such as “Hey, Siri.”

Two plaintiffs alleged their mentions of Air Jordan sneakers and Olive Garden restaurants triggered ads for those products.

Another plaintiff alleged he got adverts for a brand name surgical treatment after discussing it, he thought privately, with his doctor.

The lawsuit indicates that from 17 September 2014 to 31 December 2024, issues began when Siri incorporated the ‘Hey, Siri’ wake world that allegedly led to the unauthorised recordings.

Apple clarification

But now Apple, which has been positioning itself as a privacy champion for years, stressed that it continues to denies those claims, and did not admit to them in its settlement last week.

“Apple has never used Siri data to build marketing profiles, never made it available for advertising, and never sold it to anyone for any purpose,” Apple was quoted by Reuters as saying on Wednesday.

Apple of course did not develop Siri itself.

It actually acquired Siri Inc back in 2010, after that company had developed the personal assistant in 2007. Apple first incorporated Siri into its iPhone 4S handsets in 2011.

Apple recently attempted to breathe new life into Siri in 2024 when it was integrated with OpenAI’s ChatGPT as part of the Apple Intelligence makeover.

‘Apple Intelligence’ is the tech giant’s name for its AI move announced in June 2024, that brings OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot integration to iPads, iPhones, Vision Pro headsets and Macs.