eBay Inc. and three former top executives agreed to pay nearly $50 million to a Massachusetts couple targeted in a bizarre 2019 cyberstalking and harassment campaign. The settlement concludes more than six years of legal proceedings arising from anonymous deliveries of live insects and a bloody pig mask intended to silence the publishers’ e-commerce newsletter.
The resolution brings to a close a protracted legal battle that began after former employees of the online commerce company orchestrated a campaign of intimidation against David and Ina Steiner. The founders of EcommerceBytes, a newsletter covering the e-commerce industry, filed suit in Boston federal court in 2021. The settlement resolves both criminal and civil proceedings stemming from the scheme, which federal prosecutors uncovered after charging seven former eBay workers in 2020.
David and Ina Steiner Lawsuit in Boston Federal Court
The parties reported reaching a tentative settlement in February as the case was headed to trial, but they were unable to finalize it. David and Ina Steiner asked a federal judge in June to restore the case to the trial calendar and reached a new settlement this month. The agreement with the Steiners, founders of EcommerceBytes, a newsletter covering the e-commerce industry, includes an additional $7 million in charitable donations, including to organizations supporting First Amendment rights. The settlement contains no confidentiality provision, allowing the Steiners to discuss the case publicly.
David and I were on the same page that this settlement should and must be made public — as victims who want to prevent something like this from ever happening to anyone else, and as reporters who believe in transparency,
Ina Steiner said Tuesday in an email response to questions from The Associated Press. We hope that this case will serve as a deterrent.
The settlement resolves more than six years of criminal and civil proceedings stemming from the harassment campaign. In their 2021 lawsuit filed in Boston federal court, the Steiners said that the company engaged in a conspiracy to intimidate, threaten to kill, torture, terrorize, stalk and silence them
in order to stifle their reporting on eBay.
The Harassment Campaign and Federal Prosecution
Federal prosecutors charged seven former eBay employees in 2020, alleging they carried out a coordinated harassment campaign after becoming angered by the couple’s online newsletter coverage. Seven former eBay workers pleaded guilty and received sentences of as high as 57 months in prison for participating in the scheme, which also involved several of the bizarre anonymous deliveries.
Payout Structure and Executive Contributions
Ebay and Three Former Top Executives Settlement
Ebay and three former top executives have agreed to pay $55.7m to resolve a lawsuit by a Massachusetts couple who fell victim to a bizarre stalking and harassment campaign carried out by several of its employees in retaliation for their coverage of the e-commerce company in a newsletter they publish.
David and Ina Steiner announced the settlement late on Monday, bringing an end to a case they filed in 2021 in Boston federal court after several former eBay employees were prosecuted for targeting them in a cyberstalking campaign that involved sending the couple cockroaches, fly larvae and a bloody Halloween pig mask.
As part of the settlement, eBay agreed to pay $46.15m to the couple; fund $6m in charitable contributions to non-profit organizations; and issue a strongly-worded
statement about the conduct of three of its top former executives.
Transparency Demands and Corporate Accountability
We believe this resolution sends a clear message that corporations and their executives cannot engage in this type of misconduct without facing significant consequences,
Christopher Murphy, the Steiners’ attorney, said in a statement.
Christopher Murphy of Scalli Murphy Law
Attorney Christopher Murphy, representing the Steiners, said the resolution serves as a warning that attempts by big business to suppress speech and the press will not be tolerated.
Murphy, of Massachusetts-based Scalli Murphy Law, said, This was not only an attack and campaign of harassment against two people; it was also an attack on free speech and freedom of the press.
The settlement contains no confidentiality provision, allowing the Steiners to speak openly about their ordeal, a condition their attorney said his clients insisted upon.
Ebay said in a statement that what happened to the Steiners was wrong, reprehensible and should never have happened
. We continue to extend our deepest apologies to the Steiners,
the company said. This agreement is consistent with our commitment to fairly compensate the Steiners and fulfills our efforts to make things right.
