{"action":{"id":"apple-siri-privacy-proposed-class-action","slug":"apple-siri-privacy-proposed-class-action","title":"Apple Siri Privacy Proposed Class Action","category":"Privacy","stage":"filed","tags":{"industry":["Privacy and data"],"geographic":["Canada-wide (Except Quebec)"],"eligibilityTrigger":["Purchased a product","Family member of an affected person"]},"allegationsSummary":"The lawsuit alleges that Apple's Siri voice assistant, preloaded on devices such as iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, HomePod speakers, AirPods, iMacs and MacBooks, is routinely triggered by accident and records users' private conversations without their knowledge or consent. It claims Apple shared these accidentally recorded conversations with third parties, including contractors and advertisers, as part of a quality improvement program. The claim also says Apple told users and the US Congress that its devices only listen after a clear trigger, and alleges those statements were false. The defendants are Apple Inc. and Apple Canada Inc., and none of these allegations has been proved in court.","proposedClassDefinition":"The lawsuit proposes a class of all people living in Canada, except Quebec, who currently own or previously owned or purchased an Apple device with Siri, or who are members of such an owner's household, and whose confidential or private communications were obtained by Apple or shared with third parties by Apple without their consent from October 12, 2011 onward. This is a proposed definition and could change if the court certifies the case.","whatHappensNext":"The next major step is a certification hearing, where the Supreme Court of British Columbia will decide whether the case may go forward as a class action. Certification decides only whether the case can proceed on behalf of the proposed class, not whether Apple did anything wrong. No certification hearing has been scheduled yet, and timelines like this often run years. There is no settlement and no claims process at this stage, and one may never open.","caseBackground":"This proposed class action is about Apple's Siri voice assistant, which comes preloaded on Apple devices including iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, HomePod smart speakers, AirPods, iMacs and MacBooks. The lawsuit alleges that Siri is often triggered by accident, without the wake phrase or a button press, and that when this happens it records people's private conversations without their knowledge or consent. It further alleges that Apple disclosed some of these recordings to third parties, including contractors and advertisers, as part of a program to improve Siri's quality.\n\nThe claim also says Apple assured users, and told the US Congress, that its devices only listen after a clear trigger, and alleges those assurances were false. The plaintiff asks the court to certify the case as a class action and seeks damages under privacy and consumer protection laws, damages for intrusion upon seclusion, punitive damages, and an order stopping the alleged practices. These are untested allegations, and nothing has been proved in court.","faqs":[{"answer":"No. At this stage there is nothing for potential class members to sign up for or claim. If the court certifies the case as a class action, people who fit the class definition would normally be included automatically and notified about their options.","question":"Do I need to do anything right now?"},{"answer":"No. The case has only been filed, there is no settlement, and no claims process exists. Any compensation would depend on the court certifying the case and the lawsuit later succeeding or settling, neither of which is certain.","question":"Is there any money available to claim now?"},{"answer":"The lawsuit proposes to cover people living in Canada, except Quebec, who own or owned an Apple device with Siri, or members of their households, and whose private communications were allegedly obtained or shared by Apple without consent since October 12, 2011. The court would have to approve any final class definition.","question":"Who would the proposed class action cover?"},{"answer":"The court must first decide at a certification hearing whether the case may proceed as a class action. After that, the case would have to be won at trial or settled, and any settlement would need court approval, before any claims process could be set up.","question":"What has to happen before a claims process could open?"},{"answer":"There is no set timeline. Class actions of this kind often take several years to move through certification and beyond, and the outcome is uncertain.","question":"How long might this take?"}],"proceedings":{"body":"The court filing behind this proposed class action.","items":[{"id":"7ec41f84ebe77c03","url":"https://clg.org/Class-Action/List-of-Class-Actions/Apple-Siri-App-Privacy-Violation-Canadian-Class-Action","court":"Supreme Court of British Columbia","firms":[{"name":"Consumer Law Group PC"}],"stage":"filed","caseName":"Patterson v. Apple Inc. and Apple Canada Inc.","dateFiled":"2025-01-28","fileNumber":"VLC-S-S-250693","jurisdiction":"British Columbia"}],"heading":"The proceeding"},"plaintiffFirms":[{"name":"Consumer Law Group PC","contacts":[]}],"sourceDocuments":[{"url":"/uploads/22e7d007bfb97a519bdc6932-Notice-of-Civil-Claim.pdf","title":"Notice-of-Civil-Claim.pdf"}],"filedDate":"2025-01-28","certificationHearingDate":"","optOutDeadline":null,"seriousHarmEnabled":false,"quietPresentation":false,"stageChangedAt":"2026-09-15 23:08:03","lastReviewed":"2026-09-15","outcomeSummary":"","promotedSettlementSlug":"","relatedSlugs":[],"dateAdded":"2026-09-15","lastUpdated":"2026-09-15","languages":["en","fr"]}}