eBay settles $56 million lawsuit over harassment of Massachusetts couple
eBay agreed to pay $56 million to a Massachusetts couple who alleged former employees conducted a campaign of threats, cyberstalking and odd deliveries after the pair reported the company in their e-commerce newsletter.
A Massachusetts couple received a $56 million settlement from eBay after alleging that former employees carried out a coordinated harassment campaign against them. The Steiners, who run the e-commerce newsletter EcommerceBytes, said they were subjected to cyberstalking, death threats, in-person surveillance and a series of anonymous deliveries that included live insects, a funeral wreath and a Halloween mask depicting a pig.
The lawsuit, filed in Boston federal court in 2021, claimed the former employees sought to intimidate the couple to stop their reporting on eBay. Federal prosecutors later charged seven ex-employees with conspiracy and cyberstalking; most pleaded guilty and received prison or home-confinement sentences.
eBay acknowledged the misconduct of the former staff and said it would take appropriate steps to address the Steiners’ experience. The company also entered a deferred prosecution agreement in 2024, agreeing to a $3 million criminal penalty related to the harassment.
"From the beginning, our clients wanted to uncover the truth, protect journalists and publishers, hold those responsible accountable, deter future corporate misconduct, and help ensure others would never have to endure what they experienced," said the couple’s attorney.