eBay Inc. has agreed to pay nearly $50 million to a Massachusetts couple who alleged that former employees of the company subjected them to a sustained harassment campaign. The settlement resolves criminal and civil proceedings that began more than six years ago.
The agreement includes $48.7 million in compensation for David and Ina Steiner, founders of the newsletter EcommerceBytes, which covers the e-commerce industry. This amount includes $46.15 million from eBay, $2 million from former CEO Devin Wenig, $500,000 from former executive Wendy Jones, and $50,000 from former executive Steve Wymer.
Additionally, eBay will contribute $6 million to charitable organizations. Former CEO Wenig will also contribute $1 million to a charity focused on First Amendment rights in Ina Steiner’s name. The settlement includes no confidentiality provision, allowing the Steiners to speak publicly about the case. Ina Steiner stated that the settlement's public nature was important to them as victims seeking to prevent similar incidents and as reporters committed to transparency.
The harassment campaign, which the Steiners detailed in a 2021 lawsuit, allegedly aimed to "stifle their reporting on eBay." The couple reported experiencing cyberstalking, death threats, and in-person surveillance. The campaign escalated from threatening social media messages to anonymous deliveries of live insects, a funeral wreath, and a bloody pig mask. Former employees also reportedly sent pornographic magazines to a neighbor's home with David Steiner's name and planned to install a GPS tracking device on the couple's car.
In 2020, federal prosecutors charged seven former eBay employees in connection with the harassment campaign. Most of the defendants pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy and cyberstalking. In 2024, eBay agreed to pay a $3 million criminal penalty under a deferred prosecution agreement with federal authorities.
eBay has reiterated its apology for the events. "What the Steiners were subjected to by former eBay employees in 2019 was wrong, reprehensible and should never have happened," the company said in a statement. eBay also acknowledged unprofessional language in internal communications by former executives Wenig, Wymer, and Jones, emphasizing that the conduct was not representative of eBay's culture. The company stated it has since changed leadership and strengthened its policies, procedures, and ethics training.
Christopher Murphy, the Steiners' attorney, highlighted the settlement amount, personal payments from former executives, and the lack of a confidentiality clause as significant aspects of the resolution. He expressed hope that the outcome sends a strong message that corporations and their leaders will face substantial consequences for engaging in such misconduct.