Share and Follow
In Boston, a Massachusetts couple who endured threats and unsettling anonymous deliveries, including live insects, a funeral wreath, and a Halloween mask resembling a bloody pig, have reached a settlement in their lawsuit against eBay Inc. This agreement was finalized on Wednesday.
David and Ina Steiner, who operate EcommerceBytes, an online newsletter dedicated to the e-commerce sector, initiated their lawsuit in 2021 at the Boston federal court. They accused the company of orchestrating a campaign to “intimidate, threaten to kill, torture, terrorize, stalk, and silence them,” as a means to suppress their reports on eBay. The couple from Natick claimed they were harassed through cyberstalking, received death threats, and were subjected to physical surveillance by ex-employees of eBay.
The specific details of the settlement remain confidential. However, Boston U.S. District Judge Patti Saris dismissed the case on Wednesday following the resolution, with a provision allowing either party to reopen the case within 60 days if the settlement is not fully executed.
An eBay spokesperson, when asked for a comment, directed attention to the court order and stated that the company had no additional remarks to make.
At the time the lawsuit was filed, eBay acknowledged the wrongdoing of its former employees and expressed a commitment to “do what is fair and appropriate to address what the Steiners experienced.”
In 2020, federal prosecutors charged seven former eBay employees, alleging they carried out a coordinated harassment campaign against the couple after becoming angered by coverage in the couple’s online newsletter. Most of the defendants pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy and cyberstalking and were later sentenced to prison terms or home confinement.
In 2024, eBay Inc. agreed to pay a $3 million criminal penalty under a deferred prosecution agreement with federal authorities.
Federal prosecutors have said the harassment included anonymous deliveries of items like live cockroaches and spiders, a funeral wreath, and a bloody pig face mask to the couple’s home. The employees also sent pornographic magazines with the husband’s name on them to a neighbor’s home and planned to break into the couple’s garage to install a GPS device on their car.