eBay reaches $56M settlement with e-commerce newsletter writers it harassed in 2019
eBay and several former employees have agreed to pay $56 million to Ina and David Steiner, the couple behind EcommerceBytes, who were subjected to a horrific harassment campaign by company executives after criticizing eBay in their newsletter.
One of the most bizarre episodes in e-commerce history has concluded with a substantial settlement. eBay and several former employees have agreed to pay $56 million to a married couple who were targeted in a horrific harassment campaign orchestrated by the company's former executives in 2019. Ina and David Steiner, co-authors of the EcommerceBytes newsletter, incurred the wrath of high-level eBay executives after occasionally criticizing the company in their publication.
In 2019, executives devised a plot to intimidate the couple into stopping their negative coverage. They used fake social media accounts to harass them and sent anonymous threatening letters and bizarre items through the mail, including live spiders and cockroaches, pornographic magazines, a bloody pig mask, a funeral wreath, and a book on surviving the death of a spouse. According to previously released court documents, a plan was attempted but never successfully carried out to affix a GPS tracking device to the couple's car. Another internally discussed plan involved sending a "Samoan gang" to the Steiners' home.
The settlement this week resolves a 2021 civil case brought by the couple against eBay. The Steiners' law firm states that the settlement includes $46.15 million paid by eBay itself, $2 million from former CEO Devin Wenig, $500,000 from former executive Wendy Jones, and $50,000 from former executive Steve Wymer. Additional funds are being directed to various non-profits.
In 2022, seven former eBay employees were criminally charged and pleaded guilty in connection with the plot, including former security chief James Baugh, who was sentenced to nearly five years in prison. Others indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice include David Harville, Brian Gilbert, Stephanie Popp, Stephanie Stockwell, Philip Cooke, and former eBay contractor Veronica Zea.
In a statement released Tuesday, eBay disavowed the former employees' behavior, calling it "not representative of eBay's culture." The company continued, "What the Steiners were subjected to by former eBay employees in 2019 was wrong, reprehensible and should never have happened. We condemn, in the strongest terms possible, the employees who perpetrated and pled guilty to criminal charges for the misconduct against Ina and David Steiner." eBay also extended its deepest apologies and stated that the agreement fulfills its commitment to fairly compensate the Steiners.
Christopher Murphy, one of the Steiners' attorneys, said, "This case was always about more than obtaining financial recovery. 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."
