Ina and David Steiner/Image: Reuters
E-commerce company eBay and several former senior executives have agreed to pay $55.7 million to resolve a civil lawsuit filed by a Massachusetts couple who alleged they were targeted in a sustained campaign of harassment and cyberstalking after publishing critical coverage of the company, The Financial Times reported.The case was brought in 2021 by Ina and David Steiner, who run the industry blog EcommerceBytes. Represented by Scalli Murphy Law, the couple’s lawsuit alleged they were subjected to intimidation following reporting that angered senior figures at eBay in 2019.
Allegations of escalating intimidation campaign
Court filings describe a pattern of harassment that began online and later escalated into a series of disturbing physical deliveries and coordinated actions directed at the couple’s home in Natick, Massachusetts.The Steiners said they received packages containing live cockroaches, fly larvae, spiders, a bloody pig’s head mask, a funeral wreath and a book about coping with bereavement. They also alleged that pornographic magazines were sent to neighbours in David Steiner’s name.According to the lawsuit, their home address was posted on Craigslist in an apparent attempt to encourage strangers to visit the property, while unsolicited food deliveries were repeatedly sent to their residence. Court documents further allege that eBay employees travelled from California to Massachusetts to monitor the couple, follow them in rental vehicles, vandalise their property and attempt to install a GPS tracking device on their car.The alleged campaign followed internal communications in which then-chief executive Devin Wenig reportedly texted a senior executive that it was time to “crush” Ina Steiner and “take her down.”
Criminal cases and financial settlement
The conduct led to criminal charges in 2020 against seven former eBay employees, all of whom were later convicted and sentenced to prison terms ranging from one to five years. eBay also pleaded guilty in 2023 to related criminal charges and paid a $3 million penalty, according to the report.Under the civil settlement, the Steiners will receive $48.7 million from eBay and former employees. The company will contribute a further $6 million to charitable organisations, while Wenig will pay $1 million to a free speech charity established in Ina Steiner’s name.In a statement, eBay said the harassment “was wrong, reprehensible and should never have happened” and acknowledged the “unprofessional tone in internal communications” involving executives linked to the case.
