The eBay company agreed to pay $48.7 million to settle a lawsuit filed by journalists David and Ina Steiner, who reported a campaign of harassment and intimidation allegedly carried out by former employees of the company in 2019. The couple, who run a newsletter specialized in e-commerce, said they were the target of an operation to silence their reporting on the industry. According to the lawsuit filed in 2021, the attacks included threats on social media, surveillance, tracking attempts and the sending of packages with disturbing objects. Among the items sent to the Steiners were live cockroaches and spiders, a preserved pig fetus, a funeral wreath, a Halloween mask resembling a bloody pig and a book related to the death of a spouse. The complaint noted that those responsible also sent pornographic magazines to the home of a neighbor of the couple with the alleged goal of damaging his reputation, in addition to attempting to place a GPS device in his vehicle.
Millionaire agreement and economic reparations
The agreement states that eBay will pay approximately $46.15 million to the journalists. Added to this amount are individual payments from former company executives:
In addition, eBay will make donations of $6 million to charities, while Wenig will give an additional $1 million to an organization focused on the defense of freedom of expression. The Steiners stressed that one of their main objectives was to achieve a public agreement that would allow the case to be discussed without confidentiality restrictions. The couple stated that transparency was necessary to prevent similar situations from occurring again against journalists. “We hope that this agreement serves as a deterrent to any company that uses its resources to intimidate journalists,” the Steiners said in statements released to US media.
Federal investigation and former employees convicted
The criminal investigation led to indictments against six former eBay employees and one contractor involved in the operation. The defendants ended up pleading guilty for their participation in the harassment scheme. The civil lawsuit also named former top managers such as Devin Wenig, Steve Wymer and Wendy Jones, although none of them were criminally charged by federal authorities. The journalists noted that they decided to pursue the civil route because they believed that the federal investigation did not hold members of the company's senior management responsible.
eBay acknowledges internal flaws
The company confirmed the agreement and reiterated its apologies to David and Ina Steiner. eBay described the events that occurred in 2019 as “reprehensible and unjustifiable” and assured that it condemns the actions of the employees involved.
The company indicated that after the scandal it strengthened its internal policies, controls, procedures and training on business ethics.
eBay stated that the conduct of these former employees does not represent the company's current culture or the thousands of workers who are part of the global organization.
Wenig denies involvement
Devin Wenig maintained that he was unaware of the harassment campaign and assured that the actions were carried out secretly by company employees.
The former executive director stated that he deeply regrets what happened during his administration and noted that this behavior goes against his principles.
The case also had legal consequences for eBay. In 2024, the company agreed to pay a $3 million criminal fine after federal prosecutors charged the company for its connection to the harassment campaign.
The agreement with the Steiners became one of the most relevant cases on corporate responsibility, freedom of the press and the limits that companies must respect in the face of journalistic criticism.
