Spying sex toy lawsuit settled for US $3.75M

OTTAWA • Two women who alleged an Internet-connected vibrator from an Ottawa sex toy company was able to spy on them have reached a US$3.75-million settlement with the firm.

Under the terms of the settlement, Standard Innovation Corp. has agreed to destroy the personal information it collected from users of the vibrator and stop collecting such information from now on.

In September, a lawsuit was filed in an Illinois court against Standard Innovation, which manufactures the popular We-Vibe sex aid, because newer versions of the device share “highly intimate” data over the web.

We-Vibe Rave, released two years ago, is Bluetooth and Wi-Fi compatible.

A cellphone app called WeConnect allows users and their partners to control the Rave’s intensity and vibration patterns remotely over the Internet and allows for private text messages and video calls.

“Unbeknownst to its customers ... (Standard Innovation) designed We-Connect to collect and record highly intimate and sensitive data regarding consumers’ personal We-Vibe use, including the date and time of each use and the selected vibration settings, and transmit such usage data — along with the users’ personal email address — to its servers in Canada,” reads the September court filing.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of two female We-Vibe users, identified only as N.P. and P.S., alleged the company’s actions demonstrated “a wholesale disregard” for privacy rights and violated a number of U.S. laws.

About 300,000 customers purchased the vibrators, with about one-third using them with the app, according to the settlement agreement.

From the settlement fund, app users are entitled to receive up to US$10,000 after expenses and fees, with anyone who purchased a vibrator without using the app entitled to up to US$199. Standard Innovation did not admit any wrongdoing under the terms of the settlement.

Denny Alexander, a spokesman for Standard Innovation, said the company has since overhauled its privacy policy and removed any requirement for users to register their device or to provide their name, email or phone number or other identifying information to use We-Connect.

Customers can now opt out of sharing anonymous data, Alexander said.