Couple sues eBay after threats, harassment from former employees

A Massachusetts couple is suing Internet company eBay alleging harassment and abuse from former employees, The Associated Press reported on Wednesday.

In a lawsuit filed in Boston federal court, David and Ina Steiner said they were subjected to cyberstalking, death threats, bizarre deliveries and in-person surveillance from eBay workers who contacted them through their online newsletter, EcommerceBytes.

According to federal prosecutors, the company employees harassed the couple by anonymously delivering items such as live insects, a funeral wreath and a bloody pig face Halloween mask to their residence. 

The employees also sent pornographic magazines under the husband’s name and tried to break into their home to install a GPS tracking device onto the couples’ vehicle, according to the lawsuit. 

The new lawsuit comes as six employees of the Silicon Valley giant face charges for their roles in a harassment campaign in June 2020, resulting in five of the six employees pleading guilty to their crimes, according to the AP. 

In a statement, David Steiner said that this ordeal has been incredibly difficult for him and his wife, adding that they want to protect the rights and freedoms of journalists, the AP reported. 

“Never did we imagine doing our jobs as journalists would lead to this. We want to protect the rights of reporters and their freedom of the press. We have endured enormous cruelty and abuse and feared for our lives. If this behavior can happen to us, it can happen to anyone,” Steiner said. 

EBay said in a statement to The Hill that the “misconduct of these former employees was wrong, and we will do what is fair and appropriate to try to address what the Steiners went through. The events from 2019 should never have happened, and as eBay expressed to the Steiners, we are very sorry for what they endured.”

—Updated at 4:45 p.m.