A Massachusetts couple who faced terrifying harassment from former eBay employees have reached a settlement, bringing their long-running legal battle to an end.
David and Ina Steiner, residents of Natick and founders of the online newsletter EcommerceBytes, filed their lawsuit in Boston federal court in 2021.
The couple claimed that eBay employees had waged a campaign to "intimidate, threaten to kill, torture, terrorize, stalk and silence them" in retaliation for reporting on the company, AP News reported.
The harassment, according to court filings, included cyberstalking, death threats, and in-person surveillance.
The Steiners also reported bizarre and frightening deliveries to their home, such as live cockroaches and spiders, a funeral wreath, and a bloody pig Halloween mask.
In one incident, the harassers even sent pornographic magazines addressed to the husband to a neighbor's house and allegedly plotted to attach a GPS device to their car.
A settlement is reached in a case tied to eBay's bizarre deliveries and harassment campaign https://t.co/tz4SAsncED
— EYEWITNESS NEWS (@cnyhomepage) February 26, 2026
eBay Harassment Case Settled
The case was dismissed Wednesday by Boston US District Judge Patti Saris after the parties reached a settlement, though either side can reopen it within 60 days if the agreement is not finalized. The specific terms of the settlement were not made public.
An eBay spokesperson referred to the court order and stated that the company had nothing further to add.
According to Yahoo, when the lawsuit was originally filed, eBay acknowledged that "the misconduct of these former employees was wrong" and promised to "do what is fair and appropriate to try to address what the Steiners went through."
The legal trouble for eBay stems from criminal charges filed in 2020 against seven former employees.
Prosecutors said the workers carried out the harassment campaign after becoming angry over the couple's coverage of the company in EcommerceBytes.
Most of the defendants pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy and cyberstalking and received prison sentences or home confinement.
In addition to the criminal cases, eBay agreed in 2024 to pay a $3 million penalty under a deferred prosecution agreement with federal authorities.
"It's been a long and stressful journey," David Steiner said, "but we are relieved to finally see this case resolved."
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