Well, I have to say I was fairly shocked by the actual nature of the criminal harassment.
I was expecting it to be somehow business related, but instead read this:
Federal prosecutors in Boston said eBay had entered into a deferred prosecution agreement to resolve the case in which David and Ina Steiner were sent live cockroaches, a bloody Halloween pig mask, a funeral wreath and a book on surviving the death of a spouse.
Fake adverts were also posted on Craigslist inviting members of the public to attend sexual encounters at the coupleโs home.
The people doing the harassing were senior executives! The senior director of safety and security & his team, no less.
This is, or was, a group way out of control. It is more what you would expect from a criminal organisation, not a legitimate company. I do think the very top brass at ebay should also have been brought to task and put on notice. It is not acceptable.
One thing I noticed is the fine (which I think was too small actually as it is peanuts for a corporation such as ebay) does not go to the victims. All it does is boost government coffers. I'd like to know what settlement the Steiners actually get. Ebay's chief executive says:
Jamie Iannone, eBayโs chief executive, said the behaviour was โwrong and reprehensibleโ and that the company was โcommitted to upholding high standards of conduct and ethics and to making things right with the Steinersโ.
Yet the Steiners have to launch a civil case. I just hope they get a lot more than $4 million.
