Standard Innovation Corp. recently settled a class action lawsuit that alleged the company collected unauthorized data from consumers. The proliferation of similar lawsuits has created a backlog of class action cases in federal courts throughout the United States.
Consumers who bought a Bluetooth-activated We-Vibe device from Standard Innovation Corp. or downloaded the We-Connect smartphone application might be eligible for payment under the terms of the class action settlement.
Standard Innovation Corp. designs and sells a line of We-Vibe brand vibrators. The vibrators work with the We-Connect smartphone app, which gives consumers control of the vibrator by accessing a Bluetooth link via a smartphone. Consumers must use the We-Connect application to optimize all of the features offered by the We-Vibe vibrator.
The Class Action Lawsuit
Plaintiff class member N.P. filed the Standard Innovation Corp. class action lawsuit in September of 2016. She charged the company with illegally collecting user data and transmitting the data to several servers located in Canada. Some of the unlawful collection of data included the date and time of the use of each vibrator, as well as the settings created by individual consumers. N.P. alleges that Standard Innovation Corp. sent sensitive personal data such as email addresses to the Canadian servers. The primary plaintiff claims Standard Innovation Corp. collects user data, without the consent of the user.
What You Need to Know
Both parties agreed to a preliminary settlement in March of 2017. Under the terms of the settlement, Standard Innovation Corp. does not admit to fault or liability claims. Class members that want to contest the settlement or opt out of the settlement have until June 29, 2017 to take such measures. The settlement creates payments for two plaintiff classes. First, consumers who purchased the We-Vibe Classic, We-Vibe 4 Plus, We-Vibe 4 Plus App Only, Rave by We-Vibe, and/or Nova by We-Vibe before September 26, 2016 are eligible for payment. Second, consumers that downloaded the We-Connect app before September 26, 2016 to control any of the aforementioned devices are eligible for compensation
The potential award per consumers that were victims of the downloaded app invasion of privacy can receive up to $10,000 for mostly punitive damages. Purchasers of the any of the products sold by Standard Innovation Corp. can receive up to $199. Consumers must file a timely claim form to qualify for compensation. Class members must provide the serial number of the We-Vibe product to receive a monetary award. The claim form deadline is July 27, 2017, with the final hearing for the officially named case N.P., et al. v. Standard Innovation Corp., Case No. 1:16-cv-08655, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division occurring on august 7, 2017. Consumers can stay updated on the class action settlement news by accessing the website www.SICClassActionSettlement.com.
