France Investigates Apple Over Siri Recordings

The Paris prosecutor’s office has initiated an investigation into Apple on suspicion of illegally collecting and storing recordings of user conversations made through the Siri voice assistant. According to Politico, the investigation was prompted by a complaint from a human rights organization, supported by the testimony of former Apple subcontractor Thomas Le Bonniec.

Le Bonniec stated that in 2019 he and other employees analyzed thousands of audio recordings obtained from user devices without their knowledge. Among those recordings, he said, were conversations containing personal and confidential data — including medical information, family discussions, and bank card details.

Human rights advocates believe Apple’s actions may violate European data protection laws (GDPR), which require that personal data be processed only with user consent and for clearly stated purposes.

Apple itself denies all accusations. Company representatives stated that Siri audio files were never used for marketing or commercial purposes and were only applied to improve speech recognition quality. Nevertheless, the investigation has been assigned to France’s cybercrime agency, which will verify whether Apple’s data processing practices complied with European law.

Experts note that this is not the first time Apple has faced privacy-related accusations. Similar investigations have already taken place in Ireland and Germany. However, the current French case could become the largest due to the volume of data and its international resonance.