Sorry for not responding to requests until hours later. This story may have since been updated - but the WSJ gave it the biggest play this morning - because it was also threatened by eBay.
Because it and the NY Times - gave it big play - copycat news organizations have since followed, piggy-backing on the WSJ's original research and delving into the complaint itself. Note that in all news accounts, eBay responds by distancing itself - saying that all defendants no longer work for eBay. It's obvious that it knew about the federal investigations well before yesterday's announcement by the DOJ - and was bracing for the worst while launching a damage control strategy in its prepared statements to news organizations. Nevertheless, here is the longer WSJ story as it appeared on this morning's front page. The WSJ has always had a paywall for its exclusively researched content. The shorter NY Times version should be accessible to all in private mode. ================= ================= ================= PAGE ONE - WALL STREET JOURNAL JUSTICE DEPARTMENT CHARGES FORMER eBay STAFF WITH 'CYBERSTALKING CAMPAIGN' Cockroaches, a bloody-pig mask: six former workers at eBay are alleged to have stalked a newsletter editor. By Sebastian Herrera for the Wall Street Journal Tuesday, June 16, 2020 ------ The U.S. Department of Justice has charged six former workers at eBay Inc. with leading a cyberstalking campaign against a Massachusetts couple who publish an e-commerce blog, EcommerceBytes, that criticized the company. The department on Monday said the attacks included sending the couple threatening Twitter messages and packages that contained live cockroaches, a funeral wreath and a bloody-pig mask. The department also alleges that the defendants, whose responsibilities included security and global intelligence, conducted covert surveillance of the Natick, Mass., couple. ------ The alleged actions by the employees, whom eBay fired in September after an investigation, followed criticism of EcommerceBytes by top executives that included Devin Wenig, the company's chief executive at the time, according to the complaint, which doesn't identify Mr. Wenig by name. "We are going to crush this lady," an unnamed eBay executive texted on April 10, 2019, to another unnamed eBay executive, identified as "Executive 1" in the complaint. The text included a link to an EcommerceBytes blog post about "Executive 1's compensation," the complaint says. The blog post is titled "eBay CEO Devin Wenig Earns 152 Times That of Employees," indicating that Mr. Wenig is Executive 1 in the complaint. That person hasn't been charged. ------ Later, after an unspecified EcommerceBytes post on May 31, Mr. Wenig texted: "Take her down." At another point, he also used an expletive to refer to The Wall Street Journal's coverage of the company. "The journal is next on the list," he said in the text, according to the complaint. It couldn't be determined if the Journal or any of its reporters was targeted. ------ Early in 2019, EBay was locked in a battle with activist investors Elliott Management Corp. and Starboard Value LP, which were pushing for board seats and a deal that it was believed could lead to a company breakup. EBay has since sold off the ticketing site StubHub and is considering a sale of its classifieds unit to assuage Elliott and Starboard. "It goes pretty far up the chain at eBay," U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling said Monday at a news conference. He noted that the Justice Department investigation continues. ------ Ina Steiner, the editor of EcommerceBytes and the author of the posts, as well as her husband David Steiner, didn't respond to requests for comment Monday. EBay on Monday said it was notified by law enforcement in August of suspicious activity by the company's security personnel directed at the newsletter editor and her husband, who serves as publisher. The online marketplace said it immediately launched an investigation and in September fired all those staff involved in the campaign. The company said its investigation included examining whether then-CEO Wenig might have played a role in the harassment of the editor and publisher. The company said that while it found that some of Mr. Wenig's communications at the time "were inappropriate," it found no evidence that he knew in advance or authorized any actions against the couple. Mr. Wenig resigned in September over what he said were disagreements with eBay's board, including clashes over the sale of assets. In a statement Monday, Mr. Wenig said he didn't direct or know anything about the alleged acts involving the former eBay employees. "What these charges allege is unconscionable," he said. "EBay does not tolerate this kind of behavior," a special committee formed by eBay's board of directors said Monday. "EBay holds its employees to high standards of conduct and ethics and will continue to take appropriate action to ensure these standards are followed." ------ Those charged included James Baugh, who was senior director of safety and security at eBay, David Harville, formerly director of global resiliency, and Brian Gilbert, a manager in the company's global security team. The other defendants are Stephanie Popp, Stephanie Stockwell and contractor Veronica Zea, all of whom worked in eBay's global intelligence operations. Mr. Baugh and Mr. Harville were arrested Monday on charges of conspiracy to commit cyberstalking and conspiracy to tamper with witness, each of which carry a potential sentence of up to five years in prison. Mr. Gilbert, Ms. Popp, Ms. Stockwell and Ms. Zea also face the same charges and are scheduled to appear in federal court, the department said. The defendants couldn't be reached for comment. ------ The alleged cyberstalking began after the newsletter wrote about litigation involving the online marketplace, according to the complaint. Members of eBay's executive team followed the newsletter's posts and often took issues with its content, according to the Justice Department. ------ The former employees allegedly carried out the harassment campaign in three parts. They sent items including a preserved fetal pig, a bloody-pig Halloween mask and a book on surviving the loss of a spouse, the department said. Some of the former employees also sent private messages over Twitter, as well as public tweets, criticizing the newsletter, according to the department. In a third phase, the former employees spied on the couple at their home and community, the department said. ------ On Aug. 15, Mr. Baugh, Mr. Harville and Ms. Zea allegedly drove to the couple's home with the intent of breaking into their garage and installing a GPS tracking device on their car. In the event that they were stopped by police, Mr. Baugh and Mr. Harville carried false documents purporting to show they were investigating the couple in connection with threats to eBay executives, the department said. The couple, however, detected the covert attempt and notified police, who began an investigation. The former employees attempted to interfere with evidence and lied to the police about eBay's involvement, the department said. ------ The charges Monday cap off a turbulent period for eBay. Mr. Wenig's departure in September was part of an exodus of eBay executives and managers last year. The former CEO said at the time that he had disagreements with eBay's board, which was deliberating selling assets of the company after pressure from activist investors Elliott Management Corp. and Starboard Value LP. EBay, which in April named Walmart Inc. executive Jamie Iannone as its new CEO, has considered selling its classified-advertising business, which could be worth $10 billion, The Wall Street Journal has reported. In February, eBay closed the sale of its StubHub ticket-sales unit in a $4.05 billion deal with Viagogo Entertainment Inc. ------ EcommerceBytes writes extensively about eBay. The site published short posts about several of the executives who recently departed and also critical takes on actions at the company. In one post dealing with an eBay lawsuit against Amazon filed last year, Ms. Steiner wrote that Mr. Wenig, the former eBay CEO, "demonstrated a lack of appreciation" for third-party sellers who want to sell on various tech platforms. In another post in May 2019, the site reported that eBay had built on its campus an expensive replica of a popular Manhattan bar. The article noted that Mr. Wenig was a New York City transplant. "EBay is charging sellers more and offering less (see its 2019 first-quarter financials)" Ms. Steiner wrote. "They might be wondering what took investors so long to speak up on how the company's management and board of directors are using the revenue generated by sellers' fees. Stiff drink, anyone?" Comments on articles about eBay at times were critical of the company and its executives. ________________________________ From: MoPo List <mopo-l@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU> on behalf of David Kusumoto <davidmkusum...@hotmail.com> Sent: Monday, June 15, 2020 11:36 PM To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU <MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU> Subject: Re: Former eBay employees allegedly used cockroaches, spiders, and a gruesome mask to harass a couple The story is on the FRONT PAGE of tomorrow's WSJ - and - on page 1 of Section B in tomorrow's New York Times. In the WSJ story, Ina and David are named: "Ina Steiner, the editor of EcommerceBytes and the author of the posts, as well as her husband David Steiner, didn’t respond to requests for comment Monday." The WSJ reports that eBay CEO Devin Wenig texted (about the Ina Steiner) - "Take her down." At another point, Wenig used an expletive to refer to the Wall Street Journal’s coverage of eBay, adding, "The journal is next on the list." * The attached picture is an example of what was sent to Ina and David's home, i.e., a bloodied pig's head mask - and a book entitled, "Surviving the Loss of a Spouse." https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/9108/gS8Ps8.jpg<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimagizer.imageshack.com%2Fimg923%2F9108%2FgS8Ps8.jpg&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036277214&sdata=vfFIACGFNhws7DCBUrTYZ0IBbuvnesyg0JnqdehbQZA%3D&reserved=0> [https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/9108/gS8Ps8.jpg] If you hit a paywall, let me know and I - (or anyone else who has access) - will post the full text later. -------------------------- Tuesday, June 16, 2020 PAGE ONE - Front Page, A1 - Wall Street Journal JUSTICE DEPARTMENT CHARGES FORMER eBay STAFF WITH 'CYBERSTALKING CAMPAIGN' https://www.wsj.com/articles/justice-department-charges-former-ebay-employees-with-cyberstalking-campaign-11592241507<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsj.com%2Farticles%2Fjustice-department-charges-former-ebay-employees-with-cyberstalking-campaign-11592241507&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036287200&sdata=o1KlKj6bZOaZ%2BRm34w2UsSyCSMliU3ikChLVJ46D3nA%3D&reserved=0> [https://images.wsj.net/im-198541/social]<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsj.com%2Farticles%2Fjustice-department-charges-former-ebay-employees-with-cyberstalking-campaign-11592241507&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036297193&sdata=tfswfprmR3ho3P3ftRfW%2FfL%2B3r5Fu%2B8tddO1KodSfiw%3D&reserved=0> Justice Department Charges Former eBay Staff With ‘Cyberstalking Campaign’ - WSJ<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsj.com%2Farticles%2Fjustice-department-charges-former-ebay-employees-with-cyberstalking-campaign-11592241507&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036307189&sdata=iHZyoqLaT0RYomxr1TWgHyKC7%2FPIhL%2BXgIPA8aBQg2o%3D&reserved=0> The U.S. Department of Justice has charged six former workers at eBay Inc. with leading a cyberstalking campaign against a Massachusetts couple who publish an e-commerce blog, EcommerceBytes, that ... www.wsj.com --------------------------- Tuesday, June 16, 2020 Section B, Page 1 NY Times U.S. SAYS LIVE ROACHES WERE SENT TO eBay CRITICS. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/15/technology/ebay-cyberstalking-with-cockroaches-and-bloody-pig-face.html<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2020%2F06%2F15%2Ftechnology%2Febay-cyberstalking-with-cockroaches-and-bloody-pig-face.html&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036317185&sdata=ZKAc4m0OPTdJTVKp86hwwlmXZqBLwhX%2BQ34rSH6IGro%3D&reserved=0> [https://static01.nyt.com/images/2020/06/15/business/15ebay-stalking1/15ebay-stalking1-facebookJumbo.jpg]<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2020%2F06%2F15%2Ftechnology%2Febay-cyberstalking-with-cockroaches-and-bloody-pig-face.html&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036327178&sdata=%2BRfM5nffbIgrPfHShfptIoTCtt1R0ObW0aFIGrIRZOQ%3D&reserved=0> Ex-eBay Workers Sent Critics Live Roaches and a Mask of a Bloody Pig Face, U.S. Says - The New York Times<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2020%2F06%2F15%2Ftechnology%2Febay-cyberstalking-with-cockroaches-and-bloody-pig-face.html&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036337177&sdata=23sr5D7opzwt%2FusW451QhxiAZPesac4zwaFeJTprDdE%3D&reserved=0> Six former employees of the site sent threatening messages and deliveries to a couple after the e-commerce newsletter they published wrote about a lawsuit involving eBay. Joseph R. Bonavolonta ... www.nytimes.com ========================================== On 2020-06-15 21:25, Bruce Hershenson wrote: UNBELIEVABLE! 21 years ago, when I moved my auction business entirely online, I met a couple, Ina and David Steiner, who had just started a site devoted to online auctions called https://www.ecommercebytes.com/<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ecommercebytes.com%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036347170&sdata=cBPWO%2FDbrChL6WDHUVHNgZNtqPO37NvaQNskgIhsC%2FU%3D&reserved=0> I found (and have continued to find over the years since) that their site was one of the only online sites to provide the "straight dope" about online selling. Naturally this included much negative information about eBay, as the auction site did all they could to keep raising fees on their sellers, while adding insane regulations to being a seller. I left Bay in 2007 after 330,000 auctions there, and ecommercebytes covered my departure honestly and fairly. NOW, this has happened, and it is something NO ONE could possibly have expected from ANY company. The couple referred to in the article below (although they are unnamed) ARE Ina and David Steiner, and I guarantee reading this will turn your stomach. :( https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/15/tech/ebay-cyberstalking/index.html<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2020%2F06%2F15%2Ftech%2Febay-cyberstalking%2Findex.html&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036347170&sdata=aqEVbVjc5P66G%2BWlfqgXaD4hDY956oTtDemUalGL23U%3D&reserved=0> [https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/200615133710-ebay-restricted-super-tease.jpg]<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2020%2F06%2F15%2Ftech%2Febay-cyberstalking%2Findex.html&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036357166&sdata=qGlq%2FHeIIoKFyhbMUYt7ZcKcOUFTeWs5GbYdMhUuRmg%3D&reserved=0> eBay: Former employees allegedly used cockroaches, spiders, and a gruesome mask to harass a couple - CNN<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2020%2F06%2F15%2Ftech%2Febay-cyberstalking%2Findex.html&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036367161&sdata=TTqHrpaojlPucK%2BEE1dqgNWVv35ZVFkFhInsNO9cmZU%3D&reserved=0> Six former eBay employees face charges for cyberstalking and tampering with evidence after, according to federal prosecutors, they harassed a Boston-area couple who ran a news site that was at ... www.cnn.com ________________________________ To unsubscribe from the MoPo-L list, click the following link: https://listserv.american.edu/scripts/wa-american.exe?SUBED1=MoPo-L&A=1<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flistserv.american.edu%2Fscripts%2Fwa-american.exe%3FSUBED1%3DMoPo-L%26A%3D1&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cbc714cce03054a17429708d811bfa1e7%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637278862036377158&sdata=H0FnxgAHV3xOw5GHdeTwS96ohV2TWxAxrzLSNVEzWpY%3D&reserved=0> Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
