‘A horrible nightmare’: the shocking story of the eBay harassment scandal

A $55.7 Million Reckoning: How eBay Turned Against the Journalists Who Covered It

Wanderstayfinder.com – After six years of grueling legal battles, Massachusetts journalists Ina and David Steiner have secured a $55.7 million settlement from eBay, bringing closure to one of the most extraordinary harassment campaigns ever directed at reporters. The macabre ordeal, which began in 2019, saw the couple subjected to live spiders, a bloody pig mask, and pornographic magazines deliberately mailed to their neighbors—all orchestrated by the very company they had chronicled for two decades.

From Garage Startups to Corporate Enemies

When the Steiners began their journalism careers at the turn of the millennium, Silicon Valley felt remarkably intimate. Startups still operated from residential garages, and reporters filed stories from kitchen tables. eBay, then a fledgling online auction platform built on the philosophy that “people are basically good,” represented everything the couple found compelling about the tech industry.

Capitalizing on the digital retail boom, the Steiners created EcommerceBytes, an electronic newsletter serving small business owners who relied on eBay to reach customers. “We talked about this being an opportunity for just average people, disabled people, elderly people to make extra income,” David Steiner explained. The publication has since expanded to more than 600,000 readers, growing alongside the platform it covered.

Their first 19 years together represented a journalistic fairy tale. Ina managed editorial content while David built their publishing infrastructure from scratch. “Back when we started there was no WordPress,” Ina recalled. “He had to somehow conjure up his own system where we could still publish within budget.”

The Nightmare Unfolds

Everything changed during a terrifying sequence of events in 2019. The Steiners began receiving alarming deliveries at their suburban Boston home: live spiders, a pig mask resembling the one worn by the killer in the Saw horror film franchise, and a book about surviving the death of a spouse. Their home address appeared online as a venue for pop-up yard sales and swingers’ parties.

Pornographic magazines addressed specifically to David were sent to neighbors, creating awkward encounters and embarrassment. The couple initially believed they were dealing with a random stalker. “I thought it was some lone psychopath,” Ina said. “I reached out to my sister and said: ‘I have a stalker. Please tell everyone to disengage and disconnect from me on social media.’ We were so terrified and afraid for our family. I was feeling this sort of shame.”

Desperate for safety, the couple installed cameras throughout their home, slept in separate beds, and rigged noisemakers from pots and pans to detect intruders. Local police remained baffled by the escalating situation until the Steiners provided a license plate number from a car that had been surveilling them. The vehicle belonged to an eBay employee who had rented it using a corporate credit card.

Corporate Vendetta Revealed

The investigation quickly exposed a coordinated campaign. eBay, struggling to maintain its competitive edge and facing pressure from activist investors, had grown increasingly hostile toward the Steiners. Ina’s straightforward reporting on CEO Devin Wenig’s substantial compensation package had apparently struck a nerve.

Text message exchanges between executives revealed the personal nature of the vendetta. “Take her down,” Wenig wrote. “I want to see ashes,” wrote chief communications officer Steve Wymer. “As long as it takes. Whatever it takes.”

According to investigators, security chief James Baugh, acting on executive orders, directed a group of young women who worked for him to target the Steiners. Baugh was simultaneously harassing the couple and, in at least one instance, maintaining an extramarital relationship with one of his subordinates.

Justice Served

In 2020, the Department of Justice charged seven eBay executives and employees with cyberstalking. The legal proceedings continued through 2022, when Baugh faced additional charges. The final settlement, reached last month, represents one of the largest compensation packages awarded to journalists for workplace harassment.

“This was a Stephen King nightmare, a horrible nightmare,” Ina said. “And then to find out the company that I had covered for 20 years was doing this is surreal. It’s taken an enormous toll on us physically and mentally.”

The Steiners’ case has emerged as a powerful example of the modern dangers facing journalists. Their story illustrates how corporate interests can transform from partners into adversaries, and how the cozy relationships that once defined Silicon Valley journalism have given way to more complex, often hostile dynamics. The settlement not only provides financial compensation but also establishes precedent for how companies can be held accountable for targeting reporters who expose uncomfortable truths.

For the Steiners, the victory represents more than monetary compensation. It validates their decision to fight rather than retreat, and confirms that the community they helped build—spanning average citizens, disabled individuals, and elderly entrepreneurs—stood with them through the darkest period of their lives.