A federal lawsuit has been filed seeking class-action status against Otter.ai, accusing the company of recording private conversations without the consent of users. This practice allegedly allows Otter to train its widely used transcription service, known as Otter Notebook, which is capable of delivering real-time transcriptions for meetings held on platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams.
The lawsuit, submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, was initiated by Justin Brewer, a resident of San Jacinto, California. Brewer claims that his privacy was significantly violated when he discovered that Otter was secretly recording a confidential conversation. According to the lawsuit, Otter’s AI-powered transcription service does not request permission from meeting attendees to record conversations, nor does it notify them that their discussions may be shared with Otter to enhance its AI systems.
This legal action asserts that Otter's unauthorized recording practices infringe upon both state and federal privacy laws, including wiretap regulations. The lawsuit aims to represent other individuals in California who have had their private discussions unknowingly shared with Otter, suggesting that the company profits from these practices.
In recent months, Otter.ai has faced increasing scrutiny regarding its privacy policies as its technology gains traction in workplaces globally. The company claims that approximately 25 million people utilize its AI transcription tools, which have recorded over 1 billion meetings since its inception in 2016. However, users have taken to platforms like X and Reddit to express concerns about the potential pitfalls of Otter's automated recording features.
One troubling incident highlighted in media reports involved an AI researcher who discovered that Otter had recorded a meeting with potential investors. The transcription provided to him included sensitive details discussed after he left the meeting, which ultimately jeopardized a business deal, as reported by The Washington Post.
In another alarming case, a correspondent for Politico recounted an interview with a Uyghur human rights activist using Otter. The journalist realized that the company might share user data with third parties, raising fears that the Chinese government could access raw transcriptions of sensitive conversations with dissidents. Otter has publicly stated that it does not share user data with foreign governments or law enforcement agencies.
Users have reported on Reddit that Otter has a tendency to join meetings automatically when linked to workplace calendars, often recording conversations without the consent of all participants. This issue is a focal point of the ongoing lawsuit. While Otter typically requests permission from the meeting host to record, it does not automatically seek consent from other participants. The lawsuit claims that if the meeting host has an Otter account, the recording assistant can join the meeting without informing anyone else involved.
According to the lawsuit, Otter's Otter Notetaker assistant is used to record and transcribe conversations without the informed consent of participants. Although Otter asserts that audio recordings are de-identified before being processed to improve its AI speech recognition features, the lawsuit questions the effectiveness of this de-identification process. It claims that Otter has not provided sufficient public information about its methods, and there are concerns that confidential information is not adequately removed, compromising speaker anonymity.
As this lawsuit unfolds, it raises significant questions about user privacy and the ethical implications of AI technologies, specifically in the realm of transcription services. The outcome could have lasting effects on how companies like Otter.ai operate and the legal standards for privacy in the tech industry.
