Couple Files $5 Million False Advertising Suit Against Apple for Wi-Fi Assist

A couple is suing Apple for $5 million, alleging it misled consumers about extra data usage through Wi-Fi Assist, a new feature that was part of the update to iOS 9, said the complaint, seeking class-action status, filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose Friday. The lawsuit alleges Apple violated California's unfair competition and false advertising laws and accuses the company of negligent misrepresentation. Wi-Fi Assist is a default setting that allows the phone to switch from Wi-Fi to data usage when the wireless connection is weak or unreliable, the suit said. Apple never told consumers that this function was there, leading consumers to go over their data caps and have to pay higher bills, the suit alleges. Apple issued a statement Oct. 2 telling people how Wi-Fi Assist works and how to deactivate the default setting, the suit said. Apple didn't comment.