AMERICANS can claim up to $7,500 in AT&T’s class action lawsuit that targets two data leaks that occurred in 2024.
The telecommunications giant has been accused of not doing enough to prevent either of the attacks that occurred in March and July 2024.
AT&T has not admitted to any wrongdoing in either instances, but has agreed to pay out a combined $177 million to settle the claims against it.
The company delivered a statement to Nextstar that explained its position.
AT&T said: “While we deny the allegations in these lawsuits that we were responsible for these criminal acts, we have agreed to this settlement to avoid the expense and uncertainty of protracted litigation.
“We remain committed to protecting our customers’ data and ensuring their continued trust in us.”
Class members can claim up to $5,000 from the March data leak and $2,500 from the July one, resulting in a combined pay day of $7,500.
The March 2024 settlement pot if $149 million and the July one is $28 million, totals which were approved by a federal Texas judge.
Claimants have argued that AT&T failed to stop valuable information, including Social Security numbers, from leaking on the “dark web”.
The dark web is an anonymous and hard to access corner of the internet which is commonly thought to be a place to commit illicit and illegal activity.
This was the case for roughly 7.6 million current AT&T account holders and 65.4 million former ones.
AT&T had previously confirmed it was probing for a data set that was leaked online to an unauthorized third-party in 2022.
This settlement benefits those who had their information leaked online and were notified about it.
COMPENSATION
Aside from the financial compensation, claimants are eligible for 24 months of credit monitoring.
While there are payment caps for both incidents, it is not known how much each person will be equally paid.
This is because the more people that successfully claim, the more people the settlement pot will need to go between.
What’s a class-action settlement?
Class action lawsuits offer groups of people, or ‘classes,’ a way to band together in court.
These suits are often brought by one or a few people who allege a company or other entity has wronged a large group of people.
When a suit becomes a class action, it extends to all “class members,” or people who may have similar complaints to those who filed the suit.
Companies often settle class actions – offering payment to class members who typically waive their right to pursue further legal action by accepting money.
These payout agreements frequently include statements by the defendant denying wrongdoing. Companies tend to settle class actions to avoid the costs of further litigation.
Pollution, discrimination, or false advertising are a few examples of what can land a class action on a company’s doorstep.
The remaining settlement fund will be used to pay out things like fees for attorneys.
Those who claim should already have a valid class member ID that they can use.
DEADLINE
Without a valid claim form submitted by the given deadline, that person will not be considered for any from of compensation.
The deadline to submit a claim form is set for November 18, and the final hearing is happening on December 3.
If you want to opt out of the settlement, you can do so up until October 17, 2025.
Similarly, if you have issue with the designated settlement fund, you can only make an objection up until that date.
Knowingly submitting a fraudulent claim is damaging those who are eligible for reimbursement.
You can file a claim by clicking this link.
AT&T has not admitted to any wrongdoing in either instances, but has agreed to pay out a combined $177 million to settle the claims against it[/caption]
