Callum Jones
AT&T customers could receive up to $7,500 as part of a $177 million settlement over two major data breaches.
It was back in March 2024 when the first data breach impacted 73 million current and former AT&T account holders, with birth dates and Social Security numbers being found in a dataset on the dark web.
Addressing the data breach, an AT&T spokesperson told UNILAD: "After analysis by our internal teams as well as external data consultants, we are confident this is repackaged data previously released on the dark web in March 2024."
"Affected customers were notified at that time," they went on. "We have notified law enforcement of this latest development."
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The spokesperson added that credit monitoring and identity theft protection were offered to customers whose sensitive personal information was compromised as part of the notice in 2024.
Lawsuits were filed in state and federal courts across the US after the major data breaches, with a recent ruling suggesting a proposed settlement has been reached for $177 million.
$149 million of that has been designated for the first settlement class, while $28 million is being kept for the second settlement class.
The massive settlement is still awaiting approval, with a final hearing in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas in December seeing a final call made.
So, AT&T customers whose data was compromised in the first or second data breach are eligible to file for a payout.
Emails from Kroll Settlement Administration (KSA) - the settlement administrator for the AT&T Data Incident Settlement - under the domain name '[email protected]' are being sent out to those in that camp. KSA said you can also call (833) 890-4930 to see if you qualify.
Those impacted by the data breach have to fill out an online claim form by November 18 this year, with the settlement website stating that customers who claim give up their right to sue AT&T.
How much you get very much depends on when you were caught up in the data breach.
Customers whose data was exposed in March 2024 are eligible for up to $5,000, while those involved in the breach of July 2024 are eligible for up to $2,500 'for losses that occurred on or after April 14, 2024', according to the settlement claim site.
If your information was leaked in both breaches, you could be looking at compensation up to $7,500.
The settlement website notes: "It also takes time for all of the claim forms to be processed. Please be patient."