Fairly recently, you see, AT&T has once again been in some serious legal trouble, and this time, it involves the big data breaches, and that’s why we’re seeing this AT&T Lawsuit in action. Just so you know, it is $177 million we’re talking about in settlement money here. Yes, the case has been settled, but you should still get to know the details of this lawsuit to understand it in a much better way and know what is there in it for you.
What Led to the AT&T Lawsuit?
It started with two separate data breaches, in 2019, there was one, and then there was another in 2024. All were very serious and involved the personal data of millions of AT&T customers.
The 2019 breach exposed around 73 million people with exploitable personal information, i.e., names, birth dates, Social Security numbers, etc. This data appeared on the dark web last year, meaning it was exposed for an extended period before anyone detected it.
Then came another incident in early 2024. Hackers accessed AT&T’s cloud storage hosted through a third party, a company named Snowflake. This time, the attackers managed to obtain call- and text-log data concerning about 109 million customers. According to AT&T, these logs did not contain names, but having that kind of activity data floating around is a huge concern.
Remember, this group of incidents did not escape the attention of the media and the public. They were widely reported in the press and led to lawsuits, forcing AT&T to go for settlements.
What Does the $177 Million Settlement Cover?
AT&T has agreed to pay $177 million in order to settle two class-action lawsuits that stem from the data breaches. This is how they would like to spend the funds:
- For the 2019 breach, the value of $149 million was set aside for the affected consumers
- And for the 2024 breach, $28 million was allocated
The settlement applies primarily to those who suffered actual financial harm: instances like identity theft, bank-related problems, or credit issues. It will also cover legal fees, administration costs, and fees to the lead plaintiffs who helped push the case forward.
AT&T may pay a settlement, but on their end, they deny any wrongdoing. They are pointing their fingers right at the hackers, placing the blame on them for the breach of security, which they say was beyond their control. But settling avoids both the lengthy marches through the courts and the wounds on their corporate image, at least legally speaking.
Can You Claim a Payout?
If you had a breach or data breach from AT&T, a claim may be approved if you have an account.
If there is financial injury evidenced by, for example, financial loss or identity theft, this could be a humongously favorable outcome. Like:
- Up to $5,000 for the 2019 breach.
- Up to $2,500 for the 2024 breach.
In the event that you fail to furnish the evidence of financial loss, you may get a relatively smaller payment from the remaining funds after significant claims have been given first priority.
Though, just in case you know, even without receipts or paperwork, there might still be something in it for you.
What Is AT&T Saying About All This?
In the above situation, for its part, AT&T continues to deny that it is at fault. It made it clear that the breaches had occurred due to external attacks and were not the result of internal negligence. The issue was settled so that it wouldn’t drag on too much.
There has also been an announcement that preparations have been made to protect customer data in the future. After these unprecedented breaches, there is a lot to recover in terms of trust.
