Core Points - Kroll Settlement Administration has opened a claims portal related to two significant data breaches involving AT&T, which agreed to pay approximately $177 million to settle a class-action lawsuit stemming from these incidents [1][3] - Affected individual users may receive up to $7,500 in compensation, although AT&T has not admitted to any wrongdoing and has committed to enhancing data security measures in the future [1][4] Summary by Sections Data Breach Incidents - In March 2024, AT&T acknowledged that a large volume of personal data from users prior to 2019 was illegally published on the dark web, affecting approximately 7.6 million current users and 65.4 million former users [3] - In July 2024, AT&T confirmed another data breach attributed to a third-party cloud platform, Snowflake, where hackers accessed nearly all call and text records of about 109 million AT&T users from 2022 to 2023 [3][4] - Following these breaches, AT&T reset passwords for all potentially affected users and reportedly paid a ransom to the hackers, with two individuals arrested for their involvement in the cyberattack [3] Settlement Details - The lawsuit resulting from the data breaches was consolidated in court, leading to a preliminary settlement where AT&T agreed to pay a total of approximately $177 million, with $149 million allocated for the March incident and $28 million for the July incident [3][4] - Users affected by the breaches must submit claims by November 18 of this year, providing sufficient evidence to demonstrate their losses directly related to the data breaches [4] Future Implications - AT&T has not acknowledged any illegal actions but aims to resolve the lawsuits through compensation while promising to strengthen data security measures moving forward [4] - A court hearing is scheduled for December to determine the final approval of the settlement, with compensation distribution expected to begin in early 2026 [4] - Historically, AT&T has faced multiple data breaches, with nine incidents reported from 2001 to March 2023, including a breach in March 2023 affecting approximately 9 million users and another in August 2021 involving over 70 million users [4]
披露两次大规模数据泄露后,美电信巨头赔1.77亿美元和解