Ancestry company 23andMe agreed to settle a multi-million class action lawsuit that accused it of not protecting its users’ data.
The company announced a year ago that hackers had breached its systems starting in April 2023 and accessed customers’ information. About half of the 14 million users of 23andMe had their information leaked in the hack, CNET reported.
A class action lawsuit was filed in January 2024 claiming that 23andMe didn’t do enough to protect customers’ information. The filing also said the company did not disclose the hack to people with Chinese or Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry. Their accounts were allegedly targeted and their information was posted to the dark web.
23andMe settled the suit for $30 million. Some payments to those affected could be up to $10,000 depending on what happened to their information.
The company said it expects a majority of the payment, about $25 million, would be covered by its cyber insurance, Reuters reported last month.
How do you qualify for a payout?
First, you must have been a resident of the U.S. as of Aug. 11, 2023.
You had to use either 23andMe or its other service called Family Tree. There are about 5.5 million users of the primary website and another 1.4 million who used Family Tree and who may be eligible, CNET reported.
To get the top payout of up to $10,000, you must have what is called an “Extraordinary Claim” and have had hardships from the breach that then spawned unreimbursed costs for things such as identity fraud, falsified tax returns, physical security systems or mental health treatment, all caused by the breach. You will have to provide documentation to show the expenses, Forbes reported. The amount may be less than $10,000 depending on how many people make a claim.
People in Alaska, California, Illinois and Oregon whose information was taken can apply for a payment of about $100 because of genetic privacy laws and damage provisions in those areas.
Additionally, people whose health information was affected can get a $100 payment. The amount may be less due to the $750,000 limit set for total claims in the settlement, Forbes reported.
Along with the settlement payout, those whose information was accessed will also get three years of Privacy Shield, a security monitoring service that offers web and dark web monitoring.
The website to file a claim has not been launched but will be 23andmedatasettlement.com once it goes live. There will be online submission and mail submission options to file a claim.
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