Many Comcast and Xfinity customers might be due for cash payments following a $117.5 million settlement connected to a significant data breach. This breach, which exposed sensitive customer data, raised serious concerns.
The class action lawsuit, filed in federal court in Pennsylvania, claims that Comcast did not sufficiently protect customer information. Hackers managed to exploit vulnerabilities in Citrix software to access internal systems between October 16 and October 19, 2023.
Comcast revealed the breach on December 18, 2023.
The settlement primarily affects individuals within the United States and its territories who were specifically notified that their information might have been compromised.
It’s worth noting, though, that not every Comcast or Xfinity customer will automatically be eligible for compensation.
Those who qualify can file for reimbursement for documented losses, receive compensation for the time spent dealing with the breach’s aftermath, or opt for a cash payment, which is expected to hover around $50.
But, it’s important to mention that this amount isn’t set in stone.
The $50 payment could change based on how many people file valid claims and how much remains after deducting attorney fees and other costs from the settlement fund.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs are eyeing about one-third of the fund, roughly $39.17 million, for legal fees.
Administrative costs and notification fees are capped at $7.3 million, although the agreement does permit meritorious service awards for the class representatives.
Comcast denies any wrongdoing, emphasizing that the hackers took advantage of a known Citrix vulnerability affecting many organizations globally.
As per Comcast’s disclosures, by November 16, 2023, they figured out that customer data might have been accessed by an unauthorized person.
By December 6, they confirmed that the breach included sensitive information such as usernames, hashed passwords, and potentially exposed names, contact information, dates of birth, last four digits of Social Security numbers, and security questions.
It was estimated at the time that nearly 36 million individuals could have been impacted.
The settlement proposal wraps up around 31.7 million individuals into the class who were sent notifications via letters or emails.
Customers who file claims for documented losses may claim as much as $10,000 for their total expenses and lost time.
Covered expenses include losses related to fraud, fees for credit freezes or fraud alerts, credit monitoring, and other associated costs like postage, copying, and mileage.
Additionally, claimants can seek compensation for up to five hours of lost time, billed at $30 per hour.
