SHOPPERS are in line for a check worth up to $3,257.50 as part of a data breach settlement and all they need is a bank statement to collect it.
Heating company Honeywell faced a class action lawsuit after it was alleged to have failed to protect consumers from a cyberattack.
Heating company Honeywell failed to protect consumers’ data, a lawsuit alleges[/caption]
People who now apply for the payout can potentially claim $3,257.50[/caption]
Honeywell designs and manufactures smart home products such as thermostats, air purifiers, and security products.
But Hackers were reportedly able to steal consumer information from the company through a vulnerability in a third-part file sharing tool, Top Class Actions reported.
A data breach class action lawsuit was subsequently brought against the company.
Honeywell hasn’t admitted any wrongdoing, but did agree to pay out an undisclosed sum to resolve the lawsuit with plaintiffs.
Now, some customers affected could be payed out $3,257.50 – with $2,750 for those facing extraordinary damages, $82.50 for lost time, and $425 for ordinary damages.
Extraordinary damages are where customers have faced fraud or identity theft from the use of their data stolen in the hack.
Ordinary damages are data breach losses, such as bank fees, communication charges, credit expenses, and more that many affected would have had to deal with.
As proof, claimants need to provide documentation of data breach-related expenses.
These include bank statements, phone bills, postage receipts, gas receipts, invoices and credit reports.
The cash is available for anyone who received a data breach notification between June 2023 and September 2023.
The data theft is thought to have happened in June 2023.
Anyone who did not previously enrol for the credit monitoring services by Honeywell are able to do so now.
But they will need to hurry as to get into the settlement they have a deadline of October 24.
And Americans could also get up to £4,400 as part of a bank settlement as Green Valley looks to resolve its own data breach.
According to the plaintiffs, Green Valley failed to protect their information from a data breach in May 2022 that compromised their personal information.
Meanwhile the deadline looms for Americans to claim a chunk of a $115 million payout due to privacy concerns.
It comes after a class action lawsuit was filed against cloud applications provider Oracle America, Inc. in California in 2023.
The complaint alleges that the company illegally collected personal information and sold it to third parties for advertising purposes.
“Oracle improperly captured, compiled, and sold individuals’ online
and offline data to third parties without obtaining their consent,” the class action notice claims.
Web activity, purchases made online, geolocation and other personal information were reportedly collected and sold by the company.
What’s a class-action settlement?
Class action lawsuits offer groups of people, or ‘classes,’ a way to band together in court.
These suits are often brought by one or a few people who allege a company or other entity has wronged a large group of people.
When a suit becomes a class action, it extends to all “class members,” or people who may have similar complaints to those who filed the suit.
Companies often settle class actions – offering payment to class members who typically waive their right to pursue further legal action by accepting money.
These payout agreements frequently include statements by the defendant denying wrongdoing. Companies tend to settle class actions to avoid the costs of further litigation.
Pollution, discrimination, or false advertising are a few examples of what can land a class action on a company’s doorstep.
Honeywell produces smart home solutions[/caption]
