Millions may be eligible for $6,000 in data breach settlement

Millions of Americans may be eligible for up to $6,000 from a major data breach settlement —but they must act fast, as the deadline is this Monday, Newsweek reports.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm, agreed to a $21 million settlement after hackers stole sensitive data in a data breach between June 3 and September 26, 2020. Even more alarming, the firm notified affected Americans almost a year after the data breach. Those affected had no idea their Social Security numbers, personal identifying information, personal health information, usernames, passwords, medical information, biometric information, and credit card information were taken.

You are eligible for a claim if you were with the firm between June and September of 2020. However, you must prove you suffered monetary damages from the data breach to be eligible for the compensation. You can file the claim on the settlement website, ajgdatasettlement.com, by Monday, February 10. Alternatively, you can mail out your claim, and as long as it has a postmark by February 10 or earlier, it should be accepted. Additionally, ensure you supply proof of identity and any documents that prove you suffered financial losses or expenses because of the breach. For example, you can provide documents such as bank statements, receipts for identity theft protection services, or bills.

Christopher E. Roberts, class action attorney at Butsch Roberts & Associates LLC, told Newsweek: “This settlement is significant for two primary reasons. First, this settlement further highlights how prevalent data breaches are and continue to be. Data breach class actions are one of the largest, if not the largest, types of class action cases that are currently being filed.

Second, this settlement further highlights the importance of companies developing appropriate safeguards to safeguard consumers’ data… even large companies, even one of the world’s largest insurance brokerages, can be susceptible to data breaches.”

The compensation is a maximum of $6,000, including credit monitoring and identity theft insurance, but the amount can vary depending on the number of people who submit valid claims. It may not be the worst data breach in history, but it shows how these types of attacks continue to happen and put our data at risk.