T-Mobile will pay $350 million as part of a settlement following the massive data breach.
According to Reuters, T-Mobile is also preparing a budget of up to 150 million USD to upgrade data security to prevent repeat incidents. In 2021, the company suffered a cyber attack, leaving the records of 76.6 million users in the hands of hackers.
At the time, the US carrier initially said 47 million customer details were affected, but this number has increased to 76.6 million. The information hacker included names, addresses, dates of birth, driver’s license data and social security numbers.
The report said the $350 million figure was the amount the company paid out to the affected people at $25 each. For people in California this figure is $100.
Directly affected victims can receive up to $25,000. For protection, T-Mobile is offering all victims affected by this data breach a two-year contract of identity theft protection.
Even so, T-Mobile still denies that T-Mobile denies the allegation of breaching its obligations to protect personal information and inadequate data security. The settlement will cover lawsuits across the country with at least 44 class action lawsuits. The settlement, which requires a judge’s approval, is expected to take place in December.
According to Wall Street Journal , the hack was claimed responsibility by a 21-year-old American hacker – who had now moved to Turkey a few years earlier. The hacker claims to have penetrated T-Mobile’s defenses after finding an unprotected router.