A federal judge approved a $177 million settlement which resolves legal cases about AT&T data breaches that exposed personal information from tens of millions of customers.
Judge Ada Brown of the Dallas District Court declared the settlement agreement to be both fair and reasonable. The court decision brings an important milestone to end all legal proceedings related to the cyberattacks AT&T revealed during the previous year.
The settlement resolves multiple data breaches which happened in May and July by protecting customer contact details and account information. The settlement represents a growing pattern of class-action settlements because corporate victims of cybercrime now face increasing legal demands to pay compensation to affected users. The agreement does not require AT&T to admit any wrongdoing despite being one of the largest telecom carriers in the U.S.
The settlement provides compensation to affected customers who will receive benefits according to the settlement terms until the court gives its final approval. The court has not established a date for the final fairness hearing.
The case demonstrates how cyber incidents create both financial and reputational dangers for organizations that handle large user data collections.
