Practice Areas

Data Breach

Mason LLP actively monitors the latest cyberattacks affecting consumers, particularly those compromising financial or highly sensitive information. The personal information maintained by your doctor, hospital insurance company, and other companies you deal with is increasingly at risk of exposure due to ransomware attacks and data thefts. Mason LLP is currently litigating cases across the country involving violations of privacy law, violations, data breaches, and ransomware attacks.

If you received a data breach notification letter, you should take certain steps to safeguard your identity. We recommend the following:

  • Get your free credit report from annualcreditreport.com, and check for any accounts or charges you don’t recognize.
  • Subscribe to credit and identity monitoring services. Check the monitoring application regularly to see if your data has been compromised or if your data is being used for fraudulent purposes;
  • Consider placing a free credit freeze.  A credit freeze makes it harder for someone to open an account in your name.
  • Try to file your taxes early, before a scammer can. Tax identity theft happens when someone uses your Social Security number to get a tax refund or a job. Respond right away to letters from the IRS.
  • Don’t believe anyone who calls and says you’ll be arrested unless you pay for taxes or debt — even if they have part or all of your Social Security number, or they say they’re from the IRS.
  • Change your online passwords and security questions;
  • Regularly review your credit card and bank account statements for signs of suspicious activity;
  • Monitor your credit report for any unexpected changes that may be a sign of identity theft;
  • Contact one of the major credit bureaus to request they add a fraud alert to your profile; and
  • Immediately notify your banks and credit card companies if you identify any suspicious activity

What Else Should You Do?

Data breach victims may be able to seek compensation through a class action.  Class actions are frequently filed against companies that are breached. While these cases sometimes go to trial, most data breach class action settle and provide a variety of benefits to class members.  These benefits may include additional years of credit and identity monitoring, compensation for time spent responding to the breach, reimbursement for any losses from fraud related to the breach, or nominal damages.  If you want to learn more about data breach class actions and how you can participate in one against FCHC, you should contact a data breach attorney at Mason LLP as soon as possible.

Data Breach Submission Form

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Settled Cases 

Mason LLP has successfully settled numerous data breach or data privacy cases on a class-wide basis, including:

  • T.K. v. Bytedance Tech. Co. Ltd., No. 1:19-cv-07915 (N.D. Ill., Mar. 25., 2022) (class counsel in case involving failure to obtain consent of minors; $1.1 million settlement fund; final approval granted).
  • Bailey v. Grays Harbor Cnty. Pub. Hosp. Dist., No. 20-2-00217-14 (Wash. Super. Ct. Grays Harbor Cnty. Sept. 21, 2020) (class counsel in hospital data breach class action involving approximately 88,000 people; final approval granted).
  • Baksh v. Ivy Rehab Network, Inc., No. 7:20-cv-01845-CS (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 27, 2021) (class counsel in a data breach class action settlement; final approval granted).
  • Chacon v. Nebraska Med., No. 8:21-cv-00070 (D. Neb. Sept. 15, 2021) (class counsel; final approval granted).
  • Chatelain v. C, L, & W PLLC d/b/a Affordacare Urgent Care Clinics, No. 52742-A (Tex. 42nd Dist. Ct. Taylor Cnty. Feb. 24, 2021) (appointed class counsel; settlement valued at over $7 million; final approval granted). 
  • Jackson-Battle v. Navicent Health, Inc., No. 2020-CV-072287 (Ga. Super. Ct. Bibb Cnty. Aug. 4, 2021) (data breach case involving 360,000 patients; final approval granted).
  • Kenney Centerstone of Am., Inc., No. 3:20-cv-01007 (M.D. Tenn. Aug. 9, 2021) (data breach class action settlement involving over 63,000 class members; final approval granted August 2021).
  • Martinez v. NCH Healthcare Sys., Inc., No. 2020-CA-000996 (Fla. 20th Jud. Cir. Ct. Collier Cnty. Oct. 5, 2021) (final approval granted). 
  • Mowery v. St. Francis Healthcare Sys., No. 1:20-cv-00013-SRC (E.D. Mo. Dec. 22, 2020) (class counsel; final approval granted). 
  • Nelson v. Idaho Cent. Credit Union, No. CV03-20-00831 (Idaho 6th Jud. Dist. Ct. Bannock Cnty. June 1, 2021) (data breach class action involving 17,000 class members; granted final approval of settlement valued at $3.3 million).
  • Richardson v. Overlake Hosp. Med. Ctr., No. 20-2-07460-8 SEA (Wash. Super. Ct. King Cnty. Sept. 10, 2021) (class counsel; final approval granted).
  • In Re: U.S. Office of Personnel Management Data Security Breach Litigation, No. 15-1393 (ABJ), MDL No. 2664 (D.D.C.) (court appointed interim Liaison Counsel). 
  • In re Google Buzz Privacy Litigation, 5:10-cv-00672 (N.D. Cal.) (court-appointed Lead Class Counsel; $8.5 million cy pres settlement) (2010).  
  • In re: Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) Data Theft Litig., No. 1:2006-cv-00506, MDL 1796 (D.D.C.) (Co-lead counsel representing veterans whose privacy rights had been compromised by the theft of an external hard drive containing personal information of approximately 26.6 million veterans and their spouses; creation of a $20 million fund for affected veterans and a cy pres award for two non-profit organizations) (2009). 
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