Biotechnology firm 23andMe has agreed to pay a $30 million settlement over a large information breach that affected 6.9 million customers.
Per Reuters, the genetic testing firm filed a courtroom doc on Thursday detailing the settlement in a category motion lawsuit within the Northern District of California. Within the doc, 23andMe proposed compensation for victims of the information breach.
What’s the 23andMe settlement about?
In October 2023, 23andMe introduced an information breach during which hackers had stolen customers’ private data and genetic info. But it surely wasn’t till December that yr that the corporate revealed the extent of the injury. Round 14,000 customers had their info stolen, however hackers leveraged 23andMe’s relative-finder software to entry much more customers, amounting to the 6.9 million affected.
Mashable Gentle Pace
The category-action lawsuit filed in San Francisco additionally alleged that 23andMe did not correctly notify customers with Chinese language and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage who have been reportedly singled out for his or her info on the darkish internet.
So 23andMe is paying up, however that does not imply victims of the breach will get a good distribution of the $30 million. In keeping with the courtroom doc, solely $5 million is allotted in the direction of compensating the customers. Breaking this down additional, customers who filed for an “extraordinary declare,” which means they suffered monetary fraud, are eligible for a $10,000 payout. Others, nonetheless, are solely entitled to $100. The majority of the settlement shall be used to pay legal professional charges.
Via the settlement, 23andMe shall be required to spice up its cybersecurity measures and supply a custom-made “Privateness & Medical Protect + Genetic Monitoring” to affected customers with the intention to shield them from future fraud and establish theft points. As soon as the settlement proposal is authorized by the courtroom, 23andMe will arrange a devoted class-action settlement web site the place customers can file their particular person claims.
So if you happen to have been certainly one of hundreds of thousands of customers affected, keep tuned for extra info on tips on how to get your (most likely small) piece of the settlement.
