Biotechnology firm 23andMe has agreed to pay $30 million in compensation in reference to a large information theft that affected 6.9 million customers.
In accordance with Reutersthe genetic testing firm filed a courtroom doc 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 info theft.
23andMe confirms how many individuals have been affected by its information breach. This isn’t excellent news.
What’s the settlement with 23andMe about?
In October 2023, 23andMe introduced a knowledge breach during which hackers stole customers’ private information and genetic info. Nevertheless, it was not till December of the identical yr that the corporate revealed the extent of the harm. The information of round 14,000 customers was stolen, however the hackers used 23andMe’s relative finder instrument to entry much more customers, making a complete of 6.9 million affected.
Mashable Pace of Gentle
The category motion lawsuit, filed in San Francisco, additionally alleges that 23andMe didn’t correctly notify customers of Chinese language and Ashkenazi Jewish descent who allegedly particularly sought their info on the darkish internet.
So 23andMe is paying, however that does not imply the victims of the info breach will get an equal distribution of the $30 million. In accordance with the courtroom doc, solely $5 million is earmarked for compensating customers. Breaking that down additional, customers who made an “extraordinary declare,” which means they have been victims of monetary fraud, are entitled to a $10,000 payout. However others are solely entitled to $100. The vast majority of the compensation will go to paying authorized charges.
The settlement would require 23andMe to strengthen its cybersecurity measures and supply affected customers with custom-made “privateness and medical safety + genetic monitoring” to guard them from future fraud and id theft. As soon as the proposed settlement is authorized by the courtroom, 23andMe will launch a devoted class motion web site the place customers can file their particular person claims.
So if you’re one of many thousands and thousands of affected customers, keep tuned for extra info on find out how to get your (most likely small) share of compensation.