AT&T Reaches $177 Million Settlement Over 2024-Disclosed Data Breaches

AT&T Agrees to $177 Million Data Breach Settlement

AT&T has announced a $177 million class-action settlement to compensate current and former customers affected by two significant data breaches that were disclosed in 2024. The telecommunications giant, while not admitting wrongdoing, agreed to the payout to resolve multiple lawsuits alleging inadequate data protection measures. The settlement aims to provide financial relief to millions of individuals whose personal information was compromised in these incidents.

Details of the Compromised Data Incidents

The settlement addresses two distinct data incidents:

• First Breach (AT&T 1 Settlement Class): Disclosed on March 30, 2024, this incident affected approximately 73 million current and former AT&T account holders. The compromised data, which was found on the dark web, included sensitive personal information such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, legal names, full names, phone numbers, addresses, email addresses, account passcodes, and billing account numbers. This breach is understood to have occurred in 2019.
• Second Breach (AT&T 2 Settlement Class): Announced on July 12, 2024, this incident involved hackers unlawfully downloading AT&T data from a third-party cloud platform, specifically Snowflake Inc. This breach exposed the call and text metadata of 'nearly all' AT&T cellular customers, including information about who users called and texted, when, and for how long, as well as phone numbers, call durations, and cell site IDs. The contents of calls and text messages were not included. This incident is reported to have occurred in 2024 or between May 2022 and early 2023.

Settlement Structure and Eligibility

The $177 million settlement is divided into two separate funds: $149 million is allocated for the first data breach (AT&T 1 Settlement Class), and $28 million is designated for the second data breach (AT&T 2 Settlement Class).

Eligibility for compensation extends to current and former AT&T customers in the United States whose personal or account data was compromised in either or both of these incidents. Individual payouts vary based on the breach and documented losses:

• For the first breach, individuals with documented financial losses can receive up to $5,000. Those whose Social Security numbers were exposed may be eligible for a higher payment tier.
• For the second breach, individuals with documented losses can claim up to $2,500.
• Customers affected by both breaches may qualify for a combined maximum payout of up to $7,500 if they can provide proof of two separate incidents and documented losses.

Kroll Settlement Administration is managing the settlement process. Eligible individuals should have received an email or postcard notice with a Class Member ID and claim instructions.

Claim Process and Key Dates

To receive a portion of the settlement, affected customers must file a claim. The deadline to submit claims is December 18, 2025, an extension from the original November 18 deadline. The deadline to opt out of the settlement or object to its terms is November 17, 2025.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas is scheduled to hold a final approval hearing for the settlement on December 3, 2025. Payments will be distributed following this final approval.