AT&T to send out $5K checks as part of $177M data breach settlement – how to find out you’re impacted

Hold the phone!

AT&T customers affected by recent data breaches could soon receive their share of a $177 million class-action settlement — and affected parties could get $5,000 as part of the deal.

The payout resolves two separate security incidents disclosed by the telecom giant in 2024, following lawsuits alleging the company failed to safeguard its customers’ data.

A federal court granted final approval of the deal on Oct. 2.

If no appeals are filed, the settlement becomes effective on Nov. 12 — and payouts to will be required within 60 days.

The $177 million sum is split between the two cyber incidents:

One breach in March 2024 — which netted a $149 million settlement — and another breach in July 2024 that’s pegged to $28 million in damages.

Among the compromised data in the breach: Social Security numbers, addresses, and account passcodes, all impacting over 7.6 million active account holders and 65.4 million former customers.

Those included in the settlement can score up to $5,000 for documented out-of-pocket losses linked to the March breach. They can also opt for a tiered cash payout instead.

Under major class-action deals, tiered cash payments are split into separate categories. Tier 1 checks go to individuals whose most sensitive info — such as a Social Security number — was exposed. Those victims don’t need to submit proof of financial loss if there’s documentation that their data was leaked.

The July incident involved compromised call and text interaction logs stored on a third-party cloud platform. Affected customers in that class may claim up to $2,500 for proven losses. Nearly all customers were affected by the second data breach. 

In court filings, several victims reported severe identity theft consequences, including drained bank accounts and fraudulent loans taken out in their names.

AT&T’s 2024 statement said it is not known whether the leaked data originated from AT&T or one of its vendors. 

The July incident reportedly came from data illegally downloaded from AT&T’s workspace on a third-party cloud platform. Public reporting and congressional letters identified that platform as Snowflake, a cloud-based data platform and software company that lets organizations store and analyze massive amounts of data. AT&T never confirmed the March dataset’s leak origin. 

Lawmakers referenced Snowflake in letters sent days after the July disclosure. AT&T’s statements reference a third-party cloud platform but did not name Snowflake in the release or SEC filing.

Class members who submitted valid claims ahead of the deadlines are expected to see payments issued by the end of 2026.  More than 4.9 million claims were submitted and 3 million claims were approved.

1.1 million were “rejected as late, duplicate, fraudulent, released, withdrawn, or ineligible business”, according to The Sun. 

Those who qualified for the settlement needed to submit a claim by Dec. 18, 2025. Filing a claim now is no longer an option under the published settlement terms.

AT&T agreed to the settlement to avoid further court action, but did not admit to wrongdoing.

Impacted customers can check their status or view updates on the official settlement portal at telecomdatasettlement.com or by calling 833-890-4930.