Yahoo To Pay $50 Million, Offer Credit Monitoring For Massive Security Breach

Yahoo has agreed to pay $50 million in damages and provide two years of free credit-monitoring services to 200 million people whose email addresses and other personal information were stolen as part of the biggest security breach in history. "The restitution hinges on federal court approval of a settlement filed late Monday in a 2-year-old lawsuit seeking to hold Yahoo accountable for digital burglaries that occurred in 2013 and 2014, but weren't disclosed until 2016," reports ABC News. From the report: Claims for a portion of the $50 million fund can be submitted by any eligible Yahoo accountholder who suffered losses resulting from the security breach. The costs can include such things as identity theft, delayed tax refunds or other problems linked to having had personal information pilfered during the Yahoo break-ins. The fund will compensate Yahoo accountholders at a rate of $25 per hour for time spent dealing with issues triggered by the security breach, according to the preliminary settlement. Those with documented losses can ask for up to 15 hours of lost time, or $375. Those who can't document losses can file claims seeking up to five hours, or $125, for their time spent dealing with the breach. Yahoo accountholders who paid $20 to $50 annually for a premium email account will be eligible for a 25 percent refund.

The free credit monitoring service from AllClear could end up being the most valuable part of the settlement for most accountholders. The lawyers representing the accountholders pegged the retail value of AllClear's credit-monitoring service at $14.95 per month, or about $359 for two years -- but it's unlikely Yahoo will pay that rate. The settlement didn't disclose how much Yahoo had agreed to pay AllClear for covering affected accountholders.

RIAA vs People

[sit1963nz]

A pirated music track is worth thousands of dollars each, you as a person are worth $0.25

What a joke.
I would suggest that people go copyright their lives, then and only then will they have value.

It's so nice!!!

[SirAstral]

That when the citizens get screwed Uncle Sam makes bank.

Fines are a curse upon civilization because it does not promote lawful behavior from the rich citizens, wealthy businesses, or the government and its law enforcement agencies.

Credit monitoring 4 years later?

[bagofbeans]

Credit monitoring 4 years later? Wow, sounds valuable.

Re:Credit monitoring 4 years later?

[olsmeister]

Meh. I already have free credit monitoring from other breaches.

Re:

[Anonymous Coward]

Biggest hack of data? What happened to Equifax? They have tons of info on folks....

25 an hour

[bobstreo]

My lawyers normal fees are $250 an hour.

And if you take into account my yearly quoted salary divided by the number of hours worked, my pay is a lot more than $25 an hour.

The CEO

[jd]

Gets paid something like $50-75 million a year.

Interesting perspective.

Worthless Credit Monitoring - Just Send the Cash

[BrendaEM]

Who the hell decided this case?!

Re:

[iggymanz]

that comes to $4 a person. here's your starbucks gift card

Re:

[Anonymous Coward]

that comes to $4 a person. here's your starbucks gift card

50 million dollars / 200 million people =/= 4 dollars / person

50 million dollars / 200 million people == 0.25 dollars / person

Of course, some claimants can earn *up to* $125 or *up to* $375, depending on documentation availability. Also there is this, from the article itself:

"The lawyers representing Yahoo accountholders have a big incentive to get the settlement approved. Yahoo will pay them up to $37.5 million in fees and expenses if it goes through."

Will that $37.5 million come from the $50 million sett

Re:

[iggymanz]

doesn't matter, 25 cents or five dollars, only an unemployed slashdot neckbeard living in his mom's basement would waste the time to get either amount of money it's so pathetic

AllClear is useless

[zlexiss]

I've been on AllClear pretty much continuously since the Target and home Depot breaches. Have had three separate personal incidents in the last years, both taking out credit cards in my name and also bogus charges on my own card.

Every time AllClear monthly said "no suspicious activity". I have no idea what it'll take to trip their thresholds.

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Can't access my accounts for "security" reasons :(

[SinGunner]

My main account apparently had a less used account as its backup, and since I can't remember the password for that account, I can't access either. So now only hackers can access my oldest internet accounts. Neither has a phone # associated with them. I could access my main account fine until they locked everything down in the security breach. Fuck Yahoo!

Yahoo acct hacker

[Robbie Riddle]

I did everything not to sue Yahoo after a robbery I had problems the phone numbers and email is no good need an alternative medthod to get into my acct [e-mail] my phone number is 3189535954 and another phone is 3182358124 riddlerobbie@yahoo .com would you please get back with me cjecky acct it's old and we have handled it before