Time’s Running Out to Claim Part of the $177 Million AT&T Settlementpickerwhel

If you’re a current or former AT&T customer, you may be eligible for part of a $177 million class action settlement the telecom giant has agreed to after a series of data breaches exposed the personal information of millions of users.

According to legal filings, the first breach occurred in 2019, when threat actors stole addresses, birthdates, Social Security numbers and other data belonging to 7.6 million current AT&T customers and 65.4 million former account holders.

In a 2025 class action lawsuit, plaintiffs alleged the perpetrators began selling the information on the dark web in 2021. One plaintiff claimed a CareCredit account opened in her name racked up approximately $12,000. Another reported being so inundated with spam calls and texts that she had to file a police report and change her number.

After first denying the breach, AT&T acknowledged the incident in March 2024.

A second attack, announced in June 2024, involved hackers accessing phone numbers, call durations, cell site identification numbers and other data from “nearly all of AT&T’s wireless customers” during a six-month period in 2022.

AT&T has denied any wrongdoing in either case, telling CNBC Select in a statement that it opted to settle “to avoid the expense and uncertainty of protracted litigation.”

“We remain committed to protecting our customers’ data and ensuring their continued trust in us,” the company added.

According to Kroll Settlement Administration, which is managing settlement claims, if you can provide documentation that you suffered financial losses that are “fairly traceable” to the 2019 breach, you could be eligible for a payment of up to $5,000.

If you can’t document your losses, you’ll be eligible for a prorated share of the settlement after attorney and administrator fees are paid. Class members whose Social Security number was included in this breach are eligible for five times the payment of members whose private data was exposed but not their SSNs.

If you can provide documentation of losses relating to the second breach, announced in July 2024, there is a maximum payout of $2,500. Otherwise, you will be similarly eligible for a prorated share.

If you can document losses from both breaches, you could receive as much as $7,500.  

If you are eligible to be a class member, you must submit a claim online or by mail by Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025.

If you don’t want to be part of the settlement or want to reserve your right to sue AT&T independently, you’ll need to submit a written notice by Oct. 17.

Eligible class members can submit a claim at the Telecom Data Settlement website or print out and mail forms to:

AT&T Data Incident Settlement
c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC
P.O. Box 5324
New York, NY 10150-5324

If you received a notification about the settlement, you’ll need to include the Class Member ID that was included. If you believe you are eligible but didn’t receive notification, you can direct inquiries to 833-890-4930 or the settlement website. You may also write to the address listed above.

You can also request to have a Class Member ID resent. You’ll need to provide your full name and the email address or phone number associated with your AT&T account.

Any claims must be received or postmarked by the Nov. 18 deadline.

AT&T is not alone in falling prey to threat actors. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, more than 1,700 data breaches were reported in the first half of 2025, impacting over 165 million people.

In August, TransUnion announced that hackers had gained access to names, birthdates and Social Security numbers of more than 4 million people. 

• You can obtain free copies of your reports from each of the three major bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) once a year by signing up at AnnualCreditReport.com.
• CreditWise from Capital One provides free access to your TransUnion credit report and you can get a free credit report from Experian every 30 days. Equifax offers two free credit reports per year with myEquifax.
• For regular updates on all three reports, consider subscribing to a paid identity theft protection service like PrivacyGuard® or Experian IdentityWorks.℠ 

3. Get a password manager
Password managers store your usernames, passwords and email addresses and protect them from unauthorized access. Beyond generating strong passwords and syncing them across devices, services like Keeper and Dashlane include additional benefits, like dark web monitoring, email masking and secure password sharing.

4. Freeze your credit. Even if you’re not part of a recent data breach, freezing your credit can prevent anyone from opening a new account in your name. There is no effect on your credit score or existing accounts. You’ll need to request a freeze from all three credit bureaus and remember to unlock them when you want to apply for a credit card or loan or sign a lease.

You’ll need to provide personal information and answer questions to verify your identity. You’ll also have to create a PIN, which should be kept in a secure location.

Identity monitoring service Aura can also freeze your credit without requiring you to contact the credit bureaus. It also offers a range of other security features, including a password generator, email aliases, a VPN, robocall filters and malware protection.