Uber’s 2016 Data Breach: What You Need to Know

Many individuals have been harmed as a result of issues with Uber--a leader in nationwide ridesharing. However, they haven’t exactly sustained physical harm; rather, their data was leaked in 2016 after the company violated data-breach notification laws.

According to reports, the company reported in November of last year that they paid $100,000 to hackers to help hide an incident from 2016 in which users’ names, email addresses, and phone numbers were stolen. Roughly 57 million people were affected, including 7.7 million of the company’s drivers.

Now, two years after the incident, the company has reached a settlement of $148 million, agreeing to pay the penalty to settle the allegations made towards them.

What Does This Mean for You?

It’s important to note that the settlement will be distributed to the 50 states rather than the individuals who were directly impacted by the breach.

The state of New York will receive roughly $5.1 million as its share of the settlement.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is working to distance the company from their controversial past--a past that grew worrisome under co-founder Travis Kalanick, who knew of the breach, but instead of reporting the incident, attempted to keep it hidden from the proper authorities.

This is a record for settlements paid out for data-breaches.

As part of the settlement, the ridesharing company has announced that they will work to improve security policies, as well as utilize an outside company to help monitor data privacy. They will receive regular recommendations for improvement from this outside party in an effort to keep user information safe.

If you were involved in a rideshare accident, we want to help. Contact Loscalzo & Loscalzo, P.C. to discuss your accident with our personal injury attorneys today.