Brightline Inc. based in Palo Alto, CA, a behavioral healthcare services provider for youngsters and their families, has consented to pay $7 million to resolve a class action data breach lawsuit. In the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Florida, the Terrance Rosa et al. v. Brightline, Inc. lawsuit was submitted as a response to a data breach in January 2023 that impacted roughly 1 million people. Hackers took advantage of a zero-day vulnerability identified in the GoAnywhere file transfer software utilized by Brightline to access sensitive consumer information such as names, insurance details, and Social Security numbers.
The plaintiffs claimed that Brightline did not enforce reasonable and proper cybersecurity measures to secure sensitive consumer data including PHI. If Brightline had implemented those measures, the data breach might have been avoided. Brightline opted to resolve the lawsuit, but it did not admit to any wrongdoing. Based on the conditions of the settlement, those who got a notification letter from Brightline about the breach of their data may file a claim to retrieve recorded losses sustained because of the data breach as much as $5,000.
On the other hand, class members may decide to receive a $100 cash payment. People who resided in California during the data breach are eligible to claim an extra $100. The cash payments could be higher or lower based on the number of claims filed for repayment of losses. Payment will be pro rata after deducting from the settlement fund lawyers’ fees, legal costs, and other expenses were subtracted. All class members are eligible to get 3 years of complimentary credit monitoring services. People who have already approved for the 2 years of complimentary credit monitoring services earlier provided by Brightline can get another year.
The last day for submitting an objection to or exclusion from the settlement is January 9, 2025. All claims should be filed by February 26, 2025. The court already granted the settlement its preliminary approval. The schedule of the final fairness hearing is February 10, 2025. More details about the settlement, such as the way to file a claim, can be seen at https://brightlinedatasecuritysettlement.com/