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T-Mobile Data Breach Affects California Residents

Posted on behalf of Arnold Law Firm in
NOTICE: If you are a California resident and received notice that you were involved in the data breach, contact the Arnold Law Firm at (916) 777-7777 to discuss your legal options, or submit a confidential Case Evaluation form here.
Man holding cell phone On August 18, 2021, T-Mobile announced a data breach that exposed private information belonging to over 40 million former and prospective T-Mobile customers, some of whom are California residents. Hackers gained access to information that T-Mobile collected from people as part of a credit check. It is possible that your information was compromised if you applied for T-Mobile service – even if you don’t currently have, or ended up not obtaining, service from T-Mobile. T-Mobile is offering two years of free identity protection services. The best way to protect yourself after a data breach is to sign up for identity protection services as soon as possible. California offers extra protections and legal rights to its residents through the California Consumer Privacy Act.

NOTICE: If you are a California resident and received notice that you were involved in the data breach, contact the Arnold Law Firm at (916) 777-7777 to discuss your legal options, or submit a confidential Case Evaluation form here.

WHAT INFORMATION IS INVOLVED?

According to T-Mobile, the following information was affected:
  • Social Security Number
  • First and last names
  • Dates of birth
  • Driver’s license numbers
  • Other personal identifiers (military IDs, passport numbers)
  • Prepaid customer data including: account PINs, first and last names, phone numbers
This information is called your Personally Identifiable Information (“PII”). It tells others about you and is considered part of your identity. Businesses are required to secure this information or risk facing statutory penalties, among other legal penalties. Stolen PII can be used by identity thieves to engage in fraudulent activity using your identity. In response to the incident, T-Mobile began an investigation into the leak, which is still ongoing. T-Mobile learned of this data breach when they received a tip that someone was selling private information on an online forum. T-Mobile confirmed that the data came from their servers and that they have since fixed the issue that allowed hackers to gain access to its servers. T-Mobile is a telecommunications company that most notably offers cellphone service in the United States. It is owned by German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom AG and has a global presence. At this time, this data breach appears to have impacted people in the United States only.

NOTICE: If you are a California resident and received notice that you were involved in the data breach, contact the Arnold Law Firm at (916) 777-7777 to discuss your legal options, or submit a confidential Case Evaluation form here.

Settlement - $3,767,000

Truck Accident

A 20-year-old man who had been married for just 12 days left home on his way to work. He was driving on Pleasant Grove Road in Sutter County in the early morning when he came upon a slow-moving truck. As he pulled out to pass the truck, the truck driver turned left in front of him. The young man attempted to steer back into his lane but his vehicle struck an un-flagged piece of metal extending from the back of the truck. He died in the resulting crash.

Expert witnesses brought in by the Arnold Law Firm proved that the truck, owned and operated by a hauling firm, should never have been on the highway that morning. Specifically, the rear and side turn signals did not work and the rear-view mirror was in a poor state of adjustment at the time of the collision. As a result, the driver, who had failed to properly inspect the vehicle before setting out that morning, couldn’t see the young man’s vehicle as it attempted to pass.

The poor condition of the truck, its lack of maintenance and the manner in which it was operated were found to be substantial factors in causing the collision that killed the young man. The testimony also established that the man had been making a lawful pass at the lawful speed limit and acted reasonably when he attempted to avoid the collision.

The man’s 20-year-old widow was awarded $3,767,000.77, his parents were awarded $185,131 and the family was reimbursed $11,899 in funeral expenses. Though money is a poor substitute for a young man’s life, this verdict demonstrates that drivers who endanger the lives of others will be held accountable for their actions.