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Late last week, a class action lawsuit was filed against Anthem Inc., the country’s second largest health insurer, over a massive data breach alleging that the company failed to properly encrypt its data.
Lead plaintiff Kathryn Leniski filed her Anthem class action lawsuit in California federal court on Friday. In it, she claims that Anthem was warned by federal agencies to protect high value data provided by its customers. However, Leniski claims that Anthem still failed to adequately encrypt its customers’ data despite this warning.
Leniski alleges that her data was stolen from Anthem in the data breach and used to file a 2014 tax return on her behalf and collect a refund check. She further alleges that Anthem took almost a month to notify her of the data breach. She also claims that the breach came after data was stolen from another health care company, Wellpoint, who had to pay the Department of Health and Human Services $1.7 million in penalties for failure to protect the data.
According to the Anthem data breach class action lawsuit, “Ms. Leniski must now incur additional costs to protect her identity and to guard against cybertheft going forward, all the while mindful that her highly personal Social Security number is in adverse hands, along with other confidential personal information, creating a significant risk of her being further victimized by cyberfraud and theft throughout the balance of her life.”
Anthem “stores highly sensitive and highly confidential information about current and former customers and employees, including social security numbers (‘SSNs’), names, addresses, dates of birth, medical records and financial information,” the class action lawsuit alleges, and “they are required and duty bound to safeguard from unauthorized disclosure and theft.”
The class action plaintiff alleges in her class action lawsuit, “Because the data breach includes Social Security numbers and dates of birth, criminals can easily open credit in their names. If they had simply stolen a credit or debit card number, a consumer could just get a new card. But in this instance, they stole the skeleton key to someone’s credit.” The class action lawsuit also alleges that Anthem admitted that the data had not been encrypted while it was stored after the data breach occurred.
The class action lawsuit accuses Anthem of negligence, unjust enrichment and breach of contract and fiduciary duty, and seeks unspecified damages. Leniski also seeks to represent all consumers whose health and personal information was exposed in the breach.
A single medical record can garner as much as $250 in a black market auction compared to cents on the dollar for credit card information because it includes Social Security information, according to experts consulted by the plaintiff in her class action lawsuit. Additionally, more than 29 million people have been affected by 740 major health care breaches over the past five years, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Leniski is represented by Eve H. Cervantez and Jonathan Weissglass of Altshuler Berzon LLP.
The Anthem Data Breach Class Action Lawsuit is Leniski v. Anthem Inc., et al., Case No. 5:15-cv-02992, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
UPDATE: On Feb. 14, 2016, a California federal judge allowed unfair competition law claims against Anthem Life Insurance Company to proceed, allowing a class action lawsuit blaming the insurer for a massive data breach to move forward.
UPDATE 2 February 24, 2017: A federal judge in the Anthem Data Breach multidistrict case has granted a plaintiff request to access government documents.
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65 thoughts onAnthem Hit With Data Breach Class Action Lawsuit
How do I file for the claim. Both my spouse and I have records attached to Anthem Blue Cross and I would like to be part of the class action suit.
How do you file a claim?
I have been a member for many years.l may have been compromised along with family members
UPDATE 2 February 24, 2017: A federal judge in the Anthem Data Breach multidistrict case has granted a plaintiff request to access government documents.
My husband, myself and my child were compromised in this data breach. The 2 years of service offered by AllClear is about to expire and they want me to pay out of my pocket to continue. Anthem should pay for this. How do I join the class action suit…or better yet have my credit monitoring paid for by Anthem for as long as we live?
I received a letter last year that myself and my 3 children personal info and to apply for identity protection. My info is being used how can I get protection and info for the lawsuit for me and my children.
UPDATE: On Feb. 14, 2016, a California federal judge allowed unfair competition law claims against Anthem Life Insurance Company to proceed, allowing a class action lawsuit blaming the insurer for a massive data breach to move forward.
I want to fill in claim form
Who is the class counsel for
Plaintiff
Please email to me or call me
How do I file my claim
Lol these sick greedy corporations are somehow liable to baby your information for life because why??? If a thief stole your tv, will your insurance company guarantee you a new tv every time something happens to th e one they replaced for life? You dont have any logic. The world is the way it is. Thieves will be thieves. Just because a company can afford to do something does not morally or ethically justify it to do so. But in this sick and greedy world peoples debased minds think otherwise!
I’m so thrilled I made you chuckle Mike! I’m not sure you can compare this situation to a television being stolen out of my home.
Let me guess…you must be one of the million average idiots of America .
There are a number of Americans without health insurance, and the number who face bankruptcy due to sky-high insurance bills, has increased significantly. Recognizing Americans pent-up anger, the insurance industry changed its tactics, but not its goals. What the insurance industry wanted long ago was for the federal government to require all Americans to buy private insurance and to provide subsidies to families who can’t afford the premiums. The industry has lined the pockets of the Senate Finance Committee members with huge campaign contributions in order to obtain their cooperation. I could go on but your stupid response is exhausting me. Complacent people like yourself is a big reason why the rich get richer by getting away with their one year offers of identity protection to make america feel “safe.”
So Mike you either
enjoy being paid to write your bullshit response or you like bending over and taking it up the behind from these greedy pigs. A one year offer of identity protection ? Oooooooh how kind of them!
When my hard earned credit is wiped away without my control then yes , yes Mike, I am demanding that the government crack down and make serious changes on companies that can’t protect our information. I can replace a stolen television but I can’t replace my hard earned perfect credit score Mike ! When every precious detail about you or a loved one is stolen, I’m sure you will feel differently. The world is the way it is ? Thieves will be thieves ? Those sound like words of complacent wisdom to me! The type that will never fight for anything a day in their life because why bother! Let’s just sit back and allow corporate America make the rules and speak for us.
I totally agree. Mike’s comment was pretty stupid. Sometimes you just can not help stupid people.
How long youve been employed by Anthem??
Anthem offers one year of identity protection to those effected while the hackers have your information for LIFE! What is 1 year of protection going to do? How about paying for identity protection for the remainder of my life. Sham on the government for allowing these sick, greedy corporations to get away with giving us 1 year of help. That’s their way of kicking the can down the road and they assume the average person will forget all about it.
My husband and I both received a letter stating the same and that we should take extra precautions to protect our information. Please contact me.