National Public Data data breach class action overview:
- Who: National Public Data has been hit with three class action lawsuits by U.S. residents.
- Why: The plaintiffs say the company was responsible for their data being exposed in a breach.
- Where: The National Public Data class action lawsuits were filed in Florida federal courts.
National Public Data, a background check company that aggregates billions of records, is facing three separate class action lawsuits in the aftermath of a significant data breach that exposed the personal information of countless people.
The three lawsuits, each filed in Florida federal courts in the first week of August, accuse the company of failing to protect sensitive data from a cyberattack that happened earlier this year.
The complaints, brought against Jerico Pictures Inc. — doing business as National Public Data — allege that the company’s systems were breached in April 2024.
2.9 billion records stolen
According to the lawsuits, the data breach led to the theft of personally identifiable information belonging to millions of individuals.
The stolen data, which included full names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, addresses, and even family history, was reportedly put up for sale on the dark web, the plaintiffs allege.
The breach was first reported on June 1, 2024, by VX-Underground, a cybersecurity research group, one of the complaints states.
VX-Underground claimed that the cybercriminal group “USDoD” was behind the attack and had posted the database containing 2.9 billion records for sale online for $3.5 million.
The research group also confirmed the authenticity of the data. Despite the scale of the breach, National Public Data has yet to publicly acknowledge the incident or notify affected individuals directly, the lawsuits state.
National Public Data failed to secure information, lawsuits claim
The four named plaintiffs in the lawsuits argue that the company failed to adequately secure the sensitive information it collected, leaving it vulnerable to unauthorized access.
They also claim National Public Data obtained much of the data from non-public sources without the knowledge or consent of the individuals involved.
The lawsuits allege that by collecting and profiting from this data, the company assumed a duty to protect it — a duty the company did not live up to, the plaintiffs say.
One of the plaintiffs, James Thomas Jones of Florida, says he discovered in late July that his personal information had been compromised.
Jones says he was alerted by Experian that his data had been found on the dark web following the breach. He states that he never provided his information to National Public Data and that the company scraped his information from non-public sources without his consent.
As a result, the plaintiffs are seeking to represent classes of U.S. residents whose personally identifiable information was compromised in the breach.
They are suing for negligence and breach of implied contract and are seeking certification of the class action lawsuits, damages, fees, costs and orders requiring National Public Data to enhance its cybersecurity practices. The lawsuits also seek jury trials.
Were you affected by the National Public Data breach? Let us know in the comments.
The plaintiffs are represented by Kopelowitz Ostrow Ferguson Weiselberg Gilbert and Markovits, Stock & Demarco LLC; and Morgan & Morgan Complex Litigation Group and Chimicles Schwartz Kriner & Donaldson-Smith LLP.
The National Public Data breach class actions lawsuits are Lowanda Wilcox v. Jerico Pictures Inc., Case No. 0:24-cv-61418-AHS; Barry Cotton et al., v. Jerico Pictures Inc., Case No. 0:24-cv-61396-MD and James Thomas Jones v. Jerico Pictures Inc., Case No. 0:24-cv-61412-XXXX, all in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
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823 thoughts onNational Public Data class actions allege company responsible for data breach affecting billions
I was advised to check to see if my information was affected, so I check this website called penetrate and it confirmed it was. Please add me due to I am in process of restoring my credit. Thank you.
Sorry autocorrect changed the name of the website. It is called pentester.
Please add me
This is one of many data breaches that I have been a part of. Please add my name.
Add me, I was notified I am included in this breach, and all of my information was compromised.
Yes, my husband and myself were affected
I just verified that me and my 2 sons’ personal information have been compromised. We want to be added to this class action lawsuit. Unbelievable that in Feb. 2024 the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) system was hacked and now it’s estimated 2B people’s information compromised. Unacceptable!
yes i was.
It is time to add me to this lawsuit. I tried to get verification, but the process would require me to upgrade a free Eqifax account, and why would I want to do that? I won’t be using any government accounts anymore either because after a 3-tier sign-in process, login.gov wants me to take a picture of myself on my phone then upload it to my computer to verify who I am. Not on your life in this day-and-age of so much hacking and AI deepfakes. What kind of fools does this government think Americans are?
I have verified that my information was in the data breach. I want to be part of this lawsuit and want to lend my voice to holding people accountable for this. Not only is this a massive violation of my privacy, but also a massive breach of trust that puts everyone at risk.
Yes, I have verified that my information was involved in this data breach. I would very much like to be included in the class action and/or file a claim. Please keep me informed of what I need to do next. This is a total violation of my privacy & has left me feeling extremely exposed & vulnerable.