Waste Management Inc Data Breach Exposed 45K Workers to Cybercrime, Claims Class Action Lawsuit

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A pair of former employees say Waste Management, Inc failed to secure the personal information it collected from its workforce, resulting in thousands exposed to identity theft and fraud as a result of a January data breach.  

Lead plaintiffs Janie Marcaurel and Shelby Ingram want to represent the more than 45,000 current and former Waste Management employees in a class action lawsuit filed in Texas federal court Monday. They say that lax security procedures at Waste Management Inc and its affiliate, USA Waste-Management Resources, LLC, resulted in the data breach. Further, the companies allegedly failed to notify those whose names, Social Security numbers, and other personal information were exposed until May – almost four months after the data breach occurred.  

Both plaintiffs say that they noticed an uptick in the number of “phishing” and fraudulent emails they received after the Waste Management Inc data breach. They each say they are diligent about keeping their personal information secure and trusted their former employer to do the same.  

Marcaurel, who worked at Waste Management Inc for a single year more than two decades ago, says she is very worried about what cybercriminals will do with her name, Social Security number, and other personal information compromised in the breach. Both plaintiffs say they have spent countless hours attempting to secure their personal information exposed as a result of the data breach.  

Waste Management Inc and its affiliate provide waste management environmental services, providing services throughout the US and Canada, employing nearly 49,000 people as of December 2020, says the class action lawsuit. 

The plaintiffs say that an “unauthorized actor” was able to take files from Waste Management between Jan. 21 and 23 of 2021. In the weeks following the data breach, Waste Management determined that the files contained sensitive personal information about current and former workers, as well as their dependents, claim Marcaurel and Ingram.  

Despite knowing about the data breach, the plaintiffs say that Waste Management Inc failed to notify them and others until late May. They say that, as a result of the delay, victims of the Waste Management data breach are at increased risk of identity theft and fraud.  

Marcaurel and Ingram want to represent other current and former Waste Management workers whose information was exposed in the data breach. They want Waste Management to provide a litany of safeguards and security measures to help Class Members protect themselves, including providing identity theft protection. In addition, the plaintiffs want Waste Management to enhance its data security procedures.  

Has your information been exposed in the Waste Management Inc or another data breach? Tell us about it in the comment section below! 

The plaintiffs are represented by Joe Kendall of the Kendall Law Group, PLLC, M. Anderson Berry of Clayeo C. Arnold, APLC, and Rachele R. Byrd and Brittany N. DeJong of Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz LLP.  

The Waste Management Inc Data Breach Class Action Lawsuit is Marcaurel, et al. v. USA Waste-Management Resources, LLC, et al., Case No. 4:21-cv-2027in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas Houston Division.  

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