Mondelez class action alleges company data breach affects thousands

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Mondelez class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: Plaintiff Michael Shields has filed a class action lawsuit against Mondelez Global LLC.
• Why: Mondelez allegedly implemented inadequate security measures to protect its employees’ data, making it possible for cybercriminals to access their personally identifiable information.
• Where: The Mondelez class action lawsuit was filed in Illinois federal court.
• What are my options: Norton LifeLock provides data security options.

Mondelez Global LLC failed to adequately safeguard the personally identifiable information (PII) it collected, leaving it vulnerable to a data breach that may have affected tens of thousands of employees, a class action lawsuit alleges.

Plaintiff Michael Shields says he was notified of the Mondelez data breach by a letter dated June 15, 2023. He says that the PII that was compromised in the data breach included information such as full names, birthdates, Social Security numbers, addresses, and employment information.

Cybercriminals unlawfully accessed Mondelez’s systems between Feb. 23 and March 1, 2023, the Mondelez class action lawsuit says. 

Mondelez class action says data breach could have been prevented with stronger security measures

The class action lawsuit notes Mondelez is one of the largest snack companies in the world. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mondelez International Inc., which reportedly had global net revenues of approximately $31.5 billion last year.

Mondelez “could have prevented this data breach by, among other things, properly encrypting or otherwise protecting their equipment and computer files containing PII,” the class action lawsuit says.

Shields says he believes his information that was stolen in the Mondelez data breach is available on the dark web, and that he is therefore at increased risk of identity theft and fraud.

The Mondelez class action lawsuit claims the plaintiff and other putative class members have suffered significant injury from the data breach, including lost or diminished value of their PII, lost time and ability to mitigate the consequences of the Mondelez data breach, invasion of privacy, damage to credit scores, and increased risk to their PII which remains unencrypted and available for unauthorized parties to access.

Because Mondelez did not notify affected employees about the data breach until June, Shields says he and the putative class members lost valuable time they could have used to mitigate the potential consequences of the Mondelez data breach.

The plaintiff says he would not have provided his PII to Mondelez if he had known that the employer would fail to adequately protect this sensitive information.

The Mondelez class action lawsuit asserts claims for negligence, negligence per se, unjust enrichment and breach of implied contract.

Dole Food Co. also recently experienced a data breach that compromised the personal information of some of its employees.

Were you affected by the Mondelez data breach? Tell us about your experience in the comments!

Shields is represented by Gary M. Klinger and David K. Lietz of Milberg Goleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC.

The Mondelez data breach class action lawsuit is Michael Shields v. Mondelez Global LLC, Case No. 1:23-cv-03999, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

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