Mar 9, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware of the following Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) class action lawsuit filing:
Mike Bloomberg 2020, Inc. (“Mike Bloomberg 2020”)
Class action lawsuit filed on March 6, 2020 against Mike Bloomberg 2020, Inc. and other defendants, as of yet unknown, in United States District Court, Central District of California, “to stop [Mike Bloomberg 2020’s and the other Defendants’ alleged] practice of sending text messages using an ‘automatic telephone dialing system’ . . . to the cellular telephones of consumers nationwide without their prior express written consent; (2) enjoin [Mike Bloomberg 2020 and the other defendants] from continuing to send autodialed text messages to consumers who did not provide their prior express written consent to receive them; and (3) obtain redress for all persons injured by [Defendants’] conduct.”
According to the complaint, “[b]eginning in 2020, [Mike Bloomberg 2020 and the other defendants, as of yet unknown], . . . individually or jointly, directly or indirectly, [allegedly] sent multiple, unsolicited, non-emergency text messages to the cell phones of [Plaintiffs] and other telephone consumers throughout California and the United States promoting the 2020 presidential campaign of Michael Rubens Bloomberg, and they did so with full knowledge as to the lack of requisite consent that [Defendants] knew was necessary for their messages to have been lawfully texted to consumers in the manner in which they were.”
The Plaintiffs also, allegedly, “never consented in writing, or otherwise, to receive autodialed text messages . . . relating to Mr. Bloomberg’s . . . candidacy,” and the Plaintiffs “did not have a pre-existing relationship with [Defendants], and never gave their prior consent to receiving . . . text messages on their cellular telephones soliciting them to support Mr. Bloomberg or contribute to his campaign.”
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
Mar 8, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Zynga Discovers Data Breach Related to Unauthorized Access to Player Account Information
Zynga’s “Player Security Announcement”
In September 2019, Zynga posted a “Player Security Announcement” which disclosed that “[Zynga] recently discovered that certain player account information may have been illegally accessed by outside hackers.” Zynga reported that “[w]hile the investigation is ongoing, [Zynga does] not believe any financial information was accessed. However, [Zynga has] identified account login information for certain players of Draw Something and Words With Friends that may have been accessed.”
Reported Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Zynga
PocketGamer.biz reported (“Zynga struck with lawsuit regarding Words with Friends data breach“) that
US games developer Zynga has been struck with a class action lawsuit in California regarding the company’s data breach in 2019.
As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, the studio is facing a court case surrounding stolen player information across Words with Friends and Draw Something users.
. . .
In September last year, the company revealed player account information had been accessed via a cyber-attack. While no financial data was believed to have been accessed, the hackers did obtain entry to an estimated 173 million usernames and passwords.
Zynga, Inc.’s Alleged Failure to Reasonably Safeguard Personally Identifiable Information
On March 3, 2020, a class action complaint was filed against Zynga, Inc. in United States District Court for Zynga’s alleged “failure to reasonably safeguard Plaintiffs’ Personally Identifiable Information (‘PII’) . . . failure to reasonably provide timely notification that Plaintiffs’ PII had been accessed and acquired by an unauthorized third party through a data breach, and for intentionally and unconscionably deceiving Plaintiffs relating to the status, safety, location, access, and protection of Plaintiffs’ PII.”
The class action complaint stated that
[i]n September 2019, hacker Gnosticplayers (‘Hacker’) told . . . The Hacker News that he breached Zynga’s user database, gaining access to more than 218 million user accounts.[]
The Hacker said that the stolen information included names, email addresses, login IDs, password reset tokens, Facebook IDs, Zynga account IDs, and passwords secured with SHA-1 cryptography, an encryption method that ‘has been considered outdated and insecure since before Zynga was even founded.[]
According to reports, the data breach is known to have included at least the following Zynga games: Words With Friend; Draw Something; and OMGPOP. [Emphasis added.]
On September 12, 2019, Zynga, according to the class action complaint,
posted a ‘Player Security Announcement’ on its website stating that it “recently discovered that certain player account information may have been illegally accessed by outside hackers.[]
Rather than taking responsibility for its cybersecurity shortcomings, Zynga’s Player Security Announcement implied that data breaches are impossible to avoid. The first sentence of the Player Security Announcement says that ‘Cyber attacks are one of the unfortunate realities of doing business today.’
Zynga did not, and has not to this day, issued an email notification of the breach to its users. Rather, Zynga effectively hid the fact that it suffered a data breach. Only those users who happened to visit Zynga’s website on their own volition, read about the breach in the news, or had signed up to receive email data breach notifications from independent third parties that monitor data breaches were made aware of the breach.
Zynga had the ability to send an email notification to all users because providing an email address appears to be a universal requirement Zynga imposes on all users when going through the registration process.
Rather than sending an email to all users at the time of the breach, Zynga spent its time shoring up its legal defenses.
Some Zynga users first learned of the breach through receipt of an email alert from the website ‘Have I Been Pwned,’ which allows users to sign up for notifications when their [Personally Identifiable Information] is included in a data breach. That alert was not sent until December 18, 2019. The unfortunate reality is that most Zynga users are still completely unaware that their PII was stolen as a result of the Zynga data breach, because Zynga failed to reasonably advise them.
Further, according to the class action complaint, “[t]he information stolen from Zynga included names, phone numbers, usernames, email addresses, and passwords-PII that is highly valued among cyber thieves and criminals on the Dark Web.” Additionally, the complaint states that “. . . the Hacker obtained over 200 million passwords, including more than 7 million passwords that Zynga had stored in clear text, as a result of the data breach.” [Emphasis added.]
Have You Been Impacted by A Data Breach?
If so, please either contact Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. Partner Michael Yarnoff, Esq., (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, [email protected], complete the form on the right or send an e-mail to [email protected] for a free, no-obligation case evaluation of your facts to determine whether your privacy rights have been violated and whether there is a basis for a data privacy class action.
Examples of the type of relief sought by data privacy class actions, include, but are not limited to, reimbursement of identity theft losses and of out-of-pocket costs paid by data breach victims for protective measures such as credit monitoring services, credit reports, and credit freezes; compensation for time spent responding to the breach; imposition of credit monitoring services and identity theft insurance, paid for by the defendant company; and improvements to the defendant company’s data security systems.
Data privacy class actions are brought on a contingent-fee basis; thus, plaintiffs and the class members do not pay out-of-pocket attorney’s fees or litigation costs. Subject to court approval, attorney’s fees and litigation costs are derived from the recovery obtained for the class.
Mar 7, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Compromise of Personal Information of Cruise Passengers – Unauthorized Access to Carnival Corporation’s Princess Cruises and Holland America Line Employee E-Mail Accounts
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that Princess Cruises posted a “Notice of Potential Data Breach” on its website regarding the identification of suspicious activity on Princess Cruises’ network. Princess Cruises’ data breach notification was posted to make customers “aware of a privacy-related occurrence at Princess Cruises” and stated the following:
What Happened?
In late May 2019, [Princess Cruises] identified suspicious activity on our network. Upon identifying this potential security issue, we engaged cybersecurity forensic experts and initiated an investigation to determine what happened, what data was affected, and who was impacted. It now appears that between April 11 and July 23, 2019, an unsanctioned third party gained unauthorized access to some employee email accounts that contained personal information regarding [Princess Cruises’] employees, crew, and guests.
What Information Was Involved?
The types of data potentially impacted varies by individual but can include: name, address, Social Security number, government identification number, such as passport number or driver’s license number, credit card and financial account information, and health-related information. This list is not specific to each guest. [Princess Cruises does] not have any evidence of misuse of the personal information affecting any individual. [Emphasis added.]
Scmagazine.com reported (“Choppy waters: Data breach impacts Princess and Holland America cruise lines“) that “[a] press release regarding the incident says that the perpetrator managed to access the email accounts via deceptive phishing emails.”
Consumers should also be aware that Holland America Line posted a similar “Notice of Potential Data Breach” on its website regarding “a privacy event at Holland America Line.”
Holland America Line disclosed that an “unsanctioned third party gained unauthorized access to some employee email accounts that contained personal information regarding [Holland America Line’s] employees, crew, and guests,” as well as the fact that “[t]he types of data potentially impacted varies by individual but can include: name, address, Social Security number, government identification number, such as passport number or driver’s license number, credit card and financial account information, and health-related information.” [Emphasis added.]
Scmagazine.com reported (“Choppy waters: Data breach impacts Princess and Holland America cruise lines“) that “[t]he personal information of cruise passengers, crew and employees were compromised last year after an unauthorized party gained access to the email accounts of employees working for Princess Cruises and Holland America Line — both divisions of Carnival Corporation & plc.” [Emphasis added.]
Carnival Corporation & plc “Notice of Potential Data Breach” Submitted to California Attorney General
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. recently made consumers aware (“Carnival Cruise Ship Operator Discloses Potential Data Breach“) that according to a “Notice of Potential Data Breach” submitted by Carnival Corporation & plc (“Carnival Corporation”) to the California Attorney General, Carnival Corporation, “[i]n late May 2019 . . . identified suspicious activity on [its] network.” Carnival Corporation stated that “[i]t now appears that between April 11 and July 23, 2019, an unsanctioned third party gained unauthorized access to some employee email accounts that contained personal information regarding [Carnival Corporation’s] guests.”
Carnival Corporation’s “Notice of Potential Data Breach” stated that “[t]he types of data potentially impacted varies by guest but can include: name, address, Social Security number, government identification number, such as passport number or driver’s license number, credit card and financial account information, and health-related information.” [Emphasis added.]
Have You Been Impacted by A Data Breach?
If so, please either contact Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. Partner Michael Yarnoff, Esq., (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, [email protected], complete the form on the right or send an e-mail to [email protected] for a free, no-obligation case evaluation of your facts to determine whether your privacy rights have been violated and whether there is a basis for a data privacy class action.
Examples of the type of relief sought by data privacy class actions, include, but are not limited to, reimbursement of identity theft losses and of out-of-pocket costs paid by data breach victims for protective measures such as credit monitoring services, credit reports, and credit freezes; compensation for time spent responding to the breach; imposition of credit monitoring services and identity theft insurance, paid for by the defendant company; and improvements to the defendant company’s data security systems.
Data privacy class actions are brought on a contingent-fee basis; thus, plaintiffs and the class members do not pay out-of-pocket attorney’s fees or litigation costs. Subject to court approval, attorney’s fees and litigation costs are derived from the recovery obtained for the class.
Mar 6, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Data Breach Class Action Lawsuit Filed On Behalf of Rutter’s Consumers Whose Credit and Debit Card Information Was Accessed by Unauthorized Users
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that on March 4, 2020, a class action lawsuit was filed in United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania against Rutter’s Inc. “on behalf of consumers whose credit and debit card information . . . was accessed by unauthorized users as part of a large cyber-attack of Rutter’s [p]ayment [c]ard environment and systems.”
According to the complaint, “Rutter’s reported that between at least August 30, 2018 and May 29, 2019 (the “Breach Period”), hackers gained access to its stores’ network system and planted malware on its point-of-sale (“POS”) devices in its stores and at its gas pumps, which collected customers’ [p]ayment [c]ard information . . .. Information compromised in the breach included [p]ayment [c]ard numbers, card expiration dates, security codes (commonly referred to as “CVV” numbers), and customers’ names . . ..” [Emphasis added.]
The complaint alleges that
[a]s a result of the [d]ata [b]reach, many Rutter’s customers—including Plaintiff—have experienced and will continue to experience fraudulent purchases and other misuse related to their accounts. These Class Members will also incur out-of-pocket costs to purchase protective measures such as credit monitoring services, credit freezes, and credit reports. They will also incur costs associated with obtaining replacement cards and other items directly and indirectly related to the [d]ata [b]reach.
Rutter’s, according to the complaint, “did not discover the [d]ata [b]reach for nearly eighteen months and did not notify consumers of the [d]ata [b]reach for more than a month after discovering it.” Allegedly,
Rutter’s failed to properly safeguard Class Members’ [c]ard [i]nformation, allowing malware to be present on—and cybercriminals to access [p]ayment [c]ard [i]nformation from—its systems for as many as nine months completely undetected. Rutter’s also failed to properly monitor its systems. Had it properly done so, Rutter’s would have discovered the malware much sooner than eighteen months after the breach began. Indeed, Rutter’s reported that it ‘received a report from a third party’ of the [d]ata [b]reach. Had the unnamed third-party not notified Rutter’s of the [d]ata [b]reach, it presumably would have gone undetected even longer than it did. [Emphasis added.]
Rutter’s “Notice of Payment Card Incident” To Customers – Rutter’s Investigation Identified Evidence Indicating That an Unauthorized Actor May Have Accessed Payment Card Data From Cards Used on Point-of-Sale Devices at Some Fuel Pumps and Inside Some Rutter’s Stores Through Malware Installed on Payment Processing Systems
As previously posted by Kehoe Law Firm, P.C., Rutter’s, in a February 13, 2020 “Notice of Payment Card Incident,” notified its customers about “an incident involving payment cards that were used at some of [its] locations.” According to the payment card incident notice published by Rutter’s:
Rutter’s recently received a report from a third party suggesting there may have been unauthorized access to data from payment cards that were used at some Rutter’s locations. [Rutter’s] launched an investigation, and cybersecurity firms were engaged to assist. [Rutter’s] also notified law enforcement.
On January 14, 2020, the investigation identified evidence indicating that an unauthorized actor may have accessed payment card data from cards used on point-of-sale (POS) devices at some fuel pumps and inside some of [Rutter’s] convenience stores through malware installed on the payment processing systems. The malware searched for track data (which sometimes has the cardholder name in addition to card number, expiration date, and internal verification code) read from a payment card as it was being routed through the payment processing systems. However, chip-enabled (EMV) POS terminals are used inside [Rutter’s] convenience stores. EMV cards generate a unique code that is validated for each transaction, and the code cannot be reused. As a result, for EMV cards inserted into the chip-reader on the EMV POS devices in our convenience stores, only card number and expiration date (and not the cardholder name or internal verification code) were involved. In addition, it appears that the malware did not copy data from all of the payment cards used during the period that it was present on a given payment processing system. There is no indication that other customer information was accessed. Please note this incident is not the result of a handheld “skimmer” being placed on a Rutter’s fuel pump.
The specific timeframes when data from cards used at the locations involved may have been accessed vary by location over the general timeframe beginning October 1, 2018 through May 29, 2019. There is one location where access to card data may have started August 30, 2018 and nine additional locations where access to card data may have started as early as September 20, 2018. A list of the locations involved and specific timeframes is available here. For those customers Rutter’s can identify as having used their card at a location involved during that location’s specific timeframe and for whom Rutter’s has a mailing address or email address, Rutter’s will be mailing them a letter or sending them an email.
Payment card transactions at Rutter’s car washes, ATM’s, and lottery machines in Rutter’s stores were not involved.
Have You Been Impacted by A Data Breach?
If so, please either contact Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. Partner Michael Yarnoff, Esq., (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, [email protected], complete the form on the right or send an e-mail to [email protected] for a free, no-obligation case evaluation of your facts to determine whether your privacy rights have been violated and whether there is a basis for a data privacy class action.
Examples of the type of relief sought by data privacy class actions, include, but are not limited to, reimbursement of identity theft losses and of out-of-pocket costs paid by data breach victims for protective measures such as credit monitoring services, credit reports, and credit freezes; compensation for time spent responding to the breach; imposition of credit monitoring services and identity theft insurance, paid for by the defendant company; and improvements to the defendant company’s data security systems.
Data privacy class actions are brought on a contingent-fee basis; thus, plaintiffs and the class members do not pay out-of-pocket attorney’s fees or litigation costs. Subject to court approval, attorney’s fees and litigation costs are derived from the recovery obtained for the class.
Mar 6, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware of the following Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) class action lawsuit filing:
Comenity Bank
Class action lawsuit filed on March 5, 2020 in United States District Court, Central District of California, Southern Division, against Comenity Bank, an alleged “sophisticated debt collection corporation that has devised a devious debt collection tactic, to call family members as a means to collect a debt from their consumers.”
According to the complaint, Comenity Bank “regularly makes autodialed telephone calls to consumers in order to collect a debt,” and “at no point did Plaintiff provide authorization to receive autodialed calls on her cellular telephone from [Comenity Bank].”
Allegedly, “beginning January of 2019, [Comenity Bank] initiated debt collection telephone calls to Plaintiff’s cellular telephone using an automatic telephone dialing system.” Comenity Bank, according to the complaint, “regularly contacted Plaintiff regarding an alleged debt owed to [Comenity Bank] by [Plaintiff’s sister-in-law].” Comenity Bank, allegedly, “used a robodialer to call Plaintiff . . . on her cell phone but never obtained [Plaintiff’s] requisite consent.” Plaintiff also, allegedly, “never had any relationship with Comenity and never owed them any money.” The complaint states that plaintiff was contacted on her cell phone from (619) 550-6921 in January 2019.
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
Mar 6, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making individuals aware of the following data breach cases of unsecured protected health information affecting 500 or more individuals currently under investigation by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights:
| Name of Covered Entity |
State |
Covered Entity Type |
Individuals Affected |
Breach Submission Date |
Type of Breach |
Location of Breached Information |
| Elk Ridge Dentistry |
CO |
Healthcare Provider |
2793 |
03/02/2020 |
Theft |
Other Portable Electronic Device |
| Walgreen Co. |
IL |
Healthcare Provider |
6681 |
02/28/2020 |
Unauthorized Access/Disclosure |
Other Portable Electronic Device |
| Riverview Health |
IN |
Healthcare Provider |
2610 |
02/28/2020 |
Unauthorized Access/Disclosure |
Paper/Films |
| Government Employees Health Association, Inc. |
MO |
Health Plan |
696 |
02/22/2020 |
Unauthorized Access/Disclosure |
Paper/Films |
| Rainbow Hospice Care, Inc. |
WI |
Healthcare Provider |
2029 |
02/21/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| The Queen’s Health Systems Affiliated Covered Entity |
HI |
Healthcare Provider |
2852 |
02/20/2020 |
Unauthorized Access/Disclosure |
Email |
| Endeavor Energy Resources, L.P. |
TX |
Health Plan |
5103 |
02/20/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| SOLO Laboratories, Inc. |
PA |
Business Associate |
60000 |
02/18/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Network Server |
| NCH Healthcare System, Inc. |
FL |
Healthcare Provider |
63581 |
02/17/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| Armada Physical Therapy of Albuquerque, LLC |
NM |
Healthcare Provider |
500 |
02/17/2020 |
Theft |
Desktop Computer |
| Monroe County Hospital & Clinics |
IA |
Healthcare Provider |
7573 |
02/17/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| United Regional Health Care System |
TX |
Healthcare Provider |
1893 |
02/14/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| Aveanna Healthcare |
GA |
Healthcare Provider |
166077 |
02/14/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| James F. Collette DDS & David N. Hamilton DDS PLLC |
WA |
Healthcare Provider |
552 |
02/14/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| Tennessee Orthopaedic Alliance |
TN |
Healthcare Provider |
81146 |
02/14/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| Peregrine Corporation d/b/a PSL Services |
ME |
Healthcare Provider |
501 |
02/14/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
| Audiology Services Company USA, LLC |
FL |
Healthcare Provider |
3917 |
02/13/2020 |
Hacking/IT Incident |
Email |
Source: Ocrportal.hhs.gov (Accessed 03.06.2020)
NOTE: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, Breach Portal, lists all breaches reported within the last 24 months that are currently under investigation by the Office for Civil Rights. The data reported herein does not include all cases currently under investigation by the Office for Civil Rights. Resolved data breach reports and/or reports older than 24 months can be viewed at Ocrportal.hhs.gov.
Have You Been Impacted by A Data Breach?
If so, please either contact Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. Partner Michael Yarnoff, Esq., (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, [email protected], complete the form on the right or send an e-mail to [email protected] for a free, no-obligation case evaluation of your facts to determine whether your privacy rights have been violated and whether there is a basis for a data privacy class action.
Examples of the type of relief sought by data privacy class actions, include, but are not limited to, reimbursement of identity theft losses and of out-of-pocket costs paid by data breach victims for protective measures such as credit monitoring services, credit reports, and credit freezes; compensation for time spent responding to the breach; imposition of credit monitoring services and identity theft insurance, paid for by the defendant company; and improvements to the defendant company’s data security systems.
Data privacy class actions are brought on a contingent-fee basis; thus, plaintiffs and the class members do not pay out-of-pocket attorney’s fees or litigation costs. Subject to court approval, attorney’s fees and litigation costs are derived from the recovery obtained for the class.
