Data Breach Lawsuit Says Communication Federal Credit Union Failed to Protect Private Info from Hackers

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Communication Federal Credit Union has been hit with a proposed class action lawsuit over a cyberattack discovered in January 2024 that reportedly compromised the personal data of its employees and customers.

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According to the 62-page Communication Federal Credit Union data breach lawsuit, the Oklahoma City-based company announced last month that an unauthorized third party had gained access to its network and the sensitive information stored therein between December 31, 2023 and January 11, 2024.

The data breach suit shares that the incident impacted individuals’ names, dates of birth, contact information, driver’s license numbers, Social Security numbers, financial account data and credit card details.

Despite the credit union’s legal obligation to protect the highly confidential information it housed, the company failed to implement proper cybersecurity protocols and maintained the stored data unencrypted and vulnerable to theft by cybercriminals, the case alleges. As the complaint tells it, Communication Federal Credit Union could have prevented the incident by properly encrypting its computer systems or destroying the data when it was no longer needed.

Thanks to the defendant’s alleged negligence, the stolen information “can—and likely will—be sold on the dark web,” the filing argues.

To make matters worse, the company waited until mid-August 2024 to begin notifying impacted individuals that their private data had been exposed to hackers, the suit contends.

“As a result of this delayed response, [the plaintiff] and class members had no idea their private information had been compromised, and that they were, and continue to be, at significant risk of identity theft and various other forms of personal, social, and financial harm,” the case asserts. “The risk will remain for their respective lifetimes.”

The Communication Federal Credit Union lawsuit looks to represent anyone whose private information was actually or potentially accessed or acquired during the data breach that is the subject of the notice letter the company issued on or around August 12, 2024.

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