Posted On December 5, 2022 Consumer Privacy & Data Breaches
On December 5, 2022, Snap Finance, LLC and Snap RTO, LLC filed notice of a data breach with the Attorney General of Texas after learning that an unauthorized party hacked the company’s computer network, gaining access to sensitive consumer information. Based on the company’s official filing, the incident resulted in an unauthorized party gaining access to consumers’ names, addresses, Social Security numbers, government-issued identification numbers and financial account information. After confirming that consumer data was leaked, Snap began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals who were impacted by the recent data security incident.
If you received a data breach notification, it is essential you understand what is at risk. The data breach lawyers at Console & Associates, P.C. are actively investigating the Snap data breach on behalf of people whose information was exposed. As a part of this investigation, we are providing free consultations to anyone affected by the breach who is interested in learning more about the risks of identity theft, what they can do to protect themselves, and what their legal options may be to obtain compensation from Snap Finance, LLC.
The available information regarding the Snap Finance breach comes from the company’s filing with the Attorney General of Texas. However, the information provided on the Texas AG’s website is very limited, and the company has not yet posted a notice of the recent incident on its website. Thus, all we know is that information consumers had entrusted to the company was compromised after an unauthorized party—most likely a hacker—bypassed the company’s data security system.
Upon discovering that sensitive consumer data was made available to an unauthorized party, Snap Finance began to review the affected files to determine what information was compromised and which consumers were impacted. While the breached information varies depending on the individual, it may include your name, address, Social Security number, government-issued identification number and financial account information.
On December 5, 2022, Snap Finance sent out data breach letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident. While we don’t know the total number of people impacted by the Snap Finance data breach, the Texas Attorney General’s “Data Security Breach Reports” web page indicates there were 6,733 victims in Texas alone.
Founded in 2012, Snap Finance, LLC is a digital finance company based in West Valley City, Utah. The company specializes in helping consumers who may have difficulty finding credit through traditional avenues. Depending on a consumer’s credit, Snap offers lease-to-own, installment loan, or installment contract options, for up to $5,000. Snap Finance employs more than 664 people and generates approximately $139 million in annual revenue.
Data breaches affected more than 320 million consumers in 2021, more than any other year in recorded history. And, unfortunately, the number of data breaches doesn’t appear to be going down—at least not significantly, with only a modest decrease forecasted in 2022. Given the frequency with which hackers carry out these attacks, as well as the repercussions that a data breach can have on your life, it is important that you know what to do if your information is leaked in a data breach.
The goal of most hackers when carrying out a cyberattack is to steal consumer information which they can then use to commit identity theft or sell on the dark web. While there is nothing you can do to prevent a data breach, there are steps you can take after learning your information was compromised to reduce the chances of falling victim to fraud.
Below are a few steps you can take after a data breach to reduce the chances of being a victim of fraud. However, this is not an exhaustive list. So, if a breach involves highly sensitive information, such as your financial account numbers or Social Security number, you may consider taking additional precautions.
After a company experiences a data breach, you will probably get a data breach letter in the mail. In fact, companies are required to notify victims anytime their information is leaked. Usually this is done by sending all victims a data breach letter that explains the incident, what led up to it, what the company has done to prevent future breaches, and whether the company has received any reports of fraud from other victims. The first thing to do after receiving a data breach letter is to carefully review the document to determine whether your information was leaked and, if so, what data was compromised.
Hackers try to use stolen information quickly to avoid giving victims time to close their accounts or otherwise make it harder to commit fraud. However, hackers might need to obtain additional information before having enough data to commit fraud against a victim. In these cases, it may not be until weeks or months after a breach that hackers can use the stolen information. Therefore, it is imperative that you not only immediately check up on your accounts but also that you frequently check on them for the months after the breach.
Credit monitoring is a fee-based service offered by many different companies. Credit monitoring alerts you to suspicious activity on your credit profile, such as if there are an abnormal amount of inquiries. Usually, credit monitoring costs between $20 to $40 per month. However, companies will often offer victims of a data breach free credit monitoring for a period of time—usually between one to two years. Signing up for credit monitoring is free and provides you with an easy way to keep an eye on your credit profile. Also, taking a company up on its offer of free credit monitoring doesn’t affect your right to bring a data breach lawsuit against the company if it was negligent in maintaining your information.
Fraud alerts and credit freezes are free services offered by the three major credit bureaus. A fraud alert puts companies that pull your credit on notice that there is reason to believe that an unauthorized party may be attempting to use your information. A credit freeze offers additional protection by preventing any company from pulling your credit without your advance approval. The Identity Theft Resource Center has repeatedly explained that placing a credit freeze on your credit account is the single best way to prevent fraud after a data breach.
At Console & Associates, P.C., our consumer privacy lawyers monitor all security and data breaches to help affected consumers pursue their legal remedies. We offer free consultations to victims of data breaches and can explain your rights in clear, understandable terms so you can make an informed decision about how to proceed with your case. If you’ve been affected by the Snap data breach or any other data security incident, Console & Associates, P.C., will investigate your case at no charge and offer you thorough advice about how to most effectively proceed with your case. If you decide to bring a case, we only get paid if you do. If your claim is successful, any legal fees are either paid by the defendant or come out of the funds recovered from the defendant. If your claim doesn’t result in a recovery, you will pay nothing.
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