Zinger Key Points
- The proposed $30 million settlement could halt ongoing arbitration for 5,000 customers affected by 23andMe's data breach.
- A hearing on the settlement and injunction is scheduled for October 17.
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Last year, 23andMe Holding Co. ME said the company learned that a threat actor accessed several individual 23andMe.com accounts through credential stuffing.
The company said the hacker accessed roughly 14,000 user accounts of the existing 14 million customers and accessed the information included in a significant number of DNA Relatives profiles (approximately 5.5 million) and Family Tree feature profiles (approximately 1.4 million).
The data breach occurred in April 2023, and the company learned about the incident in October 2023.
The company settled the lawsuits with $30 million related to the breach.
A law firm representing around 5,000 customers of genetic testing company 23andMe has raised objections to a proposed $30 million class action settlement, arguing the settlement is intentionally designed to undermine claimants' rights.
As per the court filing, the intervenors argue that the proposed class action settlement seeks unprecedented and extraordinary relief. They claim it aims to eliminate contractual rights between private parties, favoring 23andMe while disadvantaging the claimants.
When these individuals signed up for 23andMe's services, they were compelled to waive their right to pursue legal action in court, instead being forced into private arbitration for any disputes.
By implementing this binding contract and arbitration clause, 23andMe believed it would shield itself from lawsuits, assuming no consumer would bother with the costly arbitration process.
Reuters highlighted that 23andMe defended the injunction, arguing that it is necessary to protect the company's financial stability. The firm claims that certain mass arbitration firms are exploiting the process to secure side settlements at the expense of millions of class members.
The company contends that halting arbitration would prevent these firms from leveraging high arbitration fees for favorable deals that could negatively impact the broader class of customers.
A hearing on the proposed settlement is set for October 17.
The company is already facing a tumultuous time in public markets that witnessed a significant decline in the company's valuation, once at $6 billion.
Price Action: ME stock is up 2.95% at $0.38 at last check Wednesday.
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