Comcast is seeking final court approval for a $117.5 million comcast data breach settlement tied to the personal information of 36 million Xfinity customers that was stolen in an October 2023 cybersecurity incident. The court is scheduled to hold a final approval hearing on July 7, and people covered by the deal have until Aug. 14 to file a claim or opt out.
The settlement stems from Hasson v. Comcast Cable Communications LLC, a class action in which Comcast denied wrongdoing after notifying users in December 2023 that data thieves had taken usernames, passwords, names, contact information, dates of birth and the last four digits of Social Security numbers. The money is reserved for customers whose information was actually accessed in the breach, and anyone seeking payment must use the official settlement website and have the unique settlement member ID number included in Comcast’s initial online notice.
The size of the proposed payout reflects how many people were swept into the case. The settlement applies to 36 million affected customers, but payment will not be automatic. Claimants must show out-of-pocket losses or lost time, and any award will be proportional to what they can document. That means someone with higher verified costs or more time spent dealing with the fallout could receive more than someone with a smaller claim.
There is also a second path for people who do not want to join the deal. Customers who opt out by Aug. 14 can preserve the right to sue Comcast separately over the breach, while those who do not file a claim or opt out by that date give up any payment from the settlement. Affected customers who stay in the class but do not file a claim can seek identity defense services, which Comcast must pay for and provide under the deal. People who opt out are not eligible for those services.
The settlement website is already live, but no payments can begin until a judge signs off on the agreement after the July hearing. For the 36 million Xfinity customers whose names, passwords and Social Security details were exposed, the next deadline is not the court date. It is Aug. 14.
