Consolidated Data Breach Case vs. Samsung Seeks to Certify Subclasses in All 50 States, D.C.

The plaintiffs bring their newly consolidated class action on behalf of a nationwide class and statewide subclasses in 50 states and the District of Columbia against Samsung for its failure to “properly secure and safeguard the sensitive and confidential personally identifiable information” (PII) exposed during last summer’s data breach, said their 362-page filing Monday (docket 1:23-md-03055) in U.S. District Court for New Jersey in Camden. Seventeen Samsung data breach class actions pending in various jurisdictions were transferred to Camden Feb. 1 for pretrial consolidation under U.S. District Judge Christine O’Hearn (see 2302020002). Because Samsung “has exclusive knowledge of the precise information that was compromised” for each individual class member, the plaintiffs “reserve the right to supplement their allegations with additional facts and injuries as they are discovered,” said the consolidated class action. The data breach “was the product of an intentional, but avoidable, criminal act to gain access to the data,” it said. “It was the result of a sophisticated and malicious attack by professional cybercriminal hackers and was not the result of an accidental disclosure by a Samsung employee,” it said. There’s an increased and substantial risk that the victims “will experience identity theft or fraud that is sufficiently imminent,” it said. The plaintiffs seek injunctive relief requiring Samsung to employ proper security protocols “consistent with law and industry standards” to protect consumers’ PII. If an injunction isn’t issued, the plaintiffs “will suffer irreparable injury, and lack an adequate legal remedy, in the event of another data breach at Samsung,” it said. The risk of another such breach “is real, immediate, and substantial,” it said. If another breach at Samsung occurs, the plaintiffs won’t have “an adequate remedy at law because many of the resulting injuries are not readily quantified and they will be forced to bring multiple lawsuits to rectify the same conduct,” it said. Samsung already is on record as planning to compel each of the various claims to binding arbitration (see 2211030006).