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Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

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Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#131

Post by pfarnsworth »

ovao wrote: post #36
hedora wrote: post #17

I'd love to see the $70B number pan out (though $500 per person is less than the damages, I think) -- Equifax is a $17B company, and would presumably stop existing if that happened. On the other hand, these things always settle out of court, and Equifax certainly won't settle the suit for more than they're worth. I said it elsewhere, but I think the right response is to opt out of the class, and sue for $1000 in smal…

Why $1,000? And how would you prove damages equaling that amount?

$15/month for identify protection/tracking X 12 X 40 years.

You can't even dispute $15/month, since that's how much Equifax charges for their identity protection, so that must be how much it's worth since they caused these damages.

That makes it more like $7200 in damages, not including the cost of money over time, inflation, etc.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#132

Post by vel0city »

heartbreak wrote: post #100
rayiner wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Probably for good reason. $500 per class member is an insanely high damages estimate. 99.9% of people will suffer zero damages because their identities will not be stolen. Even the ones who do have their identities stolen will likely be made whole by the credit card companies. The real damages here are going to be to the banks and credit card companies that will have to absorb the costs of all the fraud. As to the Ti…

All of the identities have been stolen. It’s a matter of whether they’re used at this point.

True, but in the US you can not really sue for possible harms. You can only sue for actual harms which can be remedied by the court. Leaking your information isn't a harm the court can remedy. Abuse of the leaked information is a harm the court can remedy.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#133

Post by sjg007 »

hedora wrote: post #17

I'd love to see the $70B number pan out (though $500 per person is less than the damages, I think) -- Equifax is a $17B company, and would presumably stop existing if that happened. On the other hand, these things always settle out of court, and Equifax certainly won't settle the suit for more than they're worth. I said it elsewhere, but I think the right response is to opt out of the class, and sue for $1000 in smal…

In small claims court, would you not have to show $1000 worth of damages?

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#134

Post by pc86 »

DenisM wrote: post #102
kelvintran wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Am an attorney. You could create a system that'd help you file SCC complaints quickly, but to have it detailed enough to pass the defendant lawyer's complaints about the deficiencies in your documents would be difficult. The size of that problem, however, decreases with the narrowness of the subject matter you want to cover/make claims about. If it were a 'Sue Equifax For The 2017 Data Breach' service, then it might…

It's small claims we're talking about, the defendant will not have a lawyer, right?

If you sue a corporation, who do you expect to defend it? It will be an attorney.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#137

Post by pc86 »

X86BSD wrote: post #33
mlrtime wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Could we create a service that automates most of the work required to sue in SCC?

Why not? Wouldn't it be the same as the kid that automated fighting a speeding ticket or traffic infraction ticket?

Traffic tickets aren't generally resolved in SCC. Traffic tickets are very specific. As the actual attorney pointed out, if you make a generic "file a SCC claim here" app its resultant documents will be pretty quickly discarded as insufficient.

SCC is not hard, it's cheap, and it's designed to be easy to do and not require legal assistance to do so.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#138

Post by sandworm101 »

walshemj wrote: post #108
tajen wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One scenario would be SSN being massively used by pirates, so companies would stop trusting SSN altogether. Let's hope a startup creates a "proof of identity" service with a photo ID with a chip, a code, and an online certificate for tax purpose.

ah lovely "papers please citizen" and what happen when friend computer with all this proof of identity gets hacked. Maybe the USA needs everyone to have a new ssn and ban with very strict penalties is use by any one other than the state and then only for highly restricted usages as it is in the UK

True only if the papers are issued by government. A private or non-profit scheme, if hacked, could be abandoned within hours and replaced. To post this comment i had to present some virtual ID to a private organization.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#139

Post by scaryspooky »

DenisM wrote: post #102
kelvintran wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Am an attorney. You could create a system that'd help you file SCC complaints quickly, but to have it detailed enough to pass the defendant lawyer's complaints about the deficiencies in your documents would be difficult. The size of that problem, however, decreases with the narrowness of the subject matter you want to cover/make claims about. If it were a 'Sue Equifax For The 2017 Data Breach' service, then it might…

It's small claims we're talking about, the defendant will not have a lawyer, right?

Who do you think is going to represent the company?

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#140

Post by tyingq »

Prego wrote: post #113
s73ver_ wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Punitive damages.

There are no "punitive damages" in U.S. Small Claims Courts. Only "actual" (out of pocket) damages.

You can, however, put whatever amount you want (up to the small claims limit) in the initial paperwork. It would get reduced to actual damages if you won. But...big companies often try to settle with you before the actual court appearance. By padding it, you set an expectation that might help. They are likely to settle if the amount is less than the cost to have someone appear.
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