Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 7
Judge Orders 23andMe Owner to Pay $46.75 Million to 2023 Breach Victims
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 7

Judge Orders 23andMe Owner to Pay $46.75 Million to 2023 Breach Victims

3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Jul 7

Summary

  • $46.75 million must be paid within five business days under a California bankruptcy court ruling directing Chrome Holding to compensate victims of 23andMe’s 2023 data hack.
  • Kroll Restructuring, representing the victims, will receive the money first and distribute it, though the number of people eligible for payouts was not disclosed.
  • The breach began with access to about 14,000 user accounts, but hackers used those accounts to reach relatives’ profiles, exposing data tied to as many as 6.9 million people.
  • Chrome Holding—operating as TTAM Research Institute and led by 23andMe co-founder Anne Wojcicki—bought the company’s assets for $305 million after its bankruptcy.
  • The payout adds to mounting fallout for 23andMe, which has faced a £2.31 million UK fine and a California lawsuit alleging weak safeguards and misleading statements about the breach.

Insights

Now a non-profit, can 23andMe's successor truly protect your DNA, or has only the company's name changed?
Your genetic data is compromised forever. Is a cash settlement adequate compensation for a lifetime of potential risk?
After this massive breach and bankruptcy, why are US privacy laws still failing to protect your most personal information?