If you’ve had a Cash App account for the past six years, beware: You can now claim thousands of dollars as a result of a class action settlement. The company proposed a $15 million settlement following two security incidents earlier this year. If you’re eligible to make a claim, you only have a few weeks to do so.
The first related theft occurred in December 2021, when, according to Cash App, a former employee downloaded reports containing information on more than 8 million users. This included their full names, brokerage account numbers, and in some cases, the holdings and value of investment portfolios. Cash App disclosed the incident in April 2022.
The consolidated class action complaint alleged that Cash App and parent company Blocks failed to implement adequate security measures to prevent another data theft. This involved Cash App’s person-to-person payment services. According to the plaintiffs, “an unauthorized user accessed certain Cash App accounts using a recycled phone number in 2023.” The complaint states that Cash App and Block mishandled complaints related to both the breaches and the fraudulent transactions.
Cash App and Block have denied any wrongdoing, the New York Times reports. They say the settlement is not an admission of liability.
If you had a Cash App account between August 23, 2018, and August 20 of this year, you may be eligible to file a claim. The settlement will cover up to $2,500 in out-of-pocket costs arising from the breaches, as well as up to three hours of lost time at a rate of $25 per hour. Those who have suffered monetary losses and have not yet received reimbursement can file a claim for that as well.
If you plan to file a claim through the settlement website, you must do so by 2AM ET on November 19. A final court hearing in the case is scheduled for December 16.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today announced that it is ordering Block, the maker of Cash App and parent company of Square, to pay up to $120 million in “refunds and other redress to consumers” and imposing a $55 million fine over the way the company handled fraud on its payment platform.
According to the CFPB, Cash App’s terms of service at one point claimed that any bank associated with an account for transferring funds was responsible for addressing disputes involving fraudulent charges, which is generally not true under the Electronic Funds Transfer Act. Block would use that claim to avoid taking responsibility, and when it would investigate a complaint, it would rely on “intentionally shoddy investigative practices to sway reports of unauthorized transactions in the company’s favor,” the CFPB statement explained.