CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte-based manufacturing company Honeywell failed to protect customers' personal information from cybercriminals and did not alert people when their data was breached, according to three separate class-action lawsuits filed in September.
Honeywell stored a significant amount of personal information on its network including, Social Security, passport, driver’s license and financial account numbers, the lawsuits said.
Lynne Curran filed a class-action lawsuit on Sept. 19 in the Western District of North Carolina, in which she claims the company failed to protect her information.
According to the 28-page complaint, sensitive data was potentially exposed for about 118,379 individuals during a massive cyberattack, as of May 2023.
She said the data leak possibly exposed her and thousands of others to fraud by "an undoubtedly nefarious third party seeking to profit off this disclosure."
The cyberattack caused Curran to spend an unwanted amount of time preparing for the worst by doing things like exploring credit monitoring and identity theft insurance options and seeking legal help.
She ended up recruiting the assistance of David M. Wilkerson with the Van Winkle Law Firm, who is representing her in the federal case.
"Defendant disregarded the rights of Plaintiff and Class Members by intentionally, willfully, recklessly, or negligently failing to take and implement adequate and reasonable measures to ensure that plaintiff’s and class members’ PII (personally identifiable information) was safeguarded, failing to take available steps to prevent unauthorized disclosure of data, and failing to follow applicable, required and appropriate protocols, policies and procedures regarding the encryption of data, even for internal use," the attorney wrote in the complaint.
A second lawsuit over Honeywell's handling of personal information was filed last week in U.S. District Court.
In that class-action lawsuit, attorneys for Debbie Jefferson said the company failed to tell her and others about the cyberattack until Sept. 14, even though Honeywell is reported to have discovered the breach as early as June.
Jefferson's attorneys, who are with Schehr Law and Srourian Law, are asking for a jury trial.
They said the company's handling of breach gave Jefferson anxiety, as it left customers to wonder what personal information criminals have and where it is now.
A similar, third complaint against Honeywell this month was filed in federal court on Sept. 26 by attorneys for Catherine Dunn and Dave Valentine.
"Honeywell and its employees failed to properly monitor and implement security practices regarding its computer network and systems that housed the private information," their attorneys wrote in the complaint, adding, "Had Honeywell properly monitored its networks, it would have discovered the Breach sooner."
WCNC reached out to Honeywell for comment. A spokesperson for the company said it does not comment on pending litigation.
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