The Superior Court of Pennsylvania last month dismissed a class action lawsuit, Dittman v. UPMC, brought by employees of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (“UPMC”) for a 2014 data breach. The breach impacted nearly 62,000 UPMC employees and resulted in at least 788 fraudulent tax filings. The court held that UPMC had no duty to safeguard the electronically-stored personal and financial information of its employees. This decision presents a practical analysis of the challenges facing large employers who need to store employee information electronically while also guarding against the ever-present risk of a data breach.
Increased Risk of Fraudulent Charges and Identity Theft Sufficient to Confer Article III Standing According to 7th Circuit
After a district court dismissed a lawsuit filed by customers of restaurant chain P.F. Chang’s China Bistro whose payment card information was stolen during a data breach, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has revived the suit. In a ruling last week, the appellate panel found that customers whose payment card information was stolen in the breach have standing to sue, even if they don’t allege any actual losses from identity theft or payment card fraud.