Florida woman files class action against homebuilder over data breach

Lennar said hackers used “sophisticated social engineering tactics” to access its systems during a cyberattack in March.(CN) — A Florida woman is suing one of the nation’s largest homebuilders after a data breach exposed the personal information of thousands of customers.Lisa DiMeglio filed a class action Monday in Miami federal court against Lennar Corporation and its financial arm, Lennar Mortgage. DiMeglio claims the homebuilder was negligent in safeguarding its customers’ private information, including Social Security numbers and financial account information, from a cyberattack in March.Hackers infiltrated the company’s computer systems in March, stealing files and data repositories containing private information, according to DiMeglio.“The exponential cost to plaintiff and the class members resulting from the data breach cannot be overstated,” DiMeglio says. “Criminals can use victims’ names, birth dates, social security numbers, and addresses to open new financial accounts, rack up fraudulent charges, obtain government benefits and IDs, fabricate identities, file fraudulent tax returns and commit medical insurance fraud well before the person whose sensitive private information was stolen becomes aware of it.”A former Lennar employee, Robert Ramkissoon, filed a separate class action against the homebuilder Friday.Lennar said in a notice posted online last week that the attackers used “sophisticated social engineering tactics” to access its systems between March 24 and March 30. The company contacted law enforcement and regulators and implemented additional security measures to protect its systems.Danielle Tocco, a Lennar spokesperson, said in a statement Tuesday the company was notifying customers whose personal information was compromised in the attack and providing resources, including complimentary credit monitoring and identity protection services where appropriate.“We remain committed to protecting the information entrusted to us and, above all, the people who placed it in our care,” Tocco said.Social engineering tactics, including “voice phishing” and fake CAPTCHA tests, are reportedly on the rise to gain access to companies’ networks. Once inside, cybercriminals work to identify and access high-value data that can be stolen and sold on the black market.DiMeglio claims in her suit that Lennar failed to adequately train its employees on social engineering attacks, monitor its systems for suspicious activity and encrypt sensitive information.“Reasonable data security measures — such as network segmentation, access controls, employee training, encryption of sensitive data, intrusion-detection systems, advanced email security platforms with phishing detection, and regular vulnerability testing — were available, widely adopted in defendant’s industry, and necessary to protect the sensitive private information entrusted to defendant,” DiMeglio says.DiMeglio is seeking to represent a class of all customers impacted by the March data breach, which she estimates numbers in the tens of thousands.DiMeglio is represented by Stuart A. Davidson from the firm Robbins Geller in Boca Raton, Florida.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads