$5M University of Minnesota Settlement Ends Class Action Lawsuit Over 2023 Data Breach

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The University of Minnesota will pay $5 million to settle a class action lawsuit over a July 2023 data breach that exposed the personal data of millions of people.

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The University of Minnesota class action settlement received preliminary court approval on August 20, 2025 and covers the approximately 4.2 million people whose personal information was available in the University of Minnesota’s Legacy Data Warehouse as of August 10, 2021, including anyone who was sent direct notice of the data breach by the university.

Per the settlement website, the University of Minnesota settlement class may also include any applicants to the school, students, employees or university program participants from between 1989 and August 10, 2021.

The court-approved website for the University of Minnesota data breach settlement can be found at UofMDataSettlement.com.

University of Minnesota settlement class members who submit a timely, valid claim form will be able to receive a cash payment of $30 and 24 months of dark web monitoring.

The cash payment, the settlement website notes, may be subject to a decrease on a pro rata, or equal share, basis, depending on the total number of valid claims filed.

To submit a claim form online, class members can visit this page of the settlement website and log in with the unique class member ID found in their copy of the settlement notice.

Alternatively, a PDF of the claim form is available to print, fill out and mail back to the address listed on the first page of the form.

All settlement claim forms must be submitted online or postmarked by December 24, 2025.

Additionally, as part of the settlement, the University of Minnesota has agreed to enhance the security of its Legacy Data Warehouse and modernize the warehouse’s data storage.

A hearing is scheduled for January 28, 2026 to determine whether the University of Minnesota settlement will receive final approval from the court. Settlement benefits will begin to be distributed to class members only after final approval has been granted and any appeals have been resolved.

The University of Minnesota class action lawsuit claimed that the university was lax in its cybersecurity measures, allowing an unauthorized third party access and distribute online the personal information of approximately 4.2 million people, including names, addresses, Social Security numbers, identification numbers, dates of birth, email addresses, driver’s licenses, phone numbers, demographic information, passports and academic, application, admission or employment information.

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