Atlas Real Estate Failed to Protect Consumer Data from Hackers, Class Action Alleges [UPDATE]

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A proposed class action lawsuit claims Atlas Real Estate Group “lost control” of the private data of more than 4,000 consumers during a November 2022 cyberattack.

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The 33-page lawsuit says that the Denver-based property management and real estate brokerage company discovered on November 8 last year that a hacker gained access to its computer systems through “an old employee email account.” The suit relays that the data exposed during the breach included the personal information of 4,539 consumers, including, but not limited to, full names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers and financial account details.

According to the case, Atlas Real Estate failed to implement adequate data security measures and properly train its employees in cybersecurity, which left the targeted information in a “vulnerable position” and the company’s networks “easy targets for cybercriminals.”

The complaint contends that the defendant had “no effective means to prevent, detect, stop, or mitigate breaches of its systems,” which gave the hackers “unrestricted access” to the information entrusted to Atlas Real Estate.

Atlas Real Estate also delayed notifying victims of the data breach until late March of this year, roughly 140 days after it purportedly discovered the ransomware attack, the filing claims. By keeping victims “in the dark,” the defendant has deprived them of the opportunity to take early action to mitigate the consequences of the unauthorized disclosure of their data, the lawsuit alleges.

Further, the suit argues that the company has “done little to remedy” the harm its apparent negligence has caused. Although Atlas Real Estate has offered some credit and identity monitoring services, the measures fail to compensate for consumers’ lifelong injuries, the case charges.

The plaintiff, a Philadelphia resident who believes Atlas Real Estate obtained his personal data when he co-signed a lease over a decade ago, received notice in April that his private information had been compromised in the breach, the complaint says. Like other victims, the man now faces an acute risk of fraud, identity theft and other criminal activity as a result of the company’s conduct, the filing contends.

The lawsuit looks to represent anyone in the United States whose personal information was compromised in the data breach discovered by Atlas Real Estate Group, LLC in November 2022.

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