Penalty Amount
$14,200,000
Consumers Affected
825,000
New York Attorney General Letitia James secured $14.2 million in settlements from eight car insurance companies for failing to implement reasonable data security controls, leading to data breaches that exposed over 825,000 New Yorkers' personal information including driver's license numbers and dates of birth. Hackers exploited vulnerabilities in the companies' online quoting tools to steal the data, which was later used to file fraudulent unemployment claims during the COVID-19 pandemic. The settlements require the companies to pay penalties and implement enhanced cybersecurity measures including data inventory maintenance, multifactor authentication, and improved threat response procedures.
The eight settling companies must pay a combined $14.2 million in civil penalties, with individual penalties ranging from $815,000 to $2.8 million per company. All companies are required to implement and maintain a comprehensive information security program, including maintaining a private data inventory, reasonable authentication procedures (such as multifactor authentication), logging and monitoring systems to detect suspicious activity, and enhanced threat response procedures. Affected New Yorkers were offered one year of free credit report monitoring.
In-house legal teams at companies that use online consumer-facing data collection tools (including quoting, pre-fill, or account portals) should review all vendor agreements with data brokers or third-party tool providers to ensure they include mandatory security controls, breach notification requirements, and liability for security failures. Contracts should explicitly require multifactor authentication for agent or employee access, regular security assessments of tools handling private information, and maintenance of comprehensive data inventories. Companies should also update incident response provisions in vendor agreements to align with regulatory expectations for timely breach detection and reporting, and include requirements for logging and monitoring of suspicious activity. For entities in the insurance industry, specific review of agency quoting tool agreements for security warranties and compliance with state cybersecurity regulations is recommended.
Entity
American Family Mutual Insurance Company/Midvale Indemnity Company; Farmers Insurance; Hagerty Insurance Agency; The Hartford Insurance Group; Infinity Insurance Company; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Metromile; State Auto Mutual Insurance Company
Industry
InsuranceOfficial Press Release
https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2025/attorney-general-james-secures-142-million-car-insurance-companies-over-data
american family mutual insurance company s.i assurance of di
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/american-family-mutual-insurance-company-s.i-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
farmers insurance exchange assurance of discontinuance 2025
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/farmers-insurance-exchange-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
hagerty insurance agency assurance of discontinuance 2025
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/hagerty-insurance-agency-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
hartford fire insurance company assurance of discontinuance
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/hartford-fire-insurance-company-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
infinity insurance company assurance of discontinuance 2025
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/infinity-insurance-company-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
liberty mutual holdings company assurance of discontinuance
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/liberty-mutual-holdings-company-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
metromile llc assurance of discontinuance 2025
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/metromile-llc-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
state automobile insurance company assurance of discontinuan
https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/state-automobile-insurance-company-assurance-of-discontinuance-2025.pdf
New York Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://ag.ny.gov/press-releases
"The car insurance companies involved in today’s settlements are: American Family Mutual Insurance Company/Midvale Indemnity Company, Farmers Insurance, Hagerty Insurance Agency, The Hartford Insurance Group, Infinity Insurance Company, Liberty Mutual Insurance, Metromile, and State Auto Mutual Insurance Company."
"secured $14.2 million from eight car insurance companies"
"October 14, 2025"
"New York Attorney General Letitia James"
"did not implement reasonable data security controls to protect consumers’ private information"
"more than 825,000 New Yorkers"
New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a consumer alert on May 18, 2026, warning residents of potential price gouging by transportation service providers during the Long Island Rail Road strike. The alert reminds businesses that New York’s price gouging laws prohibit unconscionable price increases on essential services like transportation during market disruptions. No specific privacy violations or enforcement actions against individual entities were announced in the alert.
New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a consumer alert on May 18, 2026, warning businesses against engaging in price gouging on transportation services during the Long Island Rail Road strike. The alert reminds businesses that New York’s price gouging laws prohibit unconscionable price increases on essential goods and services during market disruptions, with potential penalties of up to $25,000 per violation. No specific enforcement action against a particular entity was announced, only a general warning for businesses and a call for consumers to report suspected price gouging.
This press release announces New York Attorney General Letitia James leading a coalition of 21 state attorneys general, the District of Columbia, and Pennsylvania’s Governor in filing an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court to stay a Fifth Circuit ruling that would reinstate in-person dispensing requirements for mifepristone, a medication used for abortion. The coalition argues the ruling is scientifically unsupported, would restrict telehealth access to reproductive care, and undermines state sovereignty over abortion policy post-Dobbs. This is not a privacy-related enforcement action, as the content addresses reproductive health policy rather than data privacy violations.
$5.0M
New York Attorney General Letitia James secured a $5 million settlement from cryptocurrency platform Uphold HQ, Inc. for promoting Cred’s fraudulent CredEarn investment product as safe and reliable, when Cred was making risky loans to uncreditworthy borrowers in China. Uphold also falsely claimed Cred had comprehensive insurance and promoted the product without registering as a broker or commodity broker-dealer under New York law. As part of the settlement, Uphold will pay $5 million to harmed investors, remit $545,189 from Cred’s bankruptcy to customers, improve due diligence policies for third-party products, and register as a broker with the OAG.
$7.4B
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the shutdown of opioid manufacturer Purdue Pharma as part of a $7.4 billion settlement with a bipartisan coalition of 54 other state attorneys general. The Sackler family, former owners of Purdue, are permanently barred from selling opioids in the U.S. and have no involvement in Knoa Pharma, the new public benefit corporation replacing Purdue. Purdue was sentenced on criminal charges related to its role in the opioid crisis on April 28, 2026, with the new entity operating under strict oversight and excess revenue funding opioid abatement efforts.
New York Attorney General Letitia James led a bipartisan coalition of 24 state attorneys general, Puerto Rico, and New York City in sending letters to nine major credit card companies and payment processors urging them to block transactions facilitating illegal vaping product sales. The coalition cites federal and state laws prohibiting unauthorized e-cigarette sales, particularly to youth, and requests collaboration to prevent payment networks from processing such transactions. No enforcement penalties or actions were imposed as part of this initiative.