Two proposed class-action lawsuits were filed in U.S. District Court in Fort Lauderdale, FL on behalf of hundreds of ADT Security Services customers and others living inside their homes, including minors. They may have been victimized by an ADT employee, who had access to over 200 ADT accounts and security cameras of the ADT customers. He had been spying on them in their most intimate and private moments for seven years. The incident had affected customers from the Dallas-Fort Worth region – one of the larger ADT markets in the United States.
According to the lawsuits filed on May 18, 2020, the privacy of customers was breached because ADT did not follow the basic multi-level security procedures, such as text alerts and dual authentication when someone accesses the accounts. The company failed to provide protection of its customers’ privacy by allowing one of its employees to have access to both inside and outside security cameras in people’s homes. During his visits to customers’ houses, a technician from Dallas was adding his personal email to the accounts of the customers, which allowed him to log in, watch private video streams, and record them. He was also able to download the videos and images. The truth was revealed when one of the customers found the technician’s email in the list of the approved addresses given permission to access their security cameras. The customers were notified about what happened by ADT itself.
The lawsuits were filed to make sure that ADT will do its utmost to improve the safety of their system and regain the trust of their customers again. Each lawsuit seeks $5 million, along with interest. The company’s representatives said that they had already taken immediate action and put measures in place in order to prevent this from happening ever again in the future. They also pointed out that they deeply regret what had happened to over 200 of their customers. They added that they are supporting the investigation of their employee and are doing their best to bring justice to those ADT customers who were affected by the employee’s improper actions.
