AT&T Settlement Tier Payouts: Calculations and Documented Losses

The AT&T settlement tier payouts split a $177 million class action fund into three groups based on which 2024 breach exposed your data and whether your Social Security number was among the leaked information. Tier 1 claimants, whose Social Security numbers were exposed in the March 2024 dark web leak, receive five times what Tier 2 claimants receive. Tier 3 claimants, affected by the separate July 2024 call and text records breach, draw from a smaller, separate fund. No fixed per-person dollar figure is guaranteed. Each tier’s payment is a pro rata share, and with roughly 4.38 million claims filed, individual checks are expected to land well below the headline numbers.¹

Which Tier You’re In

The settlement created two separate, non-reversionary cash funds tied to two different incidents, and your tier depends on which breach affected you and what was taken.²

Tier 1 covers people in the AT&T 1 class whose Social Security numbers were exposed in the dark web leak AT&T announced on March 30, 2024. Payments come from the $149 million AT&T 1 Settlement Fund.
Tier 2 covers people in the AT&T 1 class whose personal information was exposed in that same March 2024 leak but whose Social Security numbers were not among the compromised data. Tier 2 also draws from the $149 million fund.
Tier 3 covers account owners in the AT&T 2 class affected by the July 2024 breach of call and text metadata stored on a third-party cloud platform. Tier 3 payments come from a separate $28 million AT&T 2 Settlement Fund.

If both breaches hit you, you’re an “overlap settlement class member” and could file separate claims against each fund.³

How the Tier Amounts Are Calculated

The settlement doesn’t promise a specific dollar amount for any tier. It guarantees a formula. Each fund first pays administrative costs, court-approved attorneys’ fees, class representative service awards, and taxes. What remains is the “Net Settlement Fund” for that side of the case, and it’s split pro rata among valid claimants in that fund’s tiers.²

Within the $149 million fund, Tier 1 payments are calculated at five times the Tier 2 amount.⁴ That ratio is fixed; the underlying dollar values are not. The more Tier 1 claims filed, the smaller each Tier 1 check, and the same math applies to Tier 2 and to Tier 3 within its own separate fund.

What You Could Actually Receive

Roughly 4.38 million claims were filed by the December 18, 2025 deadline. Plaintiffs’ attorneys have requested about $59 million in fees, roughly a third of the combined funds, which if approved will come out before any claimant is paid.¹ Each of the 36 named class representatives is slated to receive $1,500 in service awards, subject to court approval.⁵

One analysis of comparable tech settlements noted that final payments often land under $30 per person, with recent settlements paying individuals roughly $30 to $43.⁶ Tier 1 will pay meaningfully more than Tier 2 because of the five-to-one ratio, but the headline “up to $7,500” figure refers to documented loss claims, not tier payouts.

Documented Loss Claims as the Alternative

Claimants who could document out-of-pocket losses “fairly traceable” to a breach were allowed to submit a documented loss claim instead of taking the tiered pro rata payment. The caps are higher:⁷

Up to $5,000 per person for AT&T 1 class losses incurred in 2019 or later.
Up to $2,500 per person for AT&T 2 class losses incurred on or after April 14, 2024.
Up to $7,500 total for overlap class members who file separate documented claims against each fund, without reusing the same documentation.

Third-party receipts or statements were required, such as bills for identity theft protection services.⁸ Handwritten receipts and personal affidavits weren’t sufficient on their own, though they could supplement other evidence, and every claim had to be signed under penalty of perjury.⁹

Where Things Stand

The claim filing deadline passed on December 18, 2025, and new claims can no longer be submitted.⁷ Judge Ada Brown held a six-hour final approval hearing on January 15, 2026, covering the settlement terms, opt-out policies, and attorneys’ fees.¹ The court has not yet issued a ruling on final approval, and no money has been distributed. Kroll Settlement Administration LLC is processing the submitted claims in the meantime.

Payments cannot go out until the court grants final approval and any appeals are resolved, which could add months to the timeline. Claimants can check for updates at telecomdatasettlement.com or by calling (833) 890-4930.⁹

1
New Haven Register. AT&T Data Breach Settlement Attorney Fees
2
CCH CybersecurityPrivacy. AT&T Settlement Agreement
3
Alaska’s News Source. Potential $7,500 Payout for AT&T Customers Affected by Data Breaches
4
KFOR. Deadlines for $177M AT&T Settlement Nearing: How to Claim Up to $7.5K
5
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas. Preliminary Approval Order, In re AT&T Inc. Customer Data Security Breach Litigation
6
Mashable. AT&T Data Breach Settlement Claim $7,500
7
Telecom Data Settlement. AT&T Data Incident Settlement
8
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas. AT&T Settlement Claim Form
9
Telecom Data Settlement. AT&T Data Incident Settlement FAQ