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Yes. In June 2021, Volkswagen Group of America (VWGoA) disclosed that a vendor had left electronic data unsecured. The incident potentially affected more than 3.3 million Volkswagen and Audi customers and prospective or past customers across North America, according to an Ontario court judgment. That is a North American estimate; regulator filings report narrower, jurisdiction-specific counts.

What happened in the Volkswagen data breach?

The disclosure concerned data held by a vendor, not a demonstrated compromise of Volkswagen or Audi vehicles or in-car systems. Maine’s notice says the vendor left electronic data unsecured between August 2019 and May 2021. It lists August 1, 2019, as the occurrence date and May 24, 2021, as the discovery date. Maine’s filing documents the state’s notice details.

California’s breach register lists VWGoA on June 10, 2021; Maine says written consumer notification occurred June 11. VWGoA’s 2024 response to Senator Edward Markey refers to its June 10 notification to consumers and regulators. These dates describe different records of the disclosure, not conflicting accounts of when the vendor exposure was discovered. California’s breach register

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Was my Audi information exposed in the Volkswagen data breach?

Possibly, if you were among the customers, prospective customers, or past customers whose information was in the vendor’s data. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice’s August 1, 2022, authorization judgment describes over 3.3 million people across North America who had done business with Volkswagen or Audi between 2014 and 2019 as potentially affected. “Potentially affected” does not establish that every record was accessed or misused.

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That court figure is not a precise individual eligibility check. If you received a notice, use it to determine which of your information types were involved and what services, if any, applied to you. The court’s description is in its 2022 authorization judgment.

What information was exposed in the VW data breach?

The information varied by person; the filings do not establish that every affected record contained the same data. Maine’s notice lists a name or other personal identifier together with a driver’s-license or non-driver identification number among the information acquired. Check your own notice for the categories associated with your record rather than assuming this combination applied to everyone. Maine’s filing

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How many people were affected by the Volkswagen breach?

The often-cited “over 3.3 million” figure is the Ontario court’s description of potentially affected people across North America. A separate Maine Office of the Attorney General notice record lists 90,184 people overall, including 131 Maine residents. The Maine numbers refer to that filing’s reported scope; they are not an alternative estimate for all of North America. Ontario judgment; Maine notice

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What should affected customers know about protection and settlement?

Services described in the 2021 notice

Maine’s filing says the company offered 24 months of triple-bureau credit monitoring, $1 million of insurance, and identity-theft assistance through IDX. That records what was offered at the time; it does not show that an individual can still enroll or that the service remains available. The filing’s service description is the source for those terms.

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U.S. settlement claims are no longer open

A January 2023 settlement announcement described a $3.5 million fund for eligible class members notified in June 2021. The announced deadline to submit a timely claim was April 12, 2023, and awards depended on valid claims and proration. The deadline has passed, so the announcement should not be read as a current claims opportunity or a guaranteed payment. See the settlement announcement.

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What Volkswagen said about the incident

In a February 2024 response to Senator Markey, VWGoA said: “Volkswagen Group of America is not aware of any cybersecurity incident in relation to VWGoA systems in the last ten years that resulted in the unauthorized access to personal information requiring notification to consumers or regulators under applicable law.” The same response described the 2021 supplier incident as the exception among supplier incidents requiring notice. This is the company’s account, not an independent finding about all cybersecurity events. VWGoA’s response to Senator Markey

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