Consumers are piling data breach lawsuits on Union Home Mortgage following a June hack that impacted tens of thousands of its customers.
Affected borrowers have filed five class action complaints against the lender and servicer in an Ohio federal court this month, according to a National Mortgage News review of case filings. The suits accuse UHM of negligence in failing to protect personal identifiable information which one plaintiff claims was not encrypted on the company’s network.
The lawsuits, similar to countless other post-breach consumer litigation, seek restitution and rulings compelling UHM to utilize better cybersecurity measures. The Strongsville, Ohio-based UHM disclosed the incident in August, stating PII including Social Security numbers may have been compromised.
Notices to state attorneys general offices reveal little information about the June 25 incident. The lender says it immediately launched an investigation with digital forensics experts, enhanced its security measures and notified authorities.
“At this time, we have no evidence of misuse or attempted misuse of the information,” the lender said in a statement Monday. “We apologize for any inconvenience and remain committed to protecting customer information and maintaining your trust.”
The company, like other firms responding to incidents, is also offering affected consumers a year of complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.
A disclosure in Texas shows 24,160 affected residents, while a separate notice in Massachusetts lists an additional 6 impacted consumers statewide. A spokesperson didn’t respond to a follow-up question Monday regarding the total number of data breach victims, which is typically revealed in disclosures to certain state AGs.
Why consumers are suing Union Home Mortgage
Jacqueline Washington, in a complaint filed Friday, said she’s noticed more suspicious activity since the incident, such as increased spam calls and messages and an unexplained decline in her credit score.
The Cincinnati resident and former UHM applicant is suing UHM because of its failure to safeguard borrowers’ PII and/or destroy sensitive information it stored for business purposes. Each plaintiff also complained about the lenders’ delayed notice to consumers, and suggested their PII had been in the hands of cyber criminals for months without their knowledge.
Washington also called the free credit monitoring inadequate, as consumers will face identity theft risks beyond the 12-month time frame, and questioned why the lender doesn’t automatically enroll its impacted customers.
“In other words, defendant expects plaintiff and class members to protect themselves from its tortious acts resulting in the data breach,” wrote attorneys for Washington.
Neither attorneys for Washington nor counsel for the four other plaintiffs suing UHM responded to requests for comment Monday afternoon. The lawsuits accuse the lender of counts including unjust enrichment and breach of implied contract.
Busy year for the Union Home Mortgage
Union Home Mortgage is a major player in the housing finance space, producing over $7.6 billion in origination volume last year and counting over 200 branch locations, according to publicly available data.
Earlier this month the company acquired the origination assets of Sierra Pacific Mortgage, and over the summer onboarded another high-producing branch. CEO Bill Cosgrove is also part of a group which was approved last week to purchase Major League Baseball’s Tampa Bay Rays.
The company has also filed its own lawsuits against former employees for breaching non-compete contracts in moving onto other lending shops. Both of those lawsuits also remain pending in Ohio federal courts.
