AT&T is telling customers they were hacked. Protecting data has been a big fight – from companies like AT&T

This week, AT&T notified millions of customers that their data was likely stolen in an April leak that the company disclosed earlier this month. Meanwhile, comprehensive laws that would protect customers from hacks keep struggling to pass, as AT&T and its rivals have fought back against and heavily influenced a patchwork of data laws – arguing the approach has failed to rein in the problem.

This week, AT&T notified millions of customers that their data was likely stolen in an April leak that the company disclosed earlier this month. Meanwhile, comprehensive laws that would protect customers from hacks keep struggling to pass, as AT&T and its rivals have fought back against and heavily influenced a patchwork of data laws – arguing the approach has failed to rein in the problem. AT&T customers’ pilfered information was so valuable to cybercriminals that the FBI asked the company to delay filing a disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission because of potential national security and public safety concerns. The data was breached from “nearly all” of AT&T’s cellular customers and the customers of wireless providers that used its network between May 1, 2022, and October 31, 2022. It’s not the first time – even this year – that AT&T has been breached. The company was already grappling with an unrelated data leak that took place in March. At that time, AT&T said personal information, such as Social Security numbers on 73 million current and former customers, was released onto the dark web. Consumer advocates and some lawmakers have long argued for more protection of customer data. Though state laws have passed across almost 20 states,  the patchwork of regulations across states and agencies that regulates data privacy, can lead to inconsistencies, contradictions and lacunae. Complicating things further, lobbies from Big Tech to phone carriers have been heavily influencing many of these state and local regulation efforts. In a statement, AT&T said, “We have long supported a comprehensive federal privacy policy protecting all Americans that applies across the internet ecosystem. We continue to believe that a federal privacy policy should establish a consistent set of protections, enforced by a single regulator, for all consumers.” Keepers of private information like who you texted, what you’re watching – in addition to your address and Social Security number – makes telecom companies’ data a high-value target.  That could be invaluable data for phishing and targeted scam attempts.