Short answer: no. If you are searching for a National Public Data settlement claim form, there isn’t one, and there hasn’t been one this whole time. This is one of the largest data exposures ever reported, and it is also one of the messiest, because the company at the center of it has effectively collapsed. Here is what actually happened, where the case stands right now, and what to do while you wait.
National Public Data Breach Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
| Company | National Public Data, operated by Jerico Pictures, Inc. |
| What it did | Background-check data broker, aggregating public records |
| Breach discovered | Data reportedly stolen around December 2023, surfaced for sale April 2024, publicly disclosed August 2024 |
| Data exposed | Names, Social Security numbers, addresses, phone numbers, and in some cases relatives’ names |
| Scale claimed by hackers | Up to 2.9 billion records (includes duplicates; actual unique individuals affected is disputed and likely far lower) |
| Lead litigation | Hofmann v. Jerico Pictures, Inc. and related cases, consolidated in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida |
| Company bankruptcy | Jerico Pictures filed Chapter 11 on October 2, 2024; that petition was dismissed October 31, 2024 |
| Current company status | National Public Data’s website went offline with a closure notice in December 2024 |
| Settlement status | None approved. No official claim form exists as of this writing. |
What Actually Happened?
National Public Data was a Florida-based data broker that built its business by aggregating personal information from public records, criminal records, addresses, employment history, and more, and selling access to that data for background checks. According to reporting on the case, a hacking group breached the company’s systems around December 2023, and the stolen data began circulating on dark web marketplaces by April 2024. The breach was not publicly disclosed until August 2024, when class action lawsuits began following quickly.
The hacking group claimed to have obtained close to 2.9 billion records. That figure gets repeated constantly in media coverage, but it almost certainly overstates the number of actual people affected. Records in a database like this can include duplicates, address history entries, and outdated or inaccurate information, so the same person can appear many times. Reporting on the case has generally described the true number of uniquely affected individuals as likely in the hundreds of millions rather than billions, though no authoritative final count has been confirmed.
Why Is There No Settlement Yet?
This is the part that makes National Public Data different from most data breach cases you have probably read about. Roughly twenty class action lawsuits were filed and consolidated in the Southern District of Florida, which is the normal path toward a settlement. But the company itself is functionally gone.
Jerico Pictures, Inc., the parent company operating National Public Data, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on October 2, 2024, reporting assets in the range of only tens of thousands of dollars against potential liability described in court filings as being in the hundreds of millions. That bankruptcy petition was dismissed on October 31, 2024. Regardless of the bankruptcy’s exact legal status, the practical situation has not changed: this is a company with essentially no money, facing claims on a scale that would normally require a defendant with deep pockets or a large insurance policy. Reports also indicate the company’s cyber-insurance carrier declined to cover the breach. National Public Data’s own website went offline and displayed a closure notice by December 2024.
For a general explanation of how a settlement normally gets negotiated and approved, see our guide on how class action settlements work, though this case is a useful example of why that normal path can stall out when the defendant has no meaningful assets to fund a settlement fund.
Separately: A California Regulatory Fine
Apart from the consumer class actions, California’s Consumer Privacy Protection Agency separately pursued Jerico Pictures for failing to register as a data broker and pay required fees under the state’s Delete Act, seeking a $46,000 fine. This is a state regulatory enforcement action, not a consumer compensation fund, and it does not provide any payment to individuals affected by the breach.
Is There Anything to File Right Now?
No. There is no court-approved settlement, no claims administrator, and no legitimate claim form for the National Public Data breach as of this writing. If a settlement is eventually reached and funded, and given the bankruptcy complications that is genuinely uncertain, it would need to work through both the consolidated civil litigation and any surviving bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings before a claims process could open.
Beware of Scam Sites
Because this breach generated enormous public search interest, sites claiming to offer a “guaranteed National Public Data payout” in exchange for your personal information or a fee have already appeared. There is no legitimate way to file a claim for compensation from this breach right now, because no settlement exists. Treat any site, email, text or call claiming otherwise as a scam. See our guide on class action settlement scams for the tactics these sites typically use, and never provide a Social Security number or payment information to a site promising to “process” a National Public Data claim.
What Should You Do While You Wait?
Given the scale of this breach and the fact that Social Security numbers were reportedly exposed, it is reasonable to take precautions now rather than waiting for a settlement that may or may not materialize:
- Consider placing a credit freeze with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, which prevents most new credit accounts from being opened in your name
- Monitor your credit reports and bank and card statements for unfamiliar activity
- Be alert for tax-related identity theft, such as someone filing a return in your name, which is a common misuse of stolen Social Security numbers
- Do not pay for or provide personal information to any service claiming it can file an NPD settlement claim on your behalf
How to Know If This Page Is Out of Date
This is exactly the kind of case where a settlement, if it ever happens, could arrive with relatively little warning after years of apparent inactivity. If you see news of a preliminary settlement approval, a claims administrator, or an official settlement website for the National Public Data or Jerico Pictures litigation, treat that as the real signal, and verify it independently rather than trusting a link in an unsolicited message.
We keep a running list of open class action settlements and will add this one the moment a real claims process opens.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a National Public Data settlement I can file a claim for?
No, not as of this writing. No settlement has been approved and no official claim form exists.
Why hasn’t this massive breach settled yet?
The parent company, Jerico Pictures, filed for bankruptcy shortly after the breach became public and has reported very limited assets. That has complicated and slowed the normal path toward a class action settlement.
How many people were actually affected?
The hackers claimed up to 2.9 billion records, but that figure includes duplicate entries and is not the same as the number of unique individuals affected, which is widely believed to be far lower, though no confirmed final number exists.
I saw a website offering to file my National Public Data claim. Is it real?
No legitimate claim process currently exists for this breach. Treat any site offering to file a claim or guarantee a payout as a scam, and do not provide personal or payment information to it.
What should I do if my information was exposed?
Consider freezing your credit with all three major bureaus and monitoring your accounts and credit reports for suspicious activity, since waiting for a settlement is not a substitute for protecting yourself now.
Was this the same as the Social Security Administration being hacked?
No. National Public Data is a private data broker that aggregated information from public sources. Government Social Security Administration systems were not the ones breached.
Bottom Line
The National Public Data breach is one of the largest ever reported, but the company behind it has effectively collapsed, and there is no settlement, no claims process, and no legitimate way to file anything right now. If you were affected, the most useful thing you can do today is protect your credit directly rather than wait on a case whose outcome remains genuinely uncertain.
This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. This page reflects the litigation and bankruptcy status as understood at the time of writing and will be updated if that changes. Always verify any settlement claim of this breach against a genuinely official source before providing personal information.
