Metal Refiner Breach Exposed Swaths of Customer Data, Suit Says

Precious-metal refiner Elemetal LLC’s failure to implement cybersecurity protections violated California laws and led to a 2023 breach that leaked more than 10,000 customers’ data, a proposed class action said.

Texas-based Elemetal didn’t follow industry standards for cybersecurity, such as encrypting personally identifying information or deleting it once it’s no longer needed, according to a complaint filed Thursday in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

The complaint claims that Elemetal’s lack of security protocols and failure to timely notify customers of the breach violated California’s Unfair Competition Law and the California Consumer Privacy Act.

These vulnerabilities ...