On April 7, 2023, Yum! Brands, Inc. filed a notice of data breach with the Maine Attorney General after discovering the company was the victim of a ransomware attack that compromised data belonging to an unknown number of people. Based on the company’s official filing, the incident resulted in an unauthorized party gaining access to consumers’ names and other sensitive information. After confirming that consumer data was leaked, Yum Brands began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals who were impacted by the recent data security incident.

If you received a data breach notification from Yum! Brands, it is essential you understand what is at risk and what you can do about it. As we’ve discussed in prior posts, large companies have a legal duty to protect the information in their possession, whether the data belongs to employees, consumers or third parties. However, maintaining a robust and effective data security system is expensive and requires an ongoing effort. Thus, even some of the largest companies fail to adequately protect consumer data. To learn more about how to protect yourself from becoming a victim of fraud or identity theft and what your legal options are in the wake of the Yum! Brands data breach, reach out to an experienced data breach lawyer for assistance.

What We Know So Far About the Yum! Brands Breach

News of the Yum! Brands data breach is still fresh; however, what we know at this point comes from the company’s filing with the Maine Attorney General’s office. According to this source, Yum! Brands recently learned that an unauthorized party was able to access the company’s computer system via a ransomware attack on January 13, 2023. In response, Yum Brands secured its IT system, notified law enforcement and then began working with third-party cybersecurity specialists to investigate the incident.

The Yum! Brands investigation confirmed that the ransomware attackers were able to access files containing confidential information belonging to certain consumers.

Upon discovering that sensitive consumer data was made available to an unauthorized party, Yum! Brands began to review the affected files to determine what information was compromised and which consumers were impacted. On April 6, 2023, Yum! Brands sent out data breach letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident.

More Information About Yum! Brands, Inc.

Founded in 1997, Yum! Brands, Inc. is a restaurant company based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company, along with its subsidiaries, develops, operates, and franchises quick-service restaurants across the world. Some of the company’s most well-known restaurant chains include Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut. In total, Yum! Brands operates a system of over 55,000 restaurants in more than 155 countries. Yum! Brands employs more than 36,000 people and generates approximately $6.8 billion in annual revenue.