San Francisco 49ers

In 2022, the San Francisco 49ers experienced a data breach compromising the personal information of over 20,000 individuals, including employees, officials, and fans. The breach led to prolonged litigation, with a federal judge initially rejecting the team’s proposed settlements twice before approving a $610,000 payout in 2025. The exposed data likely included sensitive personal details, triggering legal scrutiny over the organization’s data protection measures. While the financial settlement addresses the fallout, the incident underscores vulnerabilities in handling large-scale personal data, particularly for high-profile entities like professional sports teams. The breach’s scope affecting internal stakeholders (employees) and external parties (fans) highlights systemic risks in data governance, with reputational and regulatory repercussions extending beyond the immediate financial cost.

Source: https://www.mlex.com/mlex/data-privacy-security/articles/2398204/san-francisco-49ers-near-final-approval-of-us-data-breach-settlement

TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/san-francisco-49ers

"id": "san5902459101025",
"linkid": "san-francisco-49ers",
"type": "Breach",
"date": "6/2022",
"severity": "85",
"impact": "4",
"explanation": "Attack with significant impact with customers data leaks"

{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': 'Over 20,000 (employees, '
                                              'officials, and fans)',
                        'industry': 'Sports and Entertainment',
                        'location': 'San Francisco, California, USA',
                        'name': 'San Francisco 49ers',
                        'type': 'Professional Sports Team (NFL)'}],
 'data_breach': {'number_of_records_exposed': 'Over 20,000',
                 'personally_identifiable_information': 'Yes',
                 'sensitivity_of_data': 'High (personal information)',
                 'type_of_data_compromised': 'Personal information'},
 'description': 'A federal judge is ready to grant final approval of the San '
                "Francisco 49ers' proposed $610,000 settlement of litigation "
                'filed after a 2022 data breach that exposed the personal '
                'information of over 20,000 employees, officials, and fans. '
                'The settlement proposal had been revised twice under the '
                'oversight of US District Judge James Donato over the past two '
                'years.',
 'impact': {'brand_reputation_impact': 'Likely negative due to litigation and '
                                       'public disclosure',
            'data_compromised': 'Personal information of over 20,000 '
                                'individuals (employees, officials, and fans)',
            'financial_loss': '$610,000 (settlement amount)',
            'identity_theft_risk': 'High (personal information exposed)',
            'legal_liabilities': 'Litigation filed; settlement approved after '
                                 'revisions'},
 'investigation_status': 'Resolved (settlement approved)',
 'references': [{'date_accessed': 'October 9, 2025', 'source': 'MLex Insight'}],
 'regulatory_compliance': {'legal_actions': 'Litigation filed; settlement of '
                                            '$610,000 proposed and approved '
                                            'after revisions'},
 'response': {'communication_strategy': 'Settlement proposal and litigation '
                                        'communication'},
 'title': 'San Francisco 49ers 2022 Data Breach Settlement',
 'type': 'Data Breach'}