People in the U.S. whose private information was accessed in the August 2025 cyberattack on the Institute for Human Resources and Services (IHRS), a Pennsylvania nonprofit, may qualify to claim a flat $45 with no documentation, or up to $2,000 in documented losses, from the IHRS data breach class action settlement, plus two years of credit monitoring. Claims close December 2, 2026, and the LoginID and PIN from the mailed notice are required to file online.
Current Status
Claims are open. Claim Forms must be submitted online by December 2, 2026, or mailed with a postmark no later than that date. The deadline to exclude yourself or object comes a month earlier, on November 2, 2026. The final approval hearing is set for December 17, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time by teleconference. The Court has not granted final approval, and no payment date had been announced as of September 24, 2026.Free settlement alerts
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What Changed Recently?
The settlement in Tereska v. Institute for Human Resources and Services, Case No. 2026-02353, in the Court of Common Pleas of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, has entered its claim period, with Simpluris mailing notices and accepting claims. This is the first claim window in the case.IHRS is a nonprofit based in northeastern Pennsylvania that provides residential and adoption services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and runs a foster care, adoption and family services agency. The lawsuit concerns a targeted cyberattack on IHRS's computer systems in August 2025. According to the settlement materials, the affected files may have contained names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers or ITINs, driver's license or state ID numbers, medical record numbers, and medical history, condition, treatment or diagnosis information.
The plaintiffs allege that IHRS did not adequately protect that information. IHRS denies that it did anything wrong, and the Court has not decided who is right. The parties agreed to settle to avoid the cost, risk and uncertainty of continuing the litigation.
Who Qualifies?
The Settlement Class includes all individuals within the United States whose Private Information was accessed in the Data Breach. Receiving the mailed notice is the practical marker of membership, since the LoginID and PIN needed to file online are printed on it.Anyone who validly opts out is excluded, along with the other categories listed in the Settlement Agreement; the full definition and exclusion list are in the notice on the official settlement website. The test is whether your information was accessed in the Data Breach, not your relationship to IHRS.
How Much Can You Get?
Every class member who files can claim two years of identity protection, plus one of two cash options:- Cash Payment A — documented losses, up to $2,000. Reimbursement of out-of-pocket losses incurred between August 13, 2025 and December 2, 2026 as a result of the Data Breach, such as money lost to identity theft or fraud, fees for credit reports, credit monitoring or credit freezes, the cost of replacing identification, and postage.
- Cash Payment B — $45. A flat payment with no documentation required, taken instead of Cash Payment A.
- CyEx Financial Shield Complete — two years. Credit monitoring and identity protection that includes $1 million in identity theft insurance, available to every class member who submits a claim, alongside either cash option.
The settlement is claims-made: there is no single fund divided among claimants. IHRS pays the benefits for valid claims, and it pays the requested $120,000 in attorneys' fees and expenses and the $1,500 service award separately, subject to Court approval. Those amounts do not reduce class members' payments.
What Proof or Notice ID Is Required?
Filing online requires the LoginID and PIN printed on the notice mailed to class members. That makes this a proof-required settlement even for the $45 option, which asks for no receipts but still needs the credentials from the notice. Anyone who has lost them should use the contact page on the official settlement website before the deadline.Cash Payment A adds a second requirement. Each loss must be supported by third-party documentation, such as receipts, bank or card statements, or invoices. Notes you prepare yourself can help explain a claim but are not enough on their own to support one.
What Is the Deadline?
- November 2, 2026 — exclusion and objection. The last day to opt out, which keeps your right to sue IHRS separately, or to object to the settlement while remaining in it. The notice lists what an opt-out request or objection must include.
- December 2, 2026 — claims. Online claims must be submitted by this date; mailed Claim Forms must be postmarked by it. The settlement materials give a date without a time of day, so file early.
- December 17, 2026 — final approval hearing, 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time, held by teleconference.
Class members who do nothing stay in the class and are bound by its release of claims over the Data Breach, but receive no cash and no monitoring, because both require a Claim Form.
How Do You Take Action?
File on the official IHRS data breach settlement claim page. Enter the LoginID and PIN from your notice, choose Cash Payment A or Cash Payment B, and claim the CyEx Financial Shield Complete enrollment on the same form; nothing is enrolled automatically. If you choose Cash Payment A, include documentation for each loss.The settlement website's home page has the notice and other settlement documents, and its contact page is the way to reach the administrator. A mailed Claim Form must be postmarked by December 2, 2026.
OpenClassActions is not the settlement administrator and cannot look up your LoginID or confirm whether your information was involved. Those answers come from the official settlement website.
What Happens Next?
The Court will hold the final approval hearing on December 17, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time by teleconference. It will decide whether to approve the settlement and the requested fees, expenses and service award, and it will consider any timely objections. A hearing is not an approval order, and the date or format can change; check the official website before relying on it.Payments and monitoring enrollment follow only after the Court grants final approval and any appeals are resolved. No payment date had been announced as of September 24, 2026.
Sources and Verification
- The official settlement website, including the court-approved notice, the online claim form and the settlement documents.
- Case file for Tereska v. Institute for Human Resources and Services, Case No. 2026-02353, Court of Common Pleas of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.
Kopelowitz Ostrow, P.A. and Milberg, PLLC represent the class, and Simpluris is administering the settlement. Class members are not charged for that representation.
Questions
Can I claim both the $45 and documented losses?
No. Cash Payment A (documented losses up to $2,000) and Cash Payment B (a flat $45) are alternatives; you pick one. The two years of CyEx Financial Shield Complete is separate and is available to every class member who files a claim, whichever cash option they choose.
When is it worth documenting losses instead of taking $45?
Only when you can show more than $45 in losses with third-party records. Cash Payment A covers money lost to identity theft or fraud, fees for credit reports, credit monitoring or credit freezes, the cost of replacing identification, and postage, incurred between August 13, 2025 and December 2, 2026. Receipts, bank statements or similar records are needed; notes you write yourself are not enough on their own. Without that paperwork, the $45 is the practical choice.
Do attorneys' fees come out of class members' payments?
No. The settlement is claims-made rather than a fixed fund divided among claimants: IHRS pays the benefits for valid claims. It also pays the requested $120,000 in attorneys' fees and expenses and the $1,500 service award separately, subject to Court approval, so those amounts do not come out of class members' payments.
I lost my notice. Can I still file online?
The online claim form requires the LoginID and PIN printed on the notice mailed to you. If you no longer have them, use the contact page on the official settlement website to ask the Settlement Administrator for help, or ask about filing a paper Claim Form by mail, which must be postmarked by December 2, 2026.
Do I have to attend the final approval hearing?
No. The hearing on December 17, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time will be held by teleconference, and class members are not required to take part. An objector who wants to speak must follow the notice's instructions and object by November 2, 2026; hearing access details are available through the official settlement website.
