Travel App Hopper Caught Charging Without Permission—Plus Three Major Data Breaches This Month

If you use travel apps or donate to religious organizations, this month brought some important news about who has your information and who's been taking money without asking.

Hopper's Hidden Fees Cost Them $35 Million

The travel app Hopper agreed this week to pay $35 million to settle charges from the Federal Trade Commission that it charged customers without their permission. The company offered services like Price Freeze (which locks in a ticket price) and VIP Support, but didn't clearly explain what they cost or what customers would actually get. Worse, it charged people's accounts without clear consent first.

If you've used Hopper, check your credit card or bank statements for recurring charges you don't remember signing up for. The FTC settlement should force refunds, but you may need to claim yours. Visit the settlement notice on the FTC website when it's published to see if you qualify.

Three Major Companies Lost Customer Data This June

Three separate breaches exposed millions of people's personal information in June alone.

Moody Bible Institute, a Chicago-based religious organization, was hacked. The breach exposed 2.3 million names, email addresses, physical addresses, phone numbers, and birth dates belonging to donors, supporters, students, and alumni.

Madison Square Garden Sports (which runs the New York Knicks and Rangers ticketing) lost nearly 10 million email addresses and customer information including names, addresses, phone numbers, and account details.

Sysco, the food distribution company that supplies restaurants and institutions nationwide, had 2.7 million employee and customer records stolen, including email addresses, names, phone numbers, physical addresses, job titles, and customer feedback.

If you've given information to any of these organizations, treat it as exposed. Watch for unusual account activity, unexpected emails, or calls claiming to be from banks or services you use. You can also check haveibeenpwned.com and enter your email address to see if it appears in any known breach.

What to Do Now

If Hopper charged you unexpectedly, document it and look for the FTC settlement information when it becomes available. For the breaches, there's no immediate action required, but stay alert. Scammers sometimes use stolen information months later to pose as companies or financial institutions you know. If someone calls asking to "verify your account," hang up and call the organization directly using a number from their official website.

You're not at fault here. These are companies' security failures, not yours. The best protection now is attention—keep an eye on your accounts and stay skeptical of unexpected contact.