Time’s Running Out to Claim Your Share of Avast’s $16.5M Privacy Settlement

Time’s running out for millions of Americans who used Avast antivirus software to grab a slice of a massive $16.5 million privacy settlement.

The deadline to file a claim is June 5, 2025, and if you’ve ever bought an Avast product between August 2014 and January 2020, you could be entitled to compensation. The Avast privacy settlement stems from serious allegations made by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which claims Avast lied to users about how their data would be handled. Instead of keeping your browsing history private, the FTC says the company turned around and sold it, without properly informing anyone.

Nearly four million consumers were contacted by the FTC earlier this year. On February 24, 2025, the agency emailed 3,690,813 people with details on how to claim their cut of the cash. If you received one of those emails with a claim number, it means you were likely affected and can file a claim directly at www.avastsettlement.com/file-a-claim. But here’s the thing, you’ve got to do it by the end of June 5. After that, you’re out of luck.

The fallout from this case has been huge. In June 2024, the FTC finalized a ban that permanently blocks Avast from selling any browsing data for advertising purposes. They also ordered the company to pay $16.5 million in restitution. So if you’ve ever felt creeped out by your data floating around the internet, this was one of the major reasons why. The FTC called out Avast for falsely promising users that their products would protect them from tracking, only to secretly sell their re-identifiable browsing information to over 100 third parties via its now-defunct subsidiary Jumpshot.

It gets worse. The data wasn’t just shared once and deleted, it was allegedly stored indefinitely and monetized repeatedly. As part of the settlement agreement, Avast must now delete all data handed over to Jumpshot and even get rid of any algorithms or products built using that information. They’ve shut down Jumpshot entirely and have supposedly contacted every company that bought the data, asking them to delete it too.

But while the privacy damage may already be done, this settlement gives users at least a little bit of compensation for their trust being violated. The only catch? The FTC hasn’t confirmed exactly how much each person will get. It depends on how many people submit a claim. The fewer the claims, the bigger the payout per person, but it’s impossible to know just yet. What is clear, though, is that anyone eligible who doesn’t file in time is walking away from free money.

Payments from the Avast privacy settlement aren’t expected to roll out until 2026, so don’t expect an instant windfall. But the process is simple enough. If you got that email from the FTC, dig it up, grab your claim number, and file online. Need help? You can call the refund administrator directly at 1-866-290-0165.

This is just one of several big settlements Americans can cash in on this month. Some other upcoming deadlines include HP.com’s fake discount settlement worth $4 million, the HALO BassiNest lawsuit over baby bassinets, and a $3.6 million settlement from the Retina Group of Washington over a data breach. But the Avast privacy settlement is one of the biggest, and it affects the most people, so don’t sleep on it.

The FTC’s message is loud and clear: companies can’t mess with your personal data and expect to get away with it. If you were one of the nearly four million Avast users caught in this mess, now’s the time to take back some control, and get a little money back too. Just don’t forget, you only have until the end of June 5 to file your claim.

Quick Reference Table: Key Settlement Info

Leo Cruz brings sharp insights into the world of politics, offering balanced reporting and analysis on the latest policies, elections, and global political events. With years of experience covering campaigns and interviewing world leaders, Leo ensures readers are always informed and engaged.