Cash App users may be eligible to receive payment from the company

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- If you've used Cash App to send or receive money any time since 2018, you may be eligible to get some cash back.

The app's parent company, Block, recently agreed to a $15 million class-action settlement. The lawsuit alleges Block and Cash App were "negligent" in two separate incidents involving user data and account access.

Block and Cash App have denied any liability or wrongdoing but agreed to the settlement, and a good part of that money will go to former and current Cash App users whose accounts were accessed without permission, or who experienced unauthorized or fraudulent withdrawals or transfers between Aug. 23 of 2018 and Aug. 20 of this year.

Those wo meet the criteria are able to submit a claim online for up to $2,500 "for out-of-pocket losses" experienced during the stated timeframe, including credit monitoring, overdraft fees or late payments. Applicants need to provide third-party documentation to prove their claims.

In addition to the settlement, Block and Cash App agreed to take steps toward strengthening data security, which has been a concern for years for consumer and finance experts like Clark Howard. He previously spoke with Better Call 4 about peer-to-peer payment apps like Cash App, Venmo and Zelle.

"The problem all three of them have is there's not legal consumer protections that are clearly written for them," said Howard.

Because of that, Howard said payment apps are popular targets for bad actors.

"The problem with the hacks is what happens after you've been hacked," Howard said. "Are you taken care of well and right by whatever financial institution you're using? Or do they just turn the other way and say, 'Not our problem.'"

Clark's advice for consumers -- don't use peer-to-peer payment apps.

"Second choice, set them up in a separate bank account, somewhere else other than where you do most of your banking," Howard said. "And the third thing, only ever ever ever pay friends or family through any of these apps."

You can find out if you're eligible to claim money from the Cash App settlement by visiting the website, filling out the claim form and submitting it by Nov. 18.