Are too many organisations complacent about data protection?

Despite the fact that every consumer’s right to adequate data security is enshrined in law, it appears that too many organisations remain complacent about data protection.

A 2020 study by Kaspersky, reported by Security News Desk, reportedly found that 65% of IT security decision-makers agreed that their organisations were complacent about protecting customer data. Complacency and carelessness are unforgivable in this digital age, in which hackers are developing increasingly sophisticated ways of exposing personal data. In fact, organisations may be contributing to the rising tide of data breaches through their own negligence of established procedures and cybersecurity measures.

Your Lawyers – The Data Leak Lawyers – as leading data protection compensation solicitors, are here to support anyone who has fallen prey to the negligence of a third party. You can contact us for free, no-obligation advice if you think you have a data breach claim to make.

Organisations being complacent about data protection

Some of the most high-profile, wide-reaching data breaches of all time, such as the Equifax and British Airways incidents, have occurred within the last few years. Despite the frequency with which data breaches hit the headlines, many organisations continue to be complacent about data protection.

According to Kaspersky, over half of the organisations surveyed did not have a cybersecurity policy in place. The findings of the study, published in early 2020, may now be out of date, as the coronavirus pandemic has brought further security challenges to companies, many of which have not been properly addressed. They are nevertheless still important to recognise.

When huge companies are complacent about data protection, the effects can be devastating. The Equifax and Virgin Media data breaches both arose due to failures to secure computer systems effectively. Consequently, hundreds of thousands of UK residents’ personal data was exposed to potential misuse.

Where organisations have failed to protect the data of their customers, members or employees, it may constitute a breach of the GDPR. If this happens, victims may be eligible to claim compensation.

What you can do about data protection negligence

It is impossible to predict which companies may provoke data protection breaches through their negligence. As such, there is, unfortunately, little you can do to prevent your involvement in a data breach.

However, if you do fall victim to data protection negligence, the law can allow you to claim compensation from the company responsible for endangering or leaking your personal information.

Personal data can be a valuable commodity which cybercriminals can sell online to fraudsters, or use for the own financial fraud, for identity theft, or for other scams. Understandably, these risks can be the subject of considerable anxiety for many data breach victims. To reflect the nature of the damage that data breaches can cause, the GDPR can allow victims to recover compensation not only for financial losses and expenses caused by a breach, but also for the distress they have suffered from as a result of having their personal information exposed.

Making your claim

If you have been let down by a company that was complacent about data protection, you may be eligible to make a compensation claim. Taking action to recover compensation could not only bring you personal justice, but it could also simultaneously hold the defendant company accountable for their actions.

If you wish to learn more about making a claim, contact us for free, no-obligation advice from our specialist data breach team.

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