Welcome To The Data Leak Lawyers Blog

Does a company have to report a data breach?

The simple answer is – at the moment – no.

Companies and organisations are responsible for data breaches, but don’t have to report them, although it’s generally deemed as good practice to report a breach. However, they do not always have a legal obligation to report a data breach under the Data Protection Act (DPA), but this is all set to change in 2018 when the EU GDPR comes into force.

So, in the near future, reporting certain breaches will actually be mandatory…
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How punishable is the misuse of private information?

In a world where millions of files can be transferred in mere seconds at the click of a button, it’s hard to keep on top of who knows what these days. With today’s ever-advancing technology, one photograph can go viral on a worldwide scale in a matter of minutes.

For those of us who prefer our most personal information to not be broadcast and shared with the world, it can be difficult to keep it private nowadays. The Data Protection Act (DPA) helps with this since it came into force in 1998, and it tells us that, in England and Wales, personal information must be protected and tightly controlled.

Any misuse of private information can be punishable.
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Reportedly, only 25% of companies can detect data hacks or data leaks

According to some research, as little as 25% of companies have the technology installed to detect hacking and data breaches.

This is a shocking fact, but not at all surprising; and it’s a reminder of how the huge cyber hacks like the TalkTalk one from 2015 ended up happening. They, as many have been in the past, were just too slow to realise a hack had occurred, and by the time they knew, hundreds of thousands of customers had already had their data accessed.

If only a quarter of businesses can detect these hacks, we’re set for a bleak future when it comes to cybersecurity.
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Medical data still the most commonly breached information

Healthcare breaches are common, but it can also be a case of them being more likely to be reported. Whichever way you look at it, something needs to be done about the continually growing trend of medical data breaches.

All those who work in the healthcare sector have a duty to not disclose, mishandle, or misuse a patients’ personal information. In fact, this is the very foundation of a patient / doctor relationship. However, while most people believe their personal information is protected, data breaches by the NHS and the healthcare sector remain far too common.
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The 2016 Tesco bank hack – when banks are breached

It’s a rare thing for a bank to suffer a data breach, but around this time last year people were left fearful after Tesco suffered a massive security breach in their banking branch.

Reportedly, around 40,000 Tesco Bank accounts were affected with money taken from some 20,000 accounts.

At least £2.5 million was stolen in what was deemed as one of the biggest, successful attacks on a bank to have ever occurred, and potentially the very first, large-scale attack where money was directly stolen from a bank.
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Hundreds of popular websites leaking personal data claim experts

Data security studies have revealed that there are literally hundreds of popular websites and mobile applications leaking personal information. Previous studies suggested even the Royal Mail is one such business leaking data, which goes to show the extent of the problem.

Many of the websites and apps researchers say are guilty of leaking data have an international reach, meaning people from all over the world could be victims to these data leaks. Studies so far have been focused on personally identifiable information (PII), which is data that can be directly linked to the owner.

This is worrying.
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When Europol suffered a data breach

A law enforcement agency suffering a data breach is a worrying thought, especially one as big as Europol – but it can and did happen.

Last year, Europol admitted they were subject to a rather shocking data leak when one of their former employees – a former Dutch police officer – breached the agency’s policies by taking home a confidential file that contained extremely sensitive information on multiple terrorist investigations.

A story from 2016 that’s similar to the recent Heathrow USB device found containing all sorts of sensitive security information, it goes to show the worrying reality that even the forces who are there to protect us can fall foul of a data breach.
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Freedom of press vs data protection – the big debate

As we prepare ourselves for the General Data Protection Regulation, an updated version of the Data Protection Bill is making its way through Parliament. The bill will hopefully give people more control over their personal data and greater enforcement powers when organisations don’t keep it safe or misuse it.

In addition to this, the House of Lords changed the way reporters can obtain and use personal information in the name of public interest. This means individuals can make a claim for their private information not to be disclosed before it’s already plastered on the headlines.

Some news outlets are not happy about it!
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After compromising over 145 million people’s financial data records, Equifax responds by producing an app…

Equifax have faced heavy criticism for a series of failings around the data breach that exposed over 145 million people’s personal data records, with almost 700,000 Brits caught up in the scandal. It was bad enough that a company responsible for credit referencing was easily hacked, especially given that the hack was down to Equifax failing to patch a known security vulnerability.

Their handling of the breach has been heavily criticised by authorities, experts and regulators. There are allegations of delays and failures to report the breach; an arguably dangerous website set up for people to check whether they were affected (which fraudsters can copy to lure people to give away information); and now an app, which is arguably one of worst offenders in terms of breaches and leaks of information.
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Nursing and Midwifery Council dismisses NHS midwife for snooping on medical records

A ‘nosy’ midwife has been sacked by the University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust after she was discovered to have viewed confidential medical records belonging to friends, colleagues and other acquaintances.

Thirty-eight-year-old Vicky Anne Bloxham lost her job as a midwife for the illegal snooping carried out between 2002 and 2016.

In 2016 alone, Bloxham reportedly reviewed the medical records of some 45 friends and acquaintances without authorisation, with one person’s records accessed 13 times in a four-month period.
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