You could be eligible to claim compensation for data breaches from phishing emails and attacks where they are successful and your information has been misused or exposed.
The GDPR means that our rights are enshrined in law in terms of our information being protected, and our right to control over it. If the GDPR is breached, that is when an organisation can be negligent and, therefore, can be responsible to compensate a victim for what has happened.
You can speak to our team for free, no-obligation legal advice here now.
When you could claim for data breaches from phishing incidents
You could be eligible to claim GDPR compensation for data breaches from phishing attacks where information has been misused or exposed as a result.
A lot of phishing attacks are successful because of some form of human error, i.e. it is a member of staff who falls for the phishing attempt. The negligence of an employee can fall onto the shoulders of the employer, which is known as vicarious liability. This means that, even in human error data breaches, you can still be eligible to claim compensation against the organisation that employs the individual targeted. Many claims for compensation for data breaches from phishing incidents can be successful on this basis.
Ultimately, it is not your fault that your information has been subsequently misused or exposed from this kind of incident. Any misuse or exposure of information can amount to a breach of the GDPR and, if we can prove that this is the case and show that negligence has taken place, that is when you could be eligible to pursue a legal case.
The best way to find out if you are eligible to claim is to contact our expert team for free, no-obligation legal advice here now.
Rising risks of phishing scams
We know that the risks of data breaches from phishing attacks can be significant, and plenty of research and studies have indicated that the figures can be worrying. For example, it was recently reported that more than half of phishing attacks that are successful result in some form of data breach, which goes to show that this can be an effective form of attack for cybercriminals to deploy.
We often say this because of how true it is, and we will say it again here: any defence is only as good as its weakest link. It only takes one hole in the armour for criminals to access systems and servers, and they could do significant damage through one entry point. Given that most businesses and organisations are now dealing with information in a digitised form, one cyberattack could lead to swathes of information for millions of people being leaked or exposed.
It can also be relatively easy for hackers to target people with phishing scams by sending mass emails to target as many potential victims as possible.
Claim data protection breach compensation in the UK
You could be eligible to claim data protection breach compensation in the UK if your information has been leaked, breached, misused, or otherwise exposed. The principle of being able to claim is that the GDPR means that our rights are enshrined in law in terms of our right to control who knows what about us. If we lose this control then we can suffer from distress, anger, worry, upset, and potentially even losses. Most people will suffer from some form of distress alone, and this is what the majority of people will then pursue a claim for compensation for.
Data breach compensation amounts in the UK can run into the thousands of pounds region. As we are leading experts in this niche and complex area of law, our average settlement is at just over £6,000 per claimant in damages alone, so it is well worth pursuing a case.