Welcome To The Data Leak Lawyers Blog

2017 has seen over 7 billion records breached!

Yes, that’s billion with a B…

With the eye-watering number of records breached, the amount of breach victims out there is staggering. On top of that, the 7 billion figure is not even for the entire year; just the first three quarters!

Security firm, Risk Based Security, released a study over 3,833 publicly-disclosed breaches and found that 78.5% of the total number of records exposed stem from only five individual breaches. Big data breaches can seriously harm our commerce, and this figure is yet another reminder about the importance of cybersecurity.
read more

By Author

What are the risks of data theft?

With big data comes big risks…

This is even more the case in today’s growing digital era. Any company or organisation can be at risk of data theft if they’re not careful. That’s why cybersecurity is crucial to ensure that any risk of data theft is kept at a minimum. It’s not just about working hard to prevent cyber-theft, but it’s about working smart to stay one step ahead of the game.

The risks are huge.
read more

By Author

Equifax takes financial hit following data breach scandal

Just like other companies who have suffered a publicised data breach, Equifax’s finances have reportedly taken a hit.

The credit-reporting agency enjoyed share prices at $146.26 in August 2017, but as soon as the breach was made public, the shares reportedly plummeted to just $92.98 in the following month.

Low third-quarter profits may reflect trust issues in the firm after Equifax suffered a data breach that exposed the sensitive information of over 145 million people, including thousands here in the U.K.

Our Data Leak Team are already acting for U.K. victims.
read more

By Author

Charity worker prosecuted for sending confidential information about vulnerable people to himself

Robert Morrisey was prosecuted by Preston Crown Court for sending confidential information about 183 people to his personal computer.

At the time of the breach, Morrisey was working as a mentoring co-ordinator for Rochdale connections Trust charity.

In copying the sensitive information without permission or the knowledge of his employer, Morrisey lost his job. He also lost his position as a Magistrate and was ordered to pay over £1,800.00.
read more

By Author

Is the ethical handling of data the new moral responsibility for businesses and organisations? Could it help gain a competitive advantage?

The ethical handling of data has always been the aim of data protection watchdogs and officials. Companies and organisations have the responsibility to handle data securely under the Data Protection Act (DPA), but there is a term known as ‘ethically handling data‘ that’s growing in popularity.

The difference with ethical handling of data and normal handling of data goes beyond privacy, some believe. It’s about whether customers are aware of how their data will be used and how it will be protected from third parties above and beyond what anyone would generally assume.
read more

By Author

Multiple British intelligence and law enforcement agencies to investigate Uber hack and cover-up

Uber recently admitted to a historic data breach that compromised personal data belonging to some of its 57 million users and drivers worldwide. With six million of those users in the U.K., a significant number of people in Britain are expected to be potentially at risk of further criminal activity like fraud and digital harassment.

To make matters worse, the breach happened a year ago in October 2016, but instead of telling the authorities, Uber decided to ‘handle it’ by finding the hackers and paying them off to keep quiet.
read more

By Author

NHS remote and automated systems: What are the concerns?

In the past few years, the National Health Service (NHS) has made attempts to expand and ease the pressure on its extremely busy and hectic services with use of new technology. This included setting up an entire NHS internal email system that allows staff to send ‘secure’ emails to each other to share ‘sensitive information’.

An electronic prescription service is also available that allows GPs to send a prescription directly to a pharmacy.

But in the increasingly interconnected digital world, what are the concerns over using such technology? Should we be worried?
read more

By Author

NHS data breaches and NHS data breach compensation

The National Health Service (NHS): the provider of the nation’s healthcare that we put our trust and confidence in to look after us and care for our bodies and minds. In that trust, we usually give them unlimited access to our medical records.

Within those medical records, the NHS know all about our bumps, scrapes, embarrassing ailments and our most guarded mental health issues. They are a target for hackers and are leading the leagues when it comes to the highest number of breaches, which is very worrying. A lot of it is down to inadequate systems and procedures, but for the victims, it can become a life-changing event.
read more

By Author

The largest data leak compensation claim payouts

Data leaks can cause an absolute chasm of problems and, in reality, an unlimited amount of damage.

Personal information that’s been exposed can be used to create all sorts of damage and it may never end. The psychological effect can be hugely traumatic and distressing, so this type of damage can be very difficult to recover from. Monetary losses can be calculated in pounds and pence, but putting a figure on the cost of personal damage isn’t an easy science.

It can be done, though; and here are some of the highest recorded payouts.
read more

By Author

Urgent investigation launched over yet another data breach by the University of East Anglia

Only a few months ago, the University of East Anglia faced huge criticism when it accidentally sent out private and confidential information about students’ extenuating circumstances to hundreds of American Studies students.

Vowing to do better, the University gave the impression it would improve data protection procedures to ensure a similar incident wouldn’t happen again.

Sadly, it appears they have failed to uphold this, given there are now reports that sensitive information about a staff member was sent to 300 students in a second data leak. How can this have happened?
read more

By Author