We focus on the latest news surrounding data breaches, leaks and hacks plus daily internet security articles.
Usually run by local councils, social services hold large quantities of sensitive information about the people under their care. The private nature of the work they carry out means that they are required to keep to strict standards of confidentiality. If they fail to do so, perhaps if a social worker leaked information or failed to keep data secure, they may be in breach of data protection law.
Whether they are children in foster care, people with disabilities, or elderly residents of council care homes, there are thousands of people in the UK who have some form of care provided by their local authority. The integrity of social workers is generally taken for granted but there can, unfortunately, be individuals who let the good name of their profession down.
Their actions may have been accidental or intentional, but in either case, a social worker should be held accountable if they have compromised your right to privacy. By making a compensation claim, you can ensure that you achieve the justice you deserve.
Workplace data breach compensation claims can be one of the most severe types of privacy legal cases that we take on for victims on a No Win, No Fee basis.
The reason for this is that the nature of the information that can be exposed can be personal and sensitive, and it could be voluminous. This can mean that the impact for the victim can be substantial, which is why these kinds of legal cases can be so serious.
At Your Lawyers – The Data Leak Lawyers – as leading privacy claims experts, we represent a lot of people for workplace data cases. You can speak to the team for free, no-obligation advice here now.
Whether it’s a local agency or a nationwide chain, many property management firms may be perceived as prime targets for data hackers. Any organisation that stores extensive customer information could be seen as an opportunity for cybercriminals, so the possibility of a property management firm data breach is something all companies must aim to prevent.
Unfortunately, despite the growing awareness of data security issues in the media and among the general public, many data controllers fail to observe the data protection regulations set out in the law. Even for businesses that possess large quantities of sensitive customer information, data protection negligence can be a problem.
If you have had your data exposed by a third party due to their failure to protect it, you may be entitled to claim compensation. In accordance with the law, everyone has a right to have the personal data they disclose to third-party companies kept safe, so contact us for advice if you think you may have a claim to make.
With data breaches gaining traction in recent times, many people could be becoming wary of disclosing their data to businesses and organisations, and some may be concerned about what that they can do in the event of a data breach. Your Lawyers, as leading specialists in data breach claims and consumer group actions, are passionate about widening access to justice. This is why want to give you a brief data breach compensation pay-out guide to demonstrate what can be achieved by asserting your legal rights.
In accordance with UK law, all third parties that process, handle or store information relating to their customers, employees or other consumers are obliged to protect it in accordance with the GDPR. This involves ensuring that appropriate data protection procedure is followed by staff, and that there are sufficient cybersecurity defences in place to block potential hackers.
As a result, data controllers can fall foul of the law if they expose or compromise information through their own negligence. If you have been the victim of breach of data protection law, you could be eligible to claim compensation for any harm caused. Read on or contact us to find out more about your potential data breach claim.
The Cabinet Office has been issued with a penalty in the sum of £500,000 for the 2020 New Year Honours data breach, an incident that we have resolved legal action for.
The fine has been issued by the UK’s data watchdog, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which is intended to act as a punishment for what has happened. Such penalties can also act as a deterrent against future events.
We are pleased to see that regulatory action has now concluded. The fine is a separate matter to private legal action that victims of the data leak can be entitled to pursue. We have already resolved legal action that we have taken, having been instructed to act in the wake of the event, and this fine further cements that victims could be entitled to pursue a claim for compensation.
Educational institutions have been targeted by cyberattacks with increasing frequency in the past few months, so the risk to the private information that is held by schools appears to be pronounced. In this climate of hacks and ransomware, it is important that high schools are doing everything they possibly can to protect the sensitive information of students, staff and parents, or there could be an increasing number of high school data breaches.
All schools hold a wealth of information about their pupils, from home addresses to medical information. It is important that teachers can access these details when necessary for the purposes of safeguarding and student welfare, but this also means that schools have an obligation to manage and process this information securely.
If you or your child has been affected by a high school data breach, you may be eligible to make a data breach claim for any harm caused. Where schools are responsible for the exposure of private information, they must be held accountable. Claiming compensation can be a route to ensuring that justice is achieved.
Remote working has been a key security focus for some companies for a number of years, but the coronavirus pandemic has led to many more businesses adopting homeworking as a long-term practice. For some, remote working has longevity beyond social distancing restrictions. However, it can come with cybersecurity concerns, such that businesses must ensure they are effectively managing the risks of remote workers exposing data.
As well as the external cybersecurity threats to company servers, there is also a risk that undisciplined employees may make mistakes when they are no longer working in a controlled environment. Even the simplest of errors or oversights could allow sensitive information to become vulnerable.
Unfortunately, when the transition was made to remote working, some companies failed to make the cybersecurity adjustments required. Going forward, it is important that every company adapts their data protection strategies to the demands of remote working, or they may risk information exposure.
Educational establishments commonly hold a wealth of information about their students, often to meet safeguarding requirements, or to ensure teachers have an appreciation of children’s personal circumstances. Such information can be valuable in providing care and support to students, yet it can also represent a security risk if organisations are not doing enough to protect this information. Due to the sensitivity of the information held, data breaches by schools and universities can be particularly harmful to those affected.
Unfortunately, cybercriminals also recognise the value of pupil and student data, seeing educational institutions as prime targets for hacks. The National Cyber Security Centre released an alert earlier this year revealing that the education sector was at an increased risk of ransomware attacks in late February, which is important to note.
With external threats to the sector high, it is essential that schools and universities are doing their utmost to protect personal information. Where they fail to do so, victims may be able to claim compensation for any loss of control of their personal information.
It has been reported that the recent Stor-A-File cyberattack resulted in hackers demanding a ransom of three million pounds in Bitcoin which has reportedly been rejected, leading to data being exposed online.
Last week, we covered the issues facing the Lister Fertility Clinic who are understood to have written to some 1,700 patients over medical records that Stor-A-File had been providing scanning services for. With potentially sensitive medical information at stake, it had been feared that patients of the clinic could be vulnerable to their private and sensitive medical information being compromised.
Now, it has been reported that the worst looks to have happened and that private and sensitive data stolen in the attack has now been put onto the dark web.
Oxford City Council issued an apology over a possible data breach that the local authority may have caused. It is said that a computer error may have exposed information contained in rent statements.
Following news coverage from The Oxford Mail, the exact nature of this security incident and its impact has been unclear. It was not decisively identified as a data breach, but incidents such as this nevertheless highlight the damage that can be brought about by unintentional data protection errors. Even where the data controller has not broken data protection law, it is important to flag potential negligence to ensure that it is thoroughly investigated.
As a victim of an information security incident, it can often be difficult to tell whether or not an organisation has breached your rights under data protection and privacy law. This is why it is important to seek legal advice if you have reason to believe that your personal information has been compromised. At Your Lawyers – The Data Leak Lawyers- as leading data compensation claims experts, we can offer potential data breach victims free, no-obligation advice on their eligibility for a compensation claim.
EasyJet admits data of nine million hacked
British Airways data breach: How to claim up to £6,000 compensation
Are you owed £5,000 for the Virgin Media data breach?
Virgin Media faces £4.5 BILLION in compensation payouts
BA customers given final deadline to claim compensation for data breach
Shoppers slam Morrisons after loyalty points stolen
Half a million customers can sue BA over huge data breach
Lawyers accuse BA of 'swerving responsibility' for data breach
The biggest data breaches of 2020
Fill out our quick call back form below and we'll contact you when you're ready to talk to us.