You might be searching for data breach claim examples because you’re considering making a claim. This article aims to give examples of what you can claim for and what could constitute a valid personal data breach claim.
If you have any questions at any point, our team of advisors are available 24/7 for a consultation. They give free legal advice and you can find out if you have a claim or have yours valued. What’s more, you’ll be under no obligation to proceed with the services of our panel of data breach solicitors after getting in touch.
Contact us:
- Call the number at the top of the page
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Or continue reading to discover data breach compensation examples.
Choose A Section
- Guidance On Data Breach Claim Examples
- What Is A Data Breach?
- High Profile Data Breach Claim Examples
- Data Breach Compensation Examples
- Benefits Of Using A No Win No Fee Solicitor
- Further Information About Data Breach Compensation Examples
Guidance On Data Breach Claim Examples
In order to make a valid personal data breach claim, you’d need to show that:
- Your personal data was involved in a data breach.
- The breach was caused by the wrongful conduct of an organisation that was supposed to protect your personal information.
- You suffered financial loss or psychological harm (or both) as a result.
A solicitor could help you with this. They could also give you examples of data breach claim compensation from previous cases. It’s not necessary for you to use the services of a solicitor; however, a solicitor from our panel could aid you.
What Is A Data Breach?
A data breach is also a security issue that results in the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, or unauthorised access to or disclosure of personal data. This includes deliberate and unintentional breaches and suggests that data breach claim examples concern more than just losing personal data.
A personal data breach can also be described as an event that affects personal data’s availability, integrity or confidentiality.
Personal data, or personal information, is data that can be used to identify you. For example, your name and address are instances of personal information.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is an independent body that enforces data protection law. It provides information to organisations and individuals about data protection. It also gives definitions of different parties involved in personal data processing.
Data Controller
Controllers make decisions regarding the collection of personal data, and the purpose of processing it. Furthermore, they often process the personal data themselves. This control extends to the complete autonomy over how the data is processed, what data is collected and who from.
Data Processor
Data processors are organisations that are sometimes asked to process personal data on behalf of the controller. They’re largely excluded from the decision-making process and follow the instructions from the data controller regarding how they process the personal data. This personal data will have been provided for them.
To protect personal information, the Data Protection act 2018 and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) were introduced.
Data Protection And GDPR Breach Examples
To aid your understanding of how data protection breaches can happen, let’s look at some common examples:
- Sending confidential information to the wrong person – One of the most common of GDPR breach examples is the simple act of someone sending confidential documents or information to the wrong person. For example, in the University of East Anglia data breach, the personal data of hundreds of students was accidentally shared by email.
- Failure to redact information – In some cases, redacting personal information from confidential documents can be a necessary step to take. For example, the names of those under the age of 18, or the addresses of witnesses in the likes of criminal cases. If redaction isn’t complete, it could lead to someone suffering significant damage.
- Not keeping data secure – if an organisation fails to keep the data it’s responsible for secure, it could commit a data breach. For example, the company Doorstep Dispensaree was found to have breached data protection laws when it was found to be keeping medical records in an unlocked container at the rear of its property.
- Cyber attacks – One of the most common data protection breach examples is cyber attacks. These criminal acts aim to gain access to systems and networks where personal data can be obtained, downloaded and then sold on the Dark Web. In some cases, it’s possible to claim compensation for a cyber attacks
If you’re looking for more GDPR breach examples to help build your understanding, please get in touch.
High Profile Data Breach Claim Examples
High-profile data breach claim examples can include two sets of personal data: physical and digital.
Physical personal data is personal information that can be held on paper or in physical files. A data breach involving physical personal data can include:
- A failure to redact personal information on a published leaflet
- The loss or theft of paperwork containing personal data
- The incorrect disposal of paperwork containing personal data
- Personal data posted or faxed to the wrong person, despite the correct address being on file
Digital personal data is held electronically. The breaches that occur with digital personal data can be considerable in size. A data breach involving digital personal data can include::
- A failure to redact information online before an article is published
- Personal data being emailed to an unauthorised person
- A failure to use BCC in emails to multiple personal email addresses
Reported Data Breach Stats
The ICO releases quarterly figures on data security incident trends. In the 4th quarter of 2021/22, there were 2,172 reported incidents across all sectors. There were 1,696 non-cyber security incidents in this quarter and 476 cyber security incidents.
Data Breach Example: British Airways Data Incident
In October 2020, the ICO fined British Airways for a data breach that affected more than 400,000 customers. The data involved related to customer’s personal information as well as financial information.
If you’ve seen data breach compensation examples and would like to know if you could claim too, why not get in touch?
Data Breach Compensation Examples
Let’s take a look at data breach compensation examples.
There are two potential types of compensation you could seek in a data breach claim.
Material Damage
Material damages are the financial losses you suffer due to a personal data breach. This can include:
- Monetary theft using breached banking information
- Damage to credit scores
If you’re unable to recover these losses through your bank, you could claim them back as compensation.
Non-Material Damage
Non-material damage is the psychological suffering you endure because of a personal data breach. These can include:
- Distress
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) is a publication that lists potential compensation alongside various injuries. Solicitors sometimes use this to help them when they value data breach claims.
We’ve included figures from the 16th edition of the Guidelines, produced in April 2022, in the compensation table below.
| Injury | Severity | Compensation Bracket | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychological Damage Generally (a) | Severe | £54,830 to £115,730 | The injured person will have significant difficulty with relationships, the success of treatment and future vulnerability. |
| Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (a) | Severe | £59,860 to £100,670 | Such cases see permanent effects preventing them from working at all or functioning anywhere near pre-trauma levels. This will affect all aspects of the injured person’s life. |
| Psychological Damages Generally (b) | Moderately Severe | £19,070 to £54,830 | A more optimistic prognosis but there will still be a significant difficulty. |
| Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (b) | Moderately Severe | £23,150 to £59,860 | Improved prognosis and some recovery with assistance. Significant disabilities will remain, however. |
| Psychological Damages Generally (c) | Moderate | £5,860 to £19,070 | Marked improvement will be observed and the prognosis will be good. |
| Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (c) | Moderate | £8,180 to £23,150 | Recovery from most effects will be observed, and those remaining will not be grossly disabling. |
| Psychological Damages Generally (d) | Less Severe | £1,540 to £5,860 | The period of disability will be considered when calculating the level of award. |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (d) | Less Severe | £3,950 to £8,180 | The majority of your recovery will take around two years. The remaining symptoms will not be seriously damaging. |
Our advisors can value your claim for free. Get in touch whenever is best for you.
Benefits Of Using A No Win No Fee Solicitor
A No Win No Fee agreement helps you to fund a solicitor’s services with reduced financial risk. If the claim loses, the solicitor doesn’t get a fee for their service.
If the claim wins, the solicitor takes a success fee from the compensation amount. It is a percentage and is capped by law. What’s more, the solicitor would make you aware of the percentage before you make a claim, so there aren’t any surprises.
There also aren’t any ongoing solicitor fees for their services, nor is there an upfront solicitor’s fee.
Ask About Data Breach Compensation Examples
Our team of advisors are available 24/7 for a consultation where you can find out if you have a claim or have yours valued. All advice is obligation-free and free of charge. Data breaches by unauthorised parties can seriously impact your life.
Contact us by:
- Calling the number at the top of the page
- Requesting a call-back via our make a claim form.
- Using our live messenger.
Learn About Different Types of Data Breaches and How to Claim Compensation
If these resources were useful to you, consider reading further:
Asking Someone To Act On Your Behalf | ICO
Mental Health | NHS
Data Breaches | GOV
Publisher Ruth Voss
Writer Ryan Wall
