Welcome To The Data Leak Lawyers Blog
We focus on the latest news surrounding data breaches, leaks and hacks plus daily internet security articles.
We focus on the latest news surrounding data breaches, leaks and hacks plus daily internet security articles.
With the cyber threat facing healthcare organisations across the globe and on a domestic level at a high, a significant Public Health England data breach could easily happen. With cybersecurity and data protection under such scrutiny, it is natural that doubts have been cast over all kinds of data controllers in the healthcare sector.
The spike in cyberattacks on the healthcare sector has been a much-reported issue over the past year or so, with a perception that cybercriminals have sought to take advantage of the chaos caused by the coronavirus pandemic. However, it is also true that a vast number of data breaches within the healthcare sector are caused by human error, so healthcare organisations must focus on internal training to ensure that they keep information secure.
If you have been affected by a healthcare data breach, you may be entitled to claim compensation for the harm caused. At Your Lawyers – the Data Leak Lawyers – as leading privacy claims experts, we have years of experience in data breach claims, and we can use our expertise to help you achieve the justice you deserve.
Steris, a provider of a variety of medical products and services, has reportedly been found to have been impacted by a data security incident. The Steris data breach is understood to have been part of a wider cybersecurity attack that first came to public attention in December 2020, when Accellion, a technology company, reportedly suffered a hack.
As one of the many companies that pays to use Accellion’s FTA (File Transfer Appliance) to transfer files, Steris had private information when the FTA server was breached by external hackers. The list of companies affected by the Accellion hack has grown and grown in the months following the data breach, in what has become a highly convoluted incident for the company.
The Accellion incident demonstrates how harmful data breaches can be when they affect businesses that provide services to other businesses, creating a domino effect of data breaches. With the threat of such wide-reaching damage, it is essential that all businesses take action to ensure that they deploy appropriate security and protect the personal information in their possession.
Many of the data breach victims that we represent suffer the harmful consequences of privacy incidents. Victims are often affected by distress, as well as being targets for scammers and fraudsters seeking to capitalise on the exposure of private information. Unfortunately, there can be even more damaging effects to data breaches, particularly those that affect highly sensitive information. For those who have suffered from a catastrophic data breach, compensation claims can allow victims to recover compensation for the harm caused.
Your Lawyers, as leading specialists in data breach claims, have seen how profoundly information exposure can affect the lives and well-being of our clients. In our view, it is unacceptable that such suffering should be caused by organisations failing to comply with data protection laws. We have dedicated ourselves to helping data breach victims assert their rights since 2014, so we have the experience to help you claim the compensation you deserve.
In the modern digital world, it is rare that companies rely solely on their own internal IT capabilities to operate their computers and networks, instead engaging the services of IT companies to help them set up effective digital systems and often to provide good security for these systems. Even companies hired for the specific purpose of cybersecurity can neglect vulnerabilities. If this happens, an IT security company data breach may occur.
The element of third-party security risks can be one that companies overlook, but no data controller can evade its ultimate responsibility for a data breach. Whether the incident occurred due to a third-party provider or the company itself, those affected by data breaches could be eligible to claim compensation for any harm caused.
We are now two years on from the revelation about the serious Charing Cross Gender Clinic data leak, and we continue to represent victims for compensation claims.
Although our action is now at an advanced stage, given how long ago the email data breaches took place, do not worry if you have yet to start a claim – there is still time. However, we just strongly urge anyone affected to start their claim as a matter of urgency to avoid missing out on the three-year rule for claiming personal injury damages in a data breach compensation case. For anyone who has suffered significantly, which we understand given the nature of the breaches, higher-level awards can be caught by the personal injury time limits. Generally speaking, you must have either settled a legal case or issued legal proceedings before the deadline expires, so there really isn’t much time left at all.
Make sure you sign-up to join the legal action and avoid missing out on the chance to claim damages as a victim of this serious and sensitive leak of personal information
The link between healthcare data breaches and Covid has been well-documented, with various studies and reports suggesting that breaches have been on the rise worldwide since 2020. With hospitals already under immense strain, it is unsurprising that they have become more vulnerable to cyberattacks, in addition to the usual internal errors and leaks and breaches that can take place.
While data security may have become somewhat of a peripheral concern during the coronavirus pandemic, it needs to be brought front and centre if the problem is to be tackled, and if data controllers are to prevent the problem from being exploited by criminals. In the past, data breaches have often highlighted the lacklustre approach to data protection at many healthcare organisations, where there can sometimes be a lack of cybersecurity resources and expertise.
But these shortages cannot be an excuse. If you have been affected by a healthcare data breach since the start of the pandemic, you could be eligible to claim compensation for any harm caused. There is no reason for you not to seek justice when you have been harmed. As such, you can contact us for free, no-obligation advice if you think you may have a claim to make.
On top of the Covid-19 pandemic, healthcare organisations across the globe have also had to contend with rising healthcare cyberattacks since the outbreak began. Cybercriminals, perceiving that attention was diverted to managing the virus, have perhaps seen the pandemic as an opportunity to target hospitals and healthcare organisations under strain. The need for strong cybersecurity in the NHS has, therefore, never been more urgent.
Unfortunately, the NHS has not been known for good cybersecurity and data protection measures in the past, having suffered a number of severe cyberattacks and data breaches in recent years. One of the most infamous incidents was the WannaCry ransomware attack of 2017, where the NHS was said to be more susceptible to this attack due to a failure to follow cybersecurity recommendations.
Even within the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, there is no excuse for poor data protection by healthcare organisations, and the government must step in where funding is an issue. It is vital that action is taken to tackle the short-term threat, as well as planning for the future of cyberattacks.
ForHousing and Liberty, two organisations within a social housing group based in Salford, have recently been hit by a cyberattack that may have resulted in data exposure. Part of the ForViva group, both ForHousing and Liberty were reportedly hit by a ransomware hack this July, potentially compromising what is said to be a small amount of information.
The ForViva group has sought to minimise the significance of the incident in its public statements, but breaches like these must not be so readily underestimated. When private information is exposed to cybercriminals, there can be serious repercussions for those affected, whose data may be misused for all kinds of manipulative and fraudulent purposes.
Your Lawyers – The Data Leak Lawyers – are leading specialists in privacy and data breach claims, having represented clients in this area of law since 2014. From our extensive experience of supporting clients, we know how worrying it can be to learn that you have become the victim of a cyberattack, which is why we are here to help those affected by incidents like these to claim the compensation they deserve.
A report by The Register has revealed that text messages sent by council agents en masse to UK taxpayers may have been exposing their personal data to unrestricted access. The external agency Telsolutions Ltd reportedly developed the SMS system for the purposes of chasing debts, but allegedly failed to impose basic security measures. This has apparently made it easy for users to manipulate the links sent in the text messages. This example of a council debt chasing data breach could, therefore, be a sign of a fundamentally inadequate approach to data protection.
It is unclear if anyone took advantage of the security loophole, and if so, how many people chose to do so. Nevertheless, its existence can be enough to cause concern for anyone contacted by local councils in this manner, particularly given the vulnerable situations some alleged tax defaulters may be in.
Your Lawyers, as specialists in data protection law, is disappointed to hear that a number of councils may have again failed to take the precautions necessary to protect their residents’ private information. We help data breach victims to claim compensation for the harm caused, so you can contact us for advice if you think you may have a claim to make.
In many cases, the costly repercussions of data breaches can push the companies involved to make improvements to their cybersecurity and data protection measures to ensure that the same mistakes are not made again. However, some companies have succumbed to multiple cyberattacks, failing to learn from the failures that brought about the first attack, even in cases where the initial data breach was widely publicised.
If a company has been subjected to multiple cyberattacks, it would suggest that it has not been put under enough to pressure to change their ways. At Your Lawyers – The Data Leak Lawyers – as leading data compensation experts, we believe that good data protection is non-negotiable. This is why we aim to use our legal know-how to hold data controllers responsible for their actions.
In a data breach claim, you could be eligible to recover compensation for the damage caused to you by the exposure of your private information, so contact us if you think you have a right to justice.
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