Compensation for identity theft

Identity theft can be one of the most pervasive and harmful effects of data breaches. It can be caused when criminals misuse exposed personal data when they impersonate the person that the information belongs to. This can involve making unauthorised transactions on your accounts, to obtaining genuine identity documents in your name. Victims may be able to claim compensation for identity theft if the underlying cause of a breach is linked to a third-party organisation exposing your information to misuse.

Despite the fact that UK citizens have legal rights to data protection, many third-party data controllers fail to observe their duties to hold and process information securely. Where these failures constitute a breach of the GDPR, we help victims to claim compensation for the exposure of their personal data.

We are happy to advise anyone who has fallen victim to a data breach, so please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss your potential claim.

Identity theft and its consequences

Identity theft describes the ever-growing problem whereby criminals steal personal information for the purpose of adopting a victim’s identity for their own misuse. The theft of personal data can happen on a large scale when hackers decide to target businesses and other organisations with cyberattacks, which can sometimes allow them to harvest information in vast quantities.

Some of the ways in which your identifying details could be misused by criminals can include:

• unauthorised transactions made on your accounts;
• goods and services paid for in your name;
• new bank accounts or credit cards obtained using your details;
• new identity documents, such as passports, requested in your name.

All these examples of identity fraud can be taken into account when claiming compensation for identity theft resulting from a data breach.

Claiming compensation for identity theft

Not only could these identity thieves and fraudsters steal money from you, their actions could affect your credit score in the long term, simultaneously causing you significant distress or anxiety. If the theft of your personal information resulted from a data breach on the part of a third-party company, you may be able to make a compensation claim. 

Compensation for identity theft can encompass the financial impact it had on you, as well as the distress that you have experienced as a result of it. This is because the GDPR, the law governing data protection in the UK, can allow victims of data breaches to claim for material and non-material damages that they may have suffered. In accordance with this law, the third party responsible for failing to protect your personal information could be held liable to pay this compensation.

Start your claim

If you wish to claim compensation for identity theft, we can undertake to support you through every step of the process. We know how profoundly a data breach can impact victims emotionally, and the effects of identity theft can often add another layer of distress. As such, we can make sure that our claims process brings no further stress or hassle to your door.

Contact us today to receive free, no-obligation advice on your potential claim.

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