Our Areas

Data Protection (GDPR) & Data Breach Claims

In the event that your personal data has been breached, we can assist you in seeking compensation. By doing so, you will be able to recoup your financial losses. Damages can also be claimed for non-material distress.

Data Protection

Data protection is a legal requirement for businesses and organisations. Information such as your bank account details, personal health information, log-in details, biometrics, and passport numbers fall under this category. Also included are details like your racial/ethnic origin, sexual orientation, and political beliefs.

Having suffered harm as a result of a data breach, you may be entitled to bring a civil claim. This ensures that you receive the proper compensation for the damages you have suffered.. The settlement will reflect your financial losses, your reputational injury, and any psychological harm you have suffered.

If you are concerned that your data has been unlawfully breached, our GDPR data protection solicitors can advise on your prospects of making a claim.

How to identify a data breach

An organisation becomes your data controller when you give them your personal information.  It is their legal responsibility to maintain the security of that information and to ensure that it is only used for the lawful purposes for which it was originally intended. Certain categories of data should be encrypted, and they should not be kept for longer than necessary.

Breach of data occurs when an organisation or business fails to secure your personal data, confidential, sensitive, or protected information where it may be shared and/or viewed without your consent.

Claims related to data protection breaches

General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) govern data protection laws. These rules were implemented in May 2018. Any business or organisation handling an EU citizen's data is subject to the GDPR, regardless of whether they are based in the EU.

There are a number of serious and undesirable consequences associated with data breaches, including theft of identities and fraud, reputational damage, humiliation, and significant financial losses. You are entitled to compensation if you have been harmed in this way.

When a data breach has occurred, but who is responsible for it?

Information about you is held by a variety of individuals, businesses, and organisations. The confidential information you provide to your employer, a retailer on the Internet, and your doctor is all held in trust. In the event of a data breach, a claim can be made against a variety of professionals, businesses, and institutions.

Your data breach could be caused by one or more of the following:

  • Financial institutions, such as banks and credit unions
  • Hospitals or GP surgeries
  • Accommodation, such as Hotels
  • Membership in a union
  • School, college, or university
  • An online social media company or a technology company

Employer

By determining the party at fault and the cause of the data breach, we will be able to determine who is at fault. With this information, we can confirm whether the responsible party failed to comply with their legal duty, allowing us to file a GDPR complaint.

Compensation for breaches of data protection

Both individuals and organisations are entitled to compensation for data breaches. The following are the conditions in which you can claim compensation for a data breach:

  • You are living within the EU; and
  • You experienced a data breach; and
  • You suffered as a result of the breach, be it material or non-material damages

Whelehan Solicitor

B2 Edward Court,
Tralee, Co. Kerry
Tel: 066 712 9782
Email: info@whelehansolicitor.ie

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