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My Personal Data Was Breached Via Microsoft Teams, Can I Claim Compensation

Have you had personal data compromised in a breach? Was that data breached via Microsoft Teams? This guide will look at what steps you could take after a personal data breach.

data breached via Microsoft Teams

A guide on what you could do if your data is breached via Microsoft Teams

We look at the data protection legislation that intends to protect your personal information. The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) is just one of these laws.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is a body that enforces data protection legislation. We look at how they deal with data breaches. 

Our advisors are available 24/7 and give free legal advice. Why not get in touch?

Select A Section

  1. What Is A Data Breach Via Microsoft Teams?
  2. What Personal Data Could Be Breached Via Microsoft Teams?
  3. How Your Personal Data May Be Breached Via An Online Platform
  4. A Screenshot Of My Data Was Shared Via Microsoft Teams, Can I Claim?
  5. What Could I Claim If My Personal Data Was Breached Via Microsoft Teams?
  6. Start Your Claim For A Message Service Data Breach

What Is A Data Breach Via Microsoft Teams?

A data breach involves the mishandling and misuse of information that has been provided by a data subject.  Essentially, a data breach is the unlawful or accidental destruction, loss, disclosure, alteration of or access to personal information. It begins with a security incident. It can be accidental (such as through human error) or deliberate ( such as through cyberattacks).

Personal data is any information that could identify you. For example, your name or email address are examples of personal data.

What Personal Data Could Be Breached Via Microsoft Teams?

Any personal information that you have shared via a messaging application could be exposed in a personal data breach. This information could be about an individual or groups of people, such as customers or local residents. 

It could be special category data, which is sensitive and needs extra protection. This can include any of the following: 

  • Political beliefs
  • Racial or ethnic origin
  • Philosophical or religious information 
  • Trade union membership
  • Biometric or genetic data

Other types of non-special category data can include your full name, phone number and email address. 

If you require any further advice about what to potentially do if your personal data is breached via Microsoft teams, please do not hesitate to contact us for free legal advice and guidance.

How Your Personal Data May Be Breached Via An Online Platform

A data breach via cloud-based software can happen to any individual or organisation in a number of different ways. It could be through non-cyber or cyber means, as well as through human error. 

Causes and Examples

The causes and examples of how a data breach could occur include:

  • Loss/destruction of data – For cases that involve human error, these can be when a staff member loses or destroys a piece of personal data. Moreover, this data could have been important to the organisation and by losing it, it could place the organisation at financial risk.
  • Phishing Attacks – Clicking on unfamiliar links within emails could lead to hackers being able to access personal data and potentially hold it to ransom or sell it on.
  • Unauthorised access – If files have been sent to the wrong person, either by accident or deliberately. Likewise, if that person doesn’t have the authorisation they shouldn’t have access to the data. 

These are only a few examples of how a data breach can occur. Similarly, the cyber security breaches survey 2021 has an overview of the latest statistics for the types of data breaches that impacted all of the different types of business sectors and charities. 

If you can prove that you’ve suffered because of data breached via Microsoft teams, why not call our team to see if you could be eligible to claim compensation?

Screenshots Of Personal Data Being Sent

The UK GDPR outlines the requirements that organisations need to follow when processing personal information. These requirements are known as principles, as they consist of: 

  1. Accountability
  2. Storage limitation
  3. Accuracy
  4. Purpose limitation
  5. Data minimisation
  6. Integrity and confidentiality – security 
  7. Lawfulness, fairness and transparency

When sending screenshots of personal information, the UK GDPR does not apply to individuals using messaging applications for their personal use. It does however apply to individuals who are acting as a sole trader or organisations who use messaging applications. 

Information Being Shared With The Wrong Person

If you have shared information with an unauthorised person, either by mistake or on purpose, it can be considered as a data breach. Examples would include: 

  • Screenshotting personal information 
  • Sharing sensitive personal information 
  • Sharing photos identifying someone

A Screenshot Of My Data Was Shared Via Microsoft Teams, Can I Claim?

A screenshot of your personal data could be considered a data breach if it’s compromised without a lawful basis.

If you suspect that your personal data has been breached, you can contact the organisation involved. They should get back to you and inform you whether this is the case and provide details. 

However, if you don’t receive a response from the organisation or the response is unsatisfactory, you could contact the ICO. You should make sure that the complaint is in as much detail as possible and describe how you believe the data breach happened.

It’s important to note that the ICO can’t compensate you for a personal data breach.

What Could I Claim If My Personal Data Was Breached Via Microsoft Teams?

If you have suffered due to a data breach, you could be considering making a compensation claim. You may be able to claim for non-material damage and material damage. These damages are calculated based on the severity of your losses as well as how you were affected.

The Judicial College provides potential guideline compensation brackets for common physical and psychological injuries. Examples of the types of mental damage you could suffer are listed below.

Edit
Types of Mental Harm How Much? Description
Psychological Damage Generally: Severe £54,830 to £115,730 The prognosis is very poor.
Anxiety Disorder: Severe £59,860 to £100,670 Permanent effects.
Psychological Damage Generally: Moderately Severe £19,070 to £54,830 The prognosis is more optimistic that severe psychological damage.
Anxiety Disorder: Moderate £8,180 to £23,150 Some recovery, but continuing effects.
Psychological Damage Generally: Less Severe £1,540 to £5,860 How long the symptoms last and affect sleep will be factors that impact compensation levels.
Anxiety Disorder: Less Severe £3,950 to £8,180 Making a good recovery within two years.

Material Damages 

Material damages are financial losses that may occur as a result of a personal data breach. You would have to assess what financial damages have been impacted as well as assess the future impact the breach may have on your financial information. Types of financial information that could be affected include bank details.

Non-Material Damages

Non-material damages, on the other hand, are the damages that have no financial impact on you. Instead, they focus on the psychological effects that have been inflicted on you as a result of a breach.

The psychological damages could include: 

In order to make a claim for non-material damages, you need to be medically assessed. This assessment is to determine the severity of the psychological damages and the impact they have on your life. In addition, it will be carried out by an independent medically professional, who would make a report on their findings. 

After the Court of Appeal heard Vidal-Hall and others v Google Inc (2015), the Court determined that you could claim non-material damages after a personal data breach without having suffered any financial losses. You can apply for non-material damages alone. This means that you don’t have to have suffered any financial losses in order to make a claim.

Start Your Claim For A Message Service Data Breach

Starting your claim for a message service data breach can be confusing, but it could be helpful to you to know if a No Win No Fee agreement could be available to you. 

A No Win No Fee agreement is a way for claimants to fund the services of a solicitor. The terms will be set out, and they will be based on the outcome of the claim. For example, if your claim is successful, then a success fee will be taken. This success fee is capped by law, so you won’t be left out of pocket. On the other hand, if your claim is unsuccessful, then you wouldn’t have to pay a success fee. 

Your solicitor will discuss all of this with you, so there won’t be any surprises during the claims process.

Our advisors are available 24/7 to offer answers, advice and guidance. You can contact us about steps you could take if your data was breached via Microsoft Teams. Why not?:

Instant Messaging Service Data Breach Resources

Here is a collection of resources that could be useful and interesting to you as well as offering more information on the claims process. 

If you have any questions or queries about what you could do if your personal data was breached via Microsoft Teams, then please don’t hesitate to contact our advisors. 

Written by Welsh

Edited by Victorine