Amazon Data Breach – When Could You Claim Compensation?

This guide will explain the steps that you could potentially take if an Amazon data breach were to occur and affect your personal data.

Amazon data breach

Amazon Data Breach – When Could You Claim Compensation?

We will explain what personal data is and how the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) sets out the responsibilities those responsible for processing your data have.

We will also discuss how a breach of your personal data could occur if data protection law is not upheld and the ways in which this could impact you.

Please read on for more information on the steps you could take if you personal data is compromised. Alternatively, you could get in touch with our advisors for free legal advice and help. To reach an advisor, you can:

Select A Section

  1. Amazon Data Breach – When Could You Claim Compensation?
  2. If An Amazon Data Breach Occurred, What Data Could This Include?
  3. How Could You Be Affected Should An Amazon Data Breach Happen?
  4. What Can I Do After A Breach Of My Personal Data?
  5. Calculating Data Breach Compensation
  6. Learn How A No Win No Fee Solicitor May Help You

Amazon Data Breach – When Could You Claim Compensation?

A personal data breach occurs when a security incident affects the confidentiality, availability, or integrity of your personal data. Personal data refers to any information that could identify you as a living person.

Data controllers are the party that make all the decisions regarding the use of your personal data. In some cases, they can process the data themselves. However, in others, they may outsource this task to a data processor who acts on behalf of the controller. Each of these has a responsibility to adhere to the UK GDPR and the DPA.

In order to claim compensation for a personal data breach, it has to be a result of wrongful conduct by the data processor or data controller. This can involve them failing to adhere to data protection law. Their failings need to have then caused your personal data to become compromised. You also need to have suffered financial loss or emotional harm as a result.

To find out if you could be eligible for compensation, get in touch with our advisors. They can offer more information through a free consultation. Alternatively, you can continue reading to learn more about what you could do if an Amazon data breach were to occur.

If An Amazon Data Breach Occurred, What Data Could This Include?

An organisation primarily concerned with shopping and delivering services could hold your:

  • Name
  • Address
  • Phone number
  • Email address
  • Banking, credit or debit card details
  • Password

Examples of how this data could be affected in a breach of data protection include:

  • A confirmation email of your purchase, including the delivery details, is sent to the wrong email address.
  • A lack of online security measures leads to a ransomware attack in which your credit and debit card details are stolen.

If your personal data has been affected by a personal data breach, get in touch with our advisors. They can offer more information on the claims process.

How Could You Be Affected Should An Amazon Data Breach Happen?

You may be interested to learn about the potential consequences should an Amazon data breach occur. A data breach can have a serious impact on both your financial stability and your mental well-being.

For example, if you experience anxiety caused by a data breach, this can have a significant impact on your life. The stress of a data breach can also cause other mental injuries, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and distress.

If a psychological injury such as this renders you unable to work, this can lead to a loss of earnings, which can have serious consequences for your finances. Similarly, if your personal details are breached, this could allow criminals to commit identity fraud. This can result in debt accrued in your name and money stolen from your bank account.

In some cases, you may be able to seek compensation for the way in which a breach of your personal data has affected you. Contact our team to find out if you could be eligible to claim. 

What Can I Do After A Breach Of My Personal Data?

You may be wondering what you could do after a personal data breach. If an Amazon data breach were to occur and affect your personal data, there are some steps you could potentially take.

The first is contacting the organisation responsible for the breach. They could provide more information, such as confirming the breach or telling you what information was involved.

If they do not reply or their response is not be satisfactory, you could make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The ICO is the UK’s independent body put in place to uphold the information rights of data subject’s. They cannot offer compensation, nor do they handle or process personal data breach claims. However, they can investigate data protection breaches.

The report from the ICO’s investigation can provide helpful evidence for your potential claim. You could also use any correspondence you have had with the organisation as evidence. Furthermore, if you have suffered any financial losses, you could provide bank statements, credit card statements and payslips to prove these.

To learn more about what you can do after your personal data is breached causing you to experience monetary loss or emotional harm, get in touch with our team.

Calculating Data Breach Compensation

When calculating compensation for a personal data breach, legal professionals will consider two areas of harm. These are material damage, and non-material damage.

Non-material damage refers to the psychological injury caused by the breach, such as PTSD and stress or existing mental health problems are that are made worse by a data breach.

Below, you can see some guideline compensation figures taken from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). Solicitors often use this document to help them value compensation for non-material damage. However, please note that these figures are not guaranteed.

HarmNotesPotential Compensation
Psychological harm (a)Severe: A severe case impacting the ability to cope with life and relationships with a very poor prognosis. £54,830 - £115,730
Psychological harm (b)Moderately severe: Significant problems with life and relationships, but with a more optimistic prognosis. £19,070 - £54,830
Psychological harm (c)Moderate: This bracket shows a good prognosis, with symptoms showing an improvement.£5,860 - £19,070
Psychological harm (d)Less severe: A period of disability, impacting daily activities and sleep. £1,540 - £5,860
PTSD (a)Severe: A permanent inability to function at pre-trauma levels with a bad impact on all areas of life. £59,860 - £100,670
PTSD (b)Moderately severe: Some recovery with professional help from moderate PTSD, but significant disability for the foreseeable future. £23,150 - £59,860
PTSD (c)Moderate: Non-grossly disabling symptoms remain as a recovery has largely taken place. £8,180 - £23,150
PTSD (d)Less severe: There might be minor symptoms of less severe PTSD beyond 1-2 years, however, there's been virtually a full recovery. £3,950 - £8,180

Material damage refers to the financial losses caused due to the breach. For example, if your credit or debit card details are compromised, this could lead to criminals making purchases in your name. This can lead to debt and damage to your credit score.

For more information on how compensation is calculated in personal data breach claims, get in touch with our advisors.

Learn How A No Win No Fee Solicitor May Help You

If you are eligible to make a personal data breach claim, a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel may be able to help you. They can offer you a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a kind of No Win No Fee contract. This typically allows you to:

  • Access your solicitor’s services without paying upfront or during the course of your claim.
  • Avoid paying for the work your solicitor has completed on your claim if it fails.

Under a CFA, a success fee is taken from your compensation if your claim succeeds. It comes with a legislative cap to ensure you get the most of your award.

To find out if a solicitor from our panel could help you, get in touch:

References And Resources

Below, we have provided further external resources that may help:

Also, you can see more of our data breach guides:

Thank you for reading this guide on the steps you could take if an Amazon data breach occur. If you have any questions, please get in touch on the number above.

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