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TalkTalk data breach class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: TalkTalk has urged a judge to dismiss a data breach class action lawsuit.
- Why: A ruling in a similar case bars consumers from holding TalkTalk liable because it did not actively aid the data thieves.
- Where: The TalkTalk class action lawsuit was filed in the High Court of Justice of England and Wales.
Telecoms company TalkTalk is urging a judge to dismiss a data breach class action lawsuit because it did not actively assist the data thieves.
The TalkTalk data breach was allegedly the result of an “industrial-scale” fraud network in India that exploited vulnerabilities in the company’s website, allowing criminals to access users’ private data in 2014 and 2015.
As many as 21,000 customers reportedly had their data stolen in the 2014 TalkTalk data breach.
In December 2020, consumers filed the data breach class action lawsuit which claims TalkTalk violated data protection laws. Some claimants reportedly had their data posted online, some were scammed out of money, and others were defrauded by individuals pretending to be TalkTalk employees.
TalkTalk not liable for data breach, counsel argues
TalkTalk counsel Anya Proops QC told the judge that the claims of hundreds of consumers who claim the company misused their personal data are barred by a decision in a related case.
The decision in Darren Lee Warren v. DSG Retail Ltd. reportedly limited the liability of companies for data breach claims in the wake of a cyberattack.
Proops argues that TalkTalk did not actively participate in the data theft and therefore it should not be held liable for the data breach. She says the findings in the DSG case preclude claimants from seeking to place the blame on companies for failing to adequately safeguard consumer data.
TalkTalk also argues that the claimants’ data losses are not verified and therefore that portion of the data breach class action lawsuit should be dismissed.
The claimants’ counsel says TalkTalk may not have assisted the criminals, but the company allegedly knew that its website was vulnerable to security threats.
TalkTalk data breach reportedly caused by third-party company employees’ misuse
The 2014 TalkTalk data breach was the result of misuse by employees at Wipro Ltd, an IT company based in India that TalkTalk hired to address consumers’ complaints.
Customers began to complain that they were getting phone calls from scammers who reportedly posed as TalkTalk employees. The scammers allegedly offered to fix glitches but then demanded an electronic payment.
The U.K.’s Information Commissioner fined TalkTalk £100,000 for the 2014 data breach, and issued another fine following the 2015 data breach that reportedly affected 160,000 customers.
Were you affected by a TalkTalk data breach? Tell us about your experience in the comments section below!
The claimants are represented by Phillippa Kaufmann QC of Matrix Chambers and Julianne Kerr Morrison and Conor McCarthy of Monckton Chambers, instructed by Leigh Day.
The TalkTalk Data Breach Class Action Lawsuit is Mr. Graeme Smith, et al. v. TalkTalk Telecom Group PLC, Case No. QB-2020-003019, in the High Court of Justice of England and Wales.
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