Exeter Heavitree Road Police Station data breach compensation: How to claim

If you have been affected by the Exeter police station data breach, our specialist solicitors at Hayes Connor are here to help. Our team’s industry-leading expertise and experience will help you to secure the compensation you deserve if your data has been compromised. To find out more about how we can help, please fill in our simple online enquiry form.

A data breach investigation is due to be launched after confidential and highly sensitive personal data was found abandoned in Exeter’s former Heavitree Road Police Station.

The data was found after a group of urban explorers were able to gain entry into the defunct police station, who then shared footage onto a YouTube channel with 54.5k subscribers.

It has been revealed that the data accessed by the group included highly confidential and, in some cases, graphic private documents. These included explicit photographs which related to the deaths of four people who died in a fatal accident nearly 20 years ago.

The footage posted to YouTube showed the group finding these details in a folder labelled ‘coroner’s officers file’. This then contained explicit details about the details of the death, including graphic photographs of the scene and the bodies of the deceased.

Alongside this, the files also included details of the deceased’s medical history, and personal information belonging to the next of kin.

It is not yet clear how or why the documents were left in the building, nor has it been revealed if further personal information has also been left exposed, putting even further individuals at risk.

Devon and Cornwall Police have confirmed that a data breach investigation will be launched by the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Anyone whose records have been accessed or exposed in the Exeter Police Station data breach should be notified accordingly. If the incident is large enough in scale, it would also be expected the Devon and Cornwall Police would put out a notice on their website.

If you have been contacted to inform you that your personal data has been exposed in the Exeter Police Station data breach, you may be in a position to claim compensation. This is something the team at Hayes Connor will be able to help you with.

We have a dedicated team of specialist data breach solicitors who are ready to support anyone whose personal information may have been compromised in the Exeter Police Station data breach.

When instructed, our team can provide tailored advice on whether you will be in a position to make a claim and what the process is likely to involve.

To find out more about how you can make a claim for compensation for the Exeter Police Station data breach, please fill in our online enquiry form.

What to do if you are concerned about the Exeter Police Station data breach

In cases where your personal data is exposed, it is important that you are properly informed by the responsible party, whoever that may be. There have, unfortunately, been may previous instances where this has not happened, or mistakes have been made which mean that the information has not been passed on to the right people.

If you have not been contacted by Devon and Cornwall Police, and you are worried that your personal data may have been exposed in the Exeter Police Station data breach, it is important that you get in touch with them as soon as possible.

You should also remain vigilant of any unexpected communications. This is particularly where they appear to be from Devon and Cornwall Police. These could be phishing attacks which are designed to extract further personal information from you.

There are a number of steps you can take to reduce the potential of anyone using your personal data against you. If you would like to learn more about this, please read our helpful guide on what to do if your data has been stolen in a data breach.

If your data has been compromised in the Exeter data breach, making a claim for compensation may be possible. This is where our data breach experts at Hayes Connor will be able to support you.

How Hayes Connor can help you claim compensation for the Exeter Police Station data breach

Any organisation that holds personal data is legally obligation to secure it. Leaving any type of information out in the open, as happened in this case, could lead to the information falling into the wrong hands and have disastrous consequences.

At Hayes Connor, we have one of the largest teams of data breach specialists in the country. We have a wealth of combined experience which we put to use in order to support victims of a wide range of data breaches.

Our team will work alongside you to establish the details of your personal case and how you have been affected by the Exeter Police Station data breach. From here, we can then establish whether you will be able to make a claim for compensation and explain how the process will work.

Discovering that your personal data, or data belonging to a family member, has been exposed can be incredibly distressing. As such, we will always take the time to provide close personal support, while also ensuring that the claims process remains as straightforward as possible at all times.

You can find out more about our expertise and how we handle data breach claims here.

To start a claim for Capita data breach compensation, you can use our online enquiry form.

To speak to a member of our team about making a Capita data breach claim, please do not hesitate to give us a call on 0330 041 5130.