Email data breach examples can include human errors in which data is sent to the wrong recipient or the wrong document is attached, as well as malicious actions, such as hacking, phishing, or other cyber attacks. Email is one of the most common forms of communication in the UK. Figures from the Online Nation report 2023 by Ofcom (the Office of Communications) show that Gmail alone had over 12 million daily users. The same report also indicated that email is the second most frequent service in which harm is encountered. If the availability, integrity, or confidentiality of your personal data has been affected and you suffered psychological or financial harm, you could make an email data breach claim.
To claim compensation for distress or financial losses caused by an email data breach you need to show the organisation you are claiming against failed to adhere to data protection laws, that this affected your personal data, and that this failure caused you harm.
Get support from one of oursdvisors. They are on hand to explain how the claims process works and show how one of the expert data breach solicitors from our panel could help you.
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- Can I Claim For An Email Data Breach?
- Real-World Email Data Breaches
- Email Data Breach Examples
- What Are The Impacts Of An Email Data Breach
- What Compensation Could You Receive From A Data Breach Claim?
- Material Losses In An Email Data Breach Claim
- Use Our Panel Of No Win No Fee Solicitors To Make A Data Breach Compensation Claim
- Learn More About Email Data Breach Examples
Can I Claim For An Email Data Breach?
You can claim compensation for psychological harm, financial losses, and costs if you can show that the party responsible for securing your data failed to act in line with data protection regulations. Any business, organisation, or public body which stores or processes your personal data must do so in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR).
Email data breach compensation claims need to meet 3 criteria,
- The party in control of your data (a data controller or processor) failed to uphold their responsibilities under the above legislation, such as by failing to use the blind carbon copy (BCC) feature when sending an email to multiple recipients.
- Your personal information was involved in this breach. For example, using the BCC conceals email addresses from others receiving that email; by not using it, everyone else could see your email address.
- This resulted in you suffering financial or mental/ emotional harm, such as distress, because other people are using your email address to send you unsolicited messages.
One of our advisors could assess your case and help you understand your eligibility to claim compensation for an email data breach.
Real-World Email Data Breaches
Below, we look at 2 examples of real-world email data breaches.
In the first example, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued a penalty against ZMLUK Limited for sending unsolicited marketing emails. The ICO is an independent body that monitors data rights in the UK. As part of their role, they can issue fines against organisations that fail to uphold data protection legislation, including those that email or text unsolicited promotional material.
In the second example, South Gloucestershire Council published names and email addresses of 625 people who responded to a consultation. This personal data, along with addresses and phone numbers remained online for 3 days in October 2025.
Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9v1xmy9ypdo
In the next section, we look at examples of how email data breaches could happen.
Email Data Breach Examples
Email data breach examples could include the failure to use BCC, sending documents to the wrong person or phishing attacks. Personal data breaches involve incidents leading to the unlawful or accidental destruction, alteration, loss, unauthorised access to or disclosure of personal data. These breaches may involve personally identifiable information, such as your name, address, email address, or national insurance number.
Email data breach examples,
1. A Failure To Use Blind Carbon Copy On An Email Data Breach
An employee at a sexual health clinic sends a mass email to patients, but fails to use the blind carbon copy (BCC) feature, placing all the addresses in the CC field. Recipients can see the personal email address of all other recipients. This exposes an individual’s identity, causing them to suffer psychological distress.
2. An Email Is Sent To The Wrong Recipient
A hospital sends an email containing sensitive data (including test results) to the wrong recipient. This leads to the patient not getting important test results in a timely manner. They suffer distress when they discover that someone else was sent their test results and that their treatment has been delayed.
3. Phishing Email
A criminal sends a phishing email purporting to be from a legitimate body, such as a local authority, to a business that holds personal data. However, because staff members were not given appropriate data protection and cybersecurity training, the recipient replies to this email, revealing sensitive information about customers.
4. Customer Data Sent Without Permission
A financial company forwards your customer data and records to an external, third-party, organisation without a lawful basis for doing so. This exposes your financial data and allows the third party to gain access to your account, resulting in financial losses and emotional distress.
Get in touch to learn more about the types of personal data breach you could claim for.
What Are The Impacts Of An Email Data Breach
An email data breach could have practical, emotional, and financial impacts on affected users and recipients. This can be the case, whether the breach was due to a sophisticated cyber-attack, or basic security failures.
Below, we look at key types of harm which could be caused by individual or massive data breaches.
- Emotional and/or psychological distress and anxiety. Including anxiety related to the misuse of your data, loss of trust in an organisation, loss of sleep, general anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
- Financial losses, such as income and earnings lost when taking time off work, costs associated with medical treatment, or the cost of installing robust security measures if necessary.
- Reputational and/or relationship damage, such as where sensitive medical information is exposed.
- Loss of control over your personal data, leaving you feeling vulnerable, exposed, and worried about its misuse.
If you were harmed due to an example of an email data breach, such as an incorrect email data breach, you could be owed compensation. Please get in touch with our advisors for help.
What Compensation Could You Receive From A Data Breach Claim?
What data breach compensation you could receive will depend on whether you suffered financial (material damage) and/ or psychological distress (non-material damage) and the extent of these.
For example, severe psychological distress could be awarded £66,920 to £141,240, in line with Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG is a resource which legal professionals may turn to when valuing non-material damage suffered. We have taken further examples of guidelines relevant to non-material damage from the JCG to populate the following table.
| Harm | Notes | Compensation Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple forms of harm and material damages, such as relocation costs, therapy, or medical bills. | Severe mental harm. | Up to £250,000+ with material damages. |
| Psychiatric damage - severe. | Where the person faces marked problems across all areas of their life. | £66,920 to £141,240. |
| Psychiatric damage - moderately severe. | There is a more optimistic prognosis than above, despite significant problems across all parts of the persons life. | £23,270 to £66,920. |
| Psychiatric damage - moderate. | The prognosis is good, though the person still faces significant problems. | £7,150 to £23,270. |
| Psychiatric damage - less severe. | Factors such as the impact on daily activities and duration of (any) disability may affect compensation. | £1,880 to £7,150 |
| Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) - severe | The effect permanently prevent the person working as they did pre-trauma. | £73,050 to £122,850. |
| PTSD - moderately severe. | Similarly affected to more severe cases, but professional care can lead to a better prognosis. | £28,250 to £73,050. |
| PTSD - moderate. | The claimant will have largely made a recovery. | £9,980 to £28,250. |
| PTSD - less severe. | The person makes a virtually full recovery in under 24 months. | £4,820 to £9,980 |
Please note:
- These figures are presented as guidelines and your settlement may vary.
- The figure for multiple forms of harm does not come from the JCG and is our example of a total settlement.
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Material Losses In An Email Data Breach Claim
Material losses in an email data breach claim refer to financial losses which have been incurred as a direct result of the breach, these are also known as ‘material damage’. Examples of financial losses you could claim for may include,
- Loss of earnings and income incurred due to mental harm preventing you from working.
- Medical costs, such as the cost of treatment for psychological distress.
- Home security expenses if you feared for your personal safety.
- Relocation costs, if you need to move due to fears for your personal safety.
An advisor can help you further understand examples of an email data breach you could claim for, in addition to how compensation could be valued.
Use Our Panel Of No Win No Fee Solicitors To Make A Data Breach Compensation Claim
You can instruct a member of our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors to make a data breach compensation claim. Whether due to a local authority failure to use blind carbon copy on an email, or a data breach caused by an individual or business, one of the solicitors from our panel could support you.
They are experts at handling email breach claims and can often do so using a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This is a way to claim compensation on a No Win No Fee basis, without having to make upfront payments for the solicitor’s services. They also won’t take any solicitors’ fees as the claim progresses or if it is unsuccessful.
Instead, you will pay a success fee to your solicitor if your claim is successful. This success fee is calculated as a set percentage of your compensation. Additionally, a legal limit is placed on the percentage. Your solicitor will discuss this with you before you sign the agreement.
Please contact our team for more help and advice with your email data breach claim.
Contact Our Advisors To Claim
Contact our advisors today if you have been harmed in a personal data breach.
- Phone 020 8050 6279.
- Click below to tell us what happened.
- Use our contact form.
Learn More About Email Data Breach Examples
Learn more about email data breach examples and how to get help in these resources.
- Read more about medical information data breaches here.
- Learn more about human error data breach claims here.
- Find out more about HR data breaches here.
Supporting references.
- Advice from the Information Commissioners’ Office on how to prevent data breaches.
- In the Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025, you can find information on the prevalence and nature of major data breaches.
- Find further online safety advice from the National Cyber Security Centre.
We hope these examples of an email data breach have shown when you could claim compensation. Please get in touch for further help.