Nearly 3,000 women sign up for mass claim after laboratory data breach
Nearly 3,000 women who were victims of the data breach at Clinical Diagnostics laboratory have registered with the Van Diepen Van Der Kroef law firm for a possible class action lawsuit. The firm launched a special platform for victims of the data breach on Friday, and the interest has been great, NOS reports.
“We receive a registration every few minutes,” attorney Michaël Dol said on behalf of the firm, adding that the registrations come from all over the country. The firm is currently mapping out how many people were affected by the breach and whether there are legal grounds for a mass claim.
Clinical Diagnostics is a laboratory used for all kinds of medical tests ordered by general practitioners, as well as the population screening for cervical cancer. The hacker group Nova broke into the lab’s system, stole a large amount of data, and leaked some of it.
The data breach affected 485,000 women who participated in the cervical cancer screening and around 50,000 patients sent for tests by their house doctor, including at least one Minister and one parliamentarian, and multiple women staying in shelters for domestic abuse victims. Their names, addresses, citizens’ registration numbers (BSNs), and medical test results were leaked.
Attorney Sven van Dooren of Louwers IP&Tech Advocaten, who specializes in privacy law, told NOS it was “premature” to talk about a class action lawsuit and compensation at this stage. “Not enough is known yet. A data breach in itself is not a violation of the law. The first step is to determine whether there has been negligence or a breach of legal obligations.”
Claiming compensation for non-pecuniary damages like stress and anxiety is also challenging, he warned. “People are worried, that’s understandable. But with a mass claim, the damages must be collectively demonstrated. That is complex and often difficult to substantiate.”
The Dutch Data Protection Authority is currently investigating whether privacy legislation has been violated, and the Healthcare and Youth Inspectorate is investigating whether the involved institutions took sufficient steps to ensure security. According to Van Dooren, it is important to wait for the results of the ongoing investigations before taking action. “People are better served with answers and clarity than with premature claims,” he told the broadcaster.
