Small Businesses in Texas Face Lawsuits Due to Data Breach Incidents
In Texas, if your personal data has been compromised due to a data breach by a small business, you may have legal options to seek compensation. While the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA) does not provide a private right of action for consumers to sue businesses, including small businesses, there are other legal grounds you can explore.
Common Law Negligence
The most common private legal theory used in such cases is negligence. This involves suing a business for failing to exercise reasonable care in protecting sensitive personal information. A business holding your data owes a duty of care to safeguard it, and a data breach may represent a breach of that duty.
Breach of Contract
If the business had a privacy policy or agreement promising to protect data, a breach might constitute breach of contract. In this scenario, you could potentially sue the business for failing to honor their commitments.
Other Tort Claims
Potential claims such as conversion or misappropriation may also apply depending on the circumstances. However, these claims are less common and may require explicit statutory support.
Invasion of Privacy
While claiming invasion of privacy is sometimes attempted, it is less successful without explicit statutory support.
Statutory Claims (TDPSA)
Although the TDPSA does not provide a private right of action for consumers to sue businesses, it does prohibit even small businesses from selling sensitive data without consumer consent. Enforcement of this provision would be by the state, not private lawsuits.
Federal Privacy Laws
Claims under federal privacy laws generally do not extend to small businesses in the absence of specific violations or harms.
In summary, for suing a small business in Texas for a data breach, plaintiffs primarily rely on common law negligence or similar tort claims, since the Texas statutes do not currently grant a direct private right of action for data breaches.
If the small business sells sensitive data without consent, there may be a statutory violation under TDPSA, but enforcement would be by the state rather than private lawsuits.
If you believe your personal data has been compromised due to a data breach by a small business in Texas, it is advisable to consult with an experienced data breach lawyer to discuss your case and explore your legal options. Reach out to a Texas data breach attorney at Federman & Sherwood to discuss your case and learn more about your rights.
Key points:
| Legal Theory | Applicability to Small Businesses in Texas for Data Breach | |-----------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Negligence | Most common private legal theory; duty to protect data owed to customers | | Breach of Contract | Possible if there's a privacy policy or agreement promising data protection | | Invasion of Privacy | Sometimes claimed, but less clearly supported without statute | | Statutory Claims (TDPSA) | No private right of action; applies mainly to larger businesses; enforcement is by the state |
- In a data breach case involving a small business in Texas, if it can be demonstrated that the business failed to exercise reasonable care in protecting sensitive personal information, a claim under common law negligence may be viable.
- If a small business in Texas, in addition to holding personal data, has explicitly agreed to protect that data within a privacy policy or agreement, and then suffers a data breach, a breach of contract claim could potentially be pursued.
