A business can have a lot of personal information about their employees and potential and actual customers. That information can be abused illegally, resulting in an invasion of privacy. The victim may sue your company in response.
This can happen if someone with access to this data becomes obsessed with a person and leverages it to try to create a closer relationship with them. They may use an email address, phone number, or image of the person. A company may also use private information to embarrass a critic or someone who leaves a bad rating.
Invasion of privacy laws vary with the jurisdiction, but generally, an invasion of privacy happens if there’s an intrusion on your reasonable expectation to be left alone. There are four types of these claims as shared by a business litigation lawyer.
1. Intrusion Of Solitude
There can be liability if a reasonable person would consider the intrusion highly offensive. This could involve recording private phone calls or reviewing private records. This wouldn’t include calling someone unless you do it repeatedly after being told to stop. Getting information about someone that’s readily and publicly available would be OK. Doing something illegal or extreme to get that information is another matter.
The victim could sue you for special damages (expenses related to emotional distress) and punitive damages if your conduct is outrageous and egregious.
2. Appropriation Of Name Or Likeness
A person’s name and image are treated like a property right in some circumstances, including when making money is involved as our friends at Focus Law LA can share.
You have someone’s image that you think would be perfect for a marketing campaign. The other party may claim damages if you use their name or likeness for your benefit without their permission.
This also might cover a situation when you contact a third party and claim to be that person to obtain private information.
3. Public Disclosure Of Private Facts
This claim may be weighed against your business’ limited First Amendment free speech protection. This isn’t defamation or libel because what’s disclosed is accurate and not meant to put someone in a false light. This can be legally actionable if what you disclose:
- Is not a public concern
- A reasonable person would find it offensive if it’s made public
This could happen if you have this information for one reason (marketing research, for example) but use it in advertising instead.
You are a private investigator trying to find new markets. A client tells you their spouse was unfaithful, and they have a venereal disease as a result, so they used your services to prepare for a divorce. Featuring that person in an ad or part of a social media post without their consent could be the basis of a lawsuit.
4. False Light
This is similar to a defamation claim but with key differences. You could be sued for releasing accurate information (so it’s not defamation), but it was published or used in a misleading way that put the person under a “false light.”
The plaintiff would need to prove:
- You published something about them
- It was done with reckless disregard
- Putting the plaintiff in a false light
- That’s highly offensive or embarrassing to a reasonable person
You use the same embarrassing information from the client of your private investigation business, but you don’t include a name but put it next to a photo of a different person. That other person may have a basis to sue your company.
If you have any questions about your business and the issue of violating another’s privacy, contact your attorney to learn more about what might get you into legal trouble and how to avoid it.