Private images and personal information
When your name or your records were used without your say
A billboard uses a photo of you from a friend's wedding. An app runs an ad with your face and a quote you never said. A letter arrives saying a clinic's records about you ended up in the wrong hands. The law protects privacy in pieces rather than all at once, so the question is which piece fits what happened to you, and in which state.
Your name, photo or voice used to sell something
Many states protect your right to decide whether your name, picture or voice is used to sell something. In New York, a company that uses a living person's name, picture, likeness or voice for advertising or trade needs that person's written consent. Without it, you can ask a court to stop the use and award damages, and more if the company knew it had no consent. Other states protect this differently, some more broadly and some less.
Private records and data exposed
Medical privacy law is strong on paper, but the main federal law, known as HIPAA, usually doesn't let an individual sue; the remedy is a complaint to the Office for Civil Rights at the federal health department. State law may offer more.
Data breach cases are often brought as class actions: one case on behalf of everyone affected, where the court has to approve any settlement and sets the lawyers' fee. Start with the steps at IdentityTheft.gov, the federal recovery site, and keep the breach notice.
Protect yourself first
If your information was exposed, a credit freeze keeps people from opening accounts in your name, and it costs nothing to place or lift. Change passwords, watch your statements, and keep a record of any misuse and what it cost you.
What helps to have ready
- For an ad: a copy of it, where and when it ran, and any agreement you ever signed about your image.
- For a records or data exposure: the breach notice or letter, and anything showing misuse since.
- Screenshots showing where the ad or information appeared, the web address and the date.
- Any complaint you made to the company or an agency, and the replies.
- What to have ready before you talk to a lawyer
A short, practical list you can use for any kind of problem.
Where we fit in
A lawyer at our firm looks at your case. If we take it and another firm is better placed to lead it day to day, we choose that firm from firms we have vetted for their expertise and track record, and we stay responsible for your case with them.
Questions people ask
The photo was public on social media. Can a company still not use it?
Posting a photo publicly isn't the same as agreeing to its use in an ad. In New York, using a living person's picture to advertise or sell something needs their written consent.
I signed a release for a photographer years ago. Does that matter?
It might. Because New York's law turns on written consent, any release you signed, and what it allowed, matters. Bring it if you have it.
My information was in a data breach. Is there a case?
Sometimes. Many breach cases turn on whether the exposure has caused, or is likely to cause, real harm, such as fraud in your name. Protect yourself first, and keep a record of any misuse.
This may also apply
- Intimate images shared without consent
If intimate images of you were shared or threatened.
- Mistakes on your credit report
If exposed information has been used to open accounts or has damaged your credit.
More about private images and personal information
This page explains things in general terms. It is not legal advice about your situation, and the law differs from state to state.