Computer repair shop copied my personal photos - found them online. Legal recourse options?

Contact data forensics specialist immediately. They can extract access logs windows keeps hidden from standard users. This proves exactly which account opened your files and when. Costs money but worth it when shop denies everything

Combination worked for me when repair shop stole bank statements: demand letter, small claims filing, AND local news tip. Shop scrambled to settle once reporter called asking questions. They fear publicity more than lawsuits

not trying to victim blame but how certain are you it was the repair shop? family members access your laptop? previous spyware infection? might want to eliminate other possibilities before potentially destroying someone's business

Bench technician with 12 years experience. Trackpad repair never requires opening personal folders. Never. Diagnostic tests run from separate boot environment. Whoever accessed password-protected folders did so deliberately and maliciously

Been there. Shop leaked my tax documents two years back. Police completely useless but small claims judge awarded maximum jurisdictional limit plus costs. Document everything meticulously

If those photos show your home layout consider changing locks immediately. These people clearly have zero ethics and know where you live. Safety first, legal battle second

anyone notice how disproportionately women get targeted by this? Worked at major electronics retailer service department and male techs constantly "checking" female customers' devices for photos. Industry has massive unreported harassment problem

This is textbook violation of the CFAA which explicitly prohibits exceeding authorized access on protected computers. The shop was authorized to fix hardware, NOT access personal files. Federal offense with penalties up to 10 years depending on circumstances

Managed repair chain for 4 years before quitting over ethics. Dirty industry secret: techs copy customer data constantly. Photos, financial docs, passwords. Management pretends not to know but metrics pressure leads to undertrained staff with zero screening. Nobody wants to admit how common this is

Just picked up daughters phone from repair. Horrified reading this. Why isnt there regulation requiring security cameras on all repair areas? Automotive shops have cameras everywhere but places handling all our digital lives operate in complete darkness

check your state's statute of limitations immediately. digital privacy torts have absurdly short filing windows in some jurisdictions. clock might be ticking faster than realized on legal options

Tons of assuming in this thread. OP where's proof it was definitely repair shop?

maybe icloud compromised?

password reused somewhere else?

correlation isnt causation just saying

Similar experience with mall repair kiosk. Denied everything until lawyer mentioned windows journal files that log access even when history cleared. Suddenly very interested in making problem go away quietly

People commenting "should have encrypted" missing point entirely. Yes everyone should use encryption but CRIME STILL HAPPENED. Blaming victims normalizes criminal behavior and removes responsibility from actual perpetrators who violated basic trust and privacy

Prepared for downvotes but honestly nobody should be surprised. Minimum wage workers given unrestricted access to your entire digital life with zero oversight or accountability. Encrypt everything important or accept risks involved