The 9th Circuit Court in Seattle, WA, ruled on Tuesday that Starbucks employees whose names, addresses and Social Security numbers were on an unencrypted laptop stolen in 2008 have grounds to sue the company for negligence, reports Courthouse News Service. A district court had dismissed the case saying it did not meet state requirements for injury but that it did have federal standing. The plaintiffs alleged that though they hadn't lost any money, the time taken to monitor their credit and the stress of the possibility of identity theft amounted to an injury. The federal appellate panel agreed. "Here, plaintiffs-appellants have alleged a credible threat of real and immediate harm," wrote judge Milan Smith for the court.
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