WASHINGTON—In advance of a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing today regarding the safety of consumer information held by data brokers, NAFCU has sent a letter to the committee asking for retailers to be held to the same security standards as financial institutions.
"In the wake of several large-scale data breaches, data security and the threat of fraud or identity theft has grown to be a major concern of many Americans today," wrote NAFCU Vice President of Legislative Affairs Brad Thaler in a letter to subcommittee Chairman Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and Ranking Member Al Franken. "While credit unions have been subject to federal standards on data security since the passage of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act in 1999, the same cannot be said for other entities, such as our nation’s retailers, who often hold and access large amounts of consumer data."
Thaler said that NAFCU is hopeful that Congress will soon take legislative action to address ongoing data security shortfalls at our nation’s retailers.
“Every time a consumer uses a plastic card for payment at a register or makes online payments from their accounts, they unwittingly put themselves at risk of criminals who would hack in to merchant systems and steal their information," said Thaler.
Thaler noted, "NAFCU supports S. 961, the "Data Security Act of 2015," and believes it would help address these concerns."