In response to the ever-increasing threat of data breaches and cyber fraud, ABA today called on Congress to pursue national data protection standards for companies that handle consumers’ sensitive financial data.
Using data from the Identity Theft Resource Center, ABA illustrated the difference between the financial industry, which is held to high data protection and privacy standards under current laws and regulations, and other industries that are not held to such standards. The association pointed out that just 0.2 percent of all data breaches in which customer records were exposed during 2017 can be attributed to the financial sector, while 81.3 percent are attributable to businesses including retailers.
“It’s time to get serious about building a security infrastructure that brings banks, payment networks and retailers together to safeguard sensitive financial data,” ABA said. “It’s time to pass a strong, consistent national standard for fighting data breaches and give consumers the protection they deserve.”
