Credit Union National Association (CUNA) officials said the organization is supporting Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Safeguards Rule amendments addressing national data privacy standards.
“Strong data security laws will not stop criminals or rogue nation states from attempting to penetrate even the most sophisticated data and cybersecurity defenses,” Lance Noggle, CUNA senior director of Advocacy & Senior Counsel for Payments and Cybersecurity wrote in correspondence to the FTC. “However, American consumers that trust their personal information to businesses deserve the most diligent effort by those businesses and entities to protect this data from theft and misuse.”
The CUNA is recommending the definition of a financial institution be broadened as much as possible to maximize consumer protection, adding enhanced data security requirements should always help safeguard consumers’ private information.
Presently 115 privately insured credit unions are subject to FTC Safeguards Rule requirements, with CUNA maintaining privacy will not have the protection Americans deserve until Congress passes a law with strong privacy and data security protections regulating based on the type of information handled or maintained.
Federally insured credit unions and banks comply with data security and privacy requirements established in the Gramm Leach Bliley Act and examined by federal and state regulators for compliance.
CUNA advocates on behalf of all of America’s credit unions, which are owned by 115 million consumer members.