data breach data breaches Identity Theft policy
In Response to Mounting Evidence of Data Breach Risk, EPIC Urges Congress to Act
EPIC Executive Director Marc Rotenberg testified before the Senate Banking Committee, urging lawmakers to apply breach notification regulations to financial institutions and promote authentication techniques that reduce risks to consumers. EPIC observed that "current laws do not adequately protect consumers," and highlighted a series of recent high profile data breaches in the financial sector. The hearing, "Cybersecurity and Data Protection in the Financial Sector" follows May 2011 data breaches at Citigroup and Bank of America. The breaches exposed sensitive financial data linked to hundreds of thousands of consumers; individuals lost millions of dollars from their accounts. EPIC previously testified before the House concerning data breach legislation. For more, see EPIC: Identity Theft and EPIC Testifies in Congress on Data Breach Legislation.