Sens Rockefeller, Feinstein, Pryor, Nelson Introduce Data Security Bill to Protect Consumers from Data Breaches

Senators John (Jay) Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee; Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Chairman of the Senate Select Intelligence Committee; Mark Pryor (D-AS), Chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet; and Bill Nelson (D-FL), Chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Science and Space, introduced legislation that would -- for the first time -- provide a federal standard for companies to safeguard consumers’ personal information throughout their systems and to quickly notify consumers if those systems are breached.

The bill, similar to legislation introduced in the 111th and 112th Congresses, addresses security vulnerabilities that were exploited by criminals in the recent massive data breaches of major US retailers. Those breaches left tens of millions of Americans vulnerable to identity theft and credit fraud. The Data Security and Breach Notification Act would require the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to issue security standards for companies that hold consumers’ personal and financial information. In the event of a data breach, companies would be obligated to notify their affected customers so they can take steps to protect themselves from the risk of identity theft and fraud.