Staff Reports
It is apparent that banks and financial institutions allocate substantial financial resources—billions of dollars—to safeguard the data of their clients, given the perpetual threat posed by hackers and data criminals. Additionally, they perform adequately on the whole. Because of this, the American public has faith in these institutions to protect their private data. However, Senators Dick Durbin of Illinois and Roger Marshall of Kansas are currently advocating for a new credit measure that could jeopardize all of that confidence and security.
Data Privacy Under Threat—New Credit Bill Puts Your Confidential Data At Risk https://t.co/G5BP8CrQdC
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Approval of the Durbin-Marshall measure would result in severe ramifications for consumer data security, credit card services, and rewards programs. Furthermore, who stands to gain from this? Obviously, the major corporations such as Target and Walmart. Clearly, these senators prioritize lining the coffers of their corporate allies over safeguarding the privacy of Americans who work diligently.
A critical element of this legislation is that it would require credit cards to pass through unidentified and unverified processing networks. This creates an environment where megastores may opt for less expensive and less secure routers, thereby augmenting the likelihood of illicit access to sensitive financial data by hackers. It has been demonstrated repeatedly that these megastores do not place a high value on data security. Consider the notorious data intrusions that occurred at Wawa, Home Depot, and Target, during which the credit and debit card information of millions of customers was compromised.
Even more concerning is the fact that these breaches frequently transpire due to corporate economizing on security protocols. Prior to their data exposure, megastores such as Home Depot did not even have a chief information security officer. Attorneys General also assert that Wawa lacked "reasonable security measures in place to protect customer data." However, these avaricious establishments dare to disregard the safety and security of their patrons without any remorse.
By endorsing this credit measure, Congress would grant corporate megastores the ability to place profit motives above safeguarding data. It is an affront to diligent Americans who are entitled to more robust protections for their personal information. Today, we ought to be demanding greater data protection, not less.
Congress is now obligated to reach a resolution. Will they advocate for ordinary, industrious Americans, or will they yield to the avarice of large corporations such as Walmart, Home Depot, and Target? Crystal clear should be the option at hand. The safety and sustenance of the American people must take precedence over the profit maximization of avaricious corporations.
