WASHINGTON—Following new reports of Chinese spying efforts against the U.S., CUNA’s Ryan Donovan has sent a letter to Congress stressing the need to address data security and privacy issues.
Saying that in addition to the growing risks to the economy and national security, Donovan, chief advocacy officer, pointed Senate Commerce and House Energy and Commerce Committee staff to a recent Wall Street Journal article on Chinese spying efforts. The article Donovan linked to notes that China’s espionage effort “is being abetted by an ocean of hacked personal data that may help pinpoint who is vulnerable to inducements.”
Donovan said the report is the latest proof that, in addition to the various consumer protection and economic issues associated with data security and privacy, “there are significant national security issues as well.”
The message links to CUNA’s document on data security and privacy solutions, which are:
- Fix the weak links in the payments/transaction space by enacting legislation that holds each link in the transaction accountable in order to incentivize entities to strengthen security
- Standardize the patchwork of regulations that currently exist and make it easier for hackers to expose vulnerable targets
- Protect American interests by making data security and privacy a national security priority
CUNA noted it has previously reached out directly to policymakers, including in recent letters to House and Senate subcommittees and direct emails to all 535 Congressional offices.