Drive GLBA sensitive data compliance

Passed in 1999, The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act applies to both financial institutions and any business that offers consumers financial products or services (loans, financial or investment advice, insurance, etc.). 

It requires businesses to explain their information-sharing practices to customers and to provide evidence to auditors that they take active steps to safeguard sensitive data.

GLBA applies to any size business that provides financial products or services for personal, family, or household purposes, and in doing so, collects non-public personal info (NPI) on consumers.

Companies subject to GLBA either identify as a financial institution or receive NPI from a financial institution as a 3rd party. 

GLBA does not apply when a financial institution collects information for business or commercial purposes, such as commercial loans, commercial checking accounts, and other B2B services. GLBA also does not apply to information collected on individuals not applying for a financial product. 

Any “non-public personal info” or NPI about consumers collected by companies offering financial services is covered under the act. 

NPI is any personally identifiable financial information collected about an individual, including:

• any personal information provided by a consumer to obtain a financial product
• any information collected during a transaction (credit card and bank account numbers)
• any information collected while providing a financial service

The act has three main sections, consisting of two rules and a set of provisions. 

To be GLBA compliant, financial institutions must: 

1. communicate to customers how they share sensitive data
2. inform customers of their right to opt-out if they prefer that their personal data not be shared with third parties
3. provide auditors evidence that they’ve taken steps to protect customers’ private data in accordance with their written information security policy

The primary data protection implications of the GLBA are outlined in its Safeguards Rule, with additional privacy and security requirements issued by the FTC’s Financial Privacy Rule.

The Safeguards Rule requires businesses to have controls in place to protect, store and dispose of customer information. It requires businesses to identify risks to consumer’s private information in each relevant area of the company’s operation, evaluate the effectiveness of the current safeguards for controlling these risks and to provide evidence to auditors that steps. 

All GLBA rules went into effect on November 12, 1999 and are enforced by the FTC, the federal banking agencies, and other federal regulatory authorities, as well as state insurance oversight agencies.

If a GLBA non-compliance allegation is proven, the punishment can have business-altering – and even life-altering – ramifications. Non-compliance penalties include:

• Financial institutions found in violation face fines of $100,000 for each violation.
• Individuals in charge found in violation face fines of $10,000 for each violation.
• GLBA also includes provisions for criminal enforcement. In criminal cases, financial institutions, officers, and directors can face statutory fines, and officers and directors can also face up to 5 years of federal imprisonment.