Data privacy

Current and retired federal employees say Treasury officials granted Elon Musk improper access to federal financial records, violating privacy laws.

Potential cybersecurity and data privacy violations are among the many dangers of giving the Tesla CEO free rein over systems and data used for Social Security benefits and tax refunds. 

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a proposal to protect consumer data privacy and categorize data brokers that sell sensitive consumer data as "consumer reporting agencies" under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, a move that could garner bipartisan support.

The bureau suggested this week that states should remove the exemptions banks enjoy from data privacy laws. California is a prime candidate to act.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra said opposition to the bureau's recently finalized open banking rule should be viewed as banks and other large firms attempting to quash competition and stymie consumer data protection.

A ban on screen scraping and new disclosures to consumers about data usage are among the new elements of the data protection rule.

JPMorgan Chase and bank trade groups criticized the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's open banking rule for not providing enough data security.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has received more than 11,000 comment letters on its proposal on personal financial data rights, but banks say the agency should ensure that more fintech partners take on their fair share of the rule's compliance burden.

The data aggregator announced a product this week that allows banks to build data privacy portals, where consumers can see who has access to their account data.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said a company doesn't need to experience a data breach for the agency to consider taking action.