A Review of the Types and Trends of Data Breaches Involving Financial Institutions

August 28, 2009 - Linda McGlasson, Managing Editor

There have been 356 data breaches so far in 2009, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC). And 46 of those breaches have involved financial institutions - up from 34 at this same time last year.



In reviewing these 46 incidents (see interactive timeline w/details of each breach), one finds goods news and bad, according to ITRC executive director Linda Foley.




The good news, Foley says, is that, based on percentages,
financial institutions consistently have lower percentages of data
breaches than other organizations. "This means they're doing a better
job of controlling and protecting their data," she says.



The bad news is when financial institutions - or their
third-party service providers -- are breached ... it's big. Example:
the Heartland Payment Systems
breach, which resulted in the compromise of 130 million credit and
debit cards. Financial data -- bank account numbers, social security
numbers, and other personal identifying information - is invaluable to
hackers, and its loss is costly to consumers.


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