Newsroom

Chevron Federal Credit Union President and CEO Jim Mooney will testify today on behalf of NAFCU before the House Small Business Committee regarding the impact of cyber and data security breaches on credit unions and related legislative solutions. Mooney is also the chair of NAFCU's Cybersecurity and Payments Committee.

The hearing, "Small Business Cybersecurity: Federal Resources and Coordination," will also include testimony from the acting chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and a representative of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Today's hearing begins at 11 a.m. Eastern.

Mooney will discuss how the lack of a national data security standard for merchants has impacted his credit union. "During the four-year period of 2013-2016 – during which we implemented EMV – our card-related fraud losses tripled, with 2016 losses approaching three-quarters of a million dollars," he says. He will detail the costs credit unions incur when a merchant data breach happens, including the costs of reissuing cards, monitoring accounts and fraud investigation and related losses.

"NAFCU supports comprehensive data and cybersecurity measures to protect consumers' personal data," Mooney says, noting that financial institutions already protect data under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. He also notes the "robust" cybersecurity guidance from financial regulators that institutions must also adhere to.

Mooney today will discuss the links between cybersecurity and data security and how securing consumers' personal information will require the "the entire payments ecosystem to take an active role in addressing emerging threats."

He will also highlight the various cyber and data security initiatives NAFCU is involved with, including the Financial Services-Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC), the Federal Reserve's Payments Security Task Force and the release of the 2014 NIST framework.

Mooney will outline NAFCU's key data security principles for the committee, which include the association's view that payment of breach costs should be covered by the breach entity. "NAFCU member credit unions and the 106 million credit union members across the country are looking to Congress to continue work on cyber and data security issues and move forward with legislation that will make a meaningful difference to consumers," he says.

"It is time to level the playing field and require equal data security treatment to all those who collect and store personally identifiable and financial data," Mooney adds.

Tomorrow, Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer Sonya McDonald will testify on behalf of NAFCU before the House Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations, also at 11 a.m. Eastern. The hearing will address the Small Business Administration's 7(a) loan program.