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Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., said lawmakers should look into giving the Federal Trade Commission – the entity investigating the recent Equifax data breach – the leeway to possibly change its enforcement standards for protecting consumer data.

Bloomberg Government reported Friday on comments Thune shared with reporters last week, saying that Congress should "look at the full gamut of solutions on this," including "whether the FTC has the authorities it needs and whether or not there are new and different requirements" for data security that should be in place.

Senate Banking Committee Ranking Member Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, echoed his comments. In the same article, Brown said that stricter data security legislation is likely needed in light of the Equifax breach. "It's clear there's no accountability," he said.

NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger reiterated a call to House and Senate leaders for a national data security standard after the news broke of the Equifax data breach, which exposed sensitive data of as many as 143 million Americans.

Credit unions and other financial institutions have been subject to federal standards on data security since the passage of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. Berger told House and Senate leaders that these standards are not imposed on retailers and many other entities that handle sensitive personal financial data. He pointed out that credit unions suffer steep losses making members whole following a merchant data breach, and their members ultimately pay those costs.