In a Friday press release, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) stated it fined Equifax Ltd. £11,164,400 for failing to follow data security practices when transferring UK customer information to its US parent company. The UK’s financial watchdog alleges this neglect resulted in a breach that enabled hackers to get their hands on the personal data of millions, escalating the risk of cybercrime.
Equifax fined more than £11m by the FCA
This action follows incidents going back to 2017, when, according to the FCA, the company’s parent, Equifax Inc. (EFX), was subject to one of the largest cybersecurity breaches in history. The findings showed that hackers accessed the personal data of approximately 13.8 million people in the UK during this breach.
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Information such as names, dates of birth, phone numbers, login details, and partial credit card details were among the data accessed. The FCA maintains Equifax could have prevented this cyber attack if it treated its relationship with the US-based parent company as outsourcing.
Jessica Rusu Source: LinkedIn
Equifax did not discover the breach in UK consumer data safety until 6 weeks after Equifax Inc. became aware of the issue. The FCA said the company, which received notification only minutes before the parent company announced the incident, could not cope with the influx of queries and complaints. The regulator’s chief data, information and intelligence officer, Jessica Rusu, added:databreach
Cyber security and data protection are of growing importance to the security and stability of financial services. Firms not only have a technical responsibility to ensure resiliency, but also an ethical responsibility in the processing of consumer information. The Consumer Duty makes it clear that firms must raise their standards.
