Free Report: Data Security: Complexity, Cost and Potential Legislation for Accounts Receivable Management

Download this Free Report and Learn:

• Data security in the accounts receivable management industry
• Existing federal legislation: GLB, FCRA, FACTA
• The effects of current circumstances create increasing cost of compliance

Protecting consumer data in the accounts receivable industry

Data Security in Accounts Receivable: Complexity, Cost and Potential Legislation

 

Identity theft is a growing problem. According to a survey by the Federal Trade Commission, 8.3 million people were victims of identity theft in 2005, some 3.7% of the adult population. In 2007 10 million Americans claimed identity theft, with all indications pointing to record setting numbers for the coming years. For businesses, the FTC has estimated that the costs of identity theft reached $15 billion in 2005 alone. In terms of costs, risks, and liability, data security has grown to become more important to the health and vitality of a business than ever before. At the same time, the accounts receivable industry has found that data security remains one of its most vexing challenges.

The Accounts Receivable Industry and Data Security

As accounts receivable firms and creditors alike grapple with the issues of data security and identity theft, a number of standards and certifications have been developed in an attempt to ensure compliance with existing federal guidelines for the storage and sharing of consumer information.

Download Data Security in Accounts Receivable: Complexity, Cost and Potential Legislation and gain valuable insight on how accounts receivable firms and creditors are responding to this critical issue:

• How the Statement on Auditing Standards No. 70 (SAS70) assesses the internal data security used by accounts receivable firms
• How ISO 17799/27001, also known as ISO, offers guidance on such topics as protecting personal data, internal information, and intellectual property
• How merchants and service providers meet data security standards with the use of the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI)

The Existing Federal Data Security Legislation: GLB, FCRA, FACTA and Impact on Accounts Receivable

Download Data Security in Accounts Receivable: Complexity, Cost and Potential Legislation and discover:

• The key data security rules under GLBA, including The Financial Privacy Rule which governs the collection and disclosure of customers’ personal financial information by financial institutions and how it impacts accounts receivable firms
• How the FCRA regulates data security and the use of consumer credit information.
• How provisions within FACTA attempted to improve the resolution of consumer disputes, increase the accuracy of consumer records, and increase consumer access to credit information.

Increasing Cost of Compliance for Data Security Among Accounts Receivable Firms

Download Data Security in Accounts Receivable: Complexity, Cost and Potential Legislation and discover:

• Why the cost for accounts receivable firms to meet compliance with service provider requirements is enormous enormous.
• How compliance costs could lead to accounts receivable firms leaving the marketplace
• Why the largest accounts receivable companies can spread out the cost of their investments over more clients and inevitably going to be more willing to make additional investments in data security

Legal and Reputational Liability for Accounts Receivable Firms and Creditors

With federal regulations requiring that creditors implement and maintain security controls to ensure that sensitive information is not compromised, issuers as the originators of consumer credit carry substantial legal liability if data is breached within their organization or at any of their accounts receivables partners.

Download Data Security in Accounts Receivable: Complexity, Cost and Potential Legislation and discover how liability is a concern for accounts receivable firms:

• For the accounts receivable industry, possible liability for FDCPA violations and the mishandling of consumers’ private data looms constantly, with potential enforcement actions ranging from fines to an FTC-mandated shut-down
• Enforcement action, along with the potential for civil suits brought against offending accounts receivable companies, leaves very little reason for firms large or small not to comply with data-security requirements
• The penalties can be very high for negligence - ChoicePoint had to pay $10 million in civil penalties and $5 million in consumer redress to settle the FTC’s charges