Category: Cybersecurity

Enforcement Actions Launched by Securities and Exchange Commission – Heightened Scrutiny of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Companies

Share

A recent flurry of activity by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in court, and strong talk on the Hill, gives a clear indication that the U.S. regulatory agency is making a significant push to rein in the current wild-west atmosphere of investments in Blockchain and cryptocurrency companies.

In the wake of the DAO Report issued by the SEC in July 2017, the agency released several Investor Alerts to warn the public of the risks associated with investing in initial coin offerings (ICOs), including an alert to warn investors to be careful about advertisements by celebrities promoting ICOs and other Blockchain-related investments. Moreover, the SEC chairman and his counterpart at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have recently released statements and op-eds and appeared before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee to elevate the awareness of lawmakers and the public of some of these risks.

Continue reading “Enforcement Actions Launched by Securities and Exchange Commission – Heightened Scrutiny of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Companies”

DOJ Announces Federal Indictment in Massive Cyberfraud Enterprise

Share

The Department of Justice announced the unsealing of a federal indictment charging 36 individuals for their alleged roles in the Infraud Organization, an Internet-based cybercriminal enterprise that is alleged to have engaged in a large-scale cyberfraud.   The indictment alleges that the enterprise caused more than $530 million in actual losses to consumer, businesses, and financial institutions.

Continue reading “DOJ Announces Federal Indictment in Massive Cyberfraud Enterprise”

NIST Releases Draft Report on IoT Cybersecurity Standards; Comments Due April 18

Share

On February 14, 2018, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) released a draft of its NIST Interagency Report 8200 (NISTIR 8200), which is intended to inform policymakers and standards participants in developing and implementing cybersecurity standards in and for IoT devices and systems.  At a high level, the draft report is intended to:

  • provide a functional description for IoT (Section 4);
  • describe several IoT applications that are representative examples of IoT (Section 5);
  • summarize the cybersecurity core areas and provides examples of relevant standards (Section 6);
  • describe IoT cybersecurity objectives, risks, and threats (Section 7);
  • provide an analysis of the standards landscape for IoT cybersecurity (Sections 8 and 9); and
  • map IoT relevant cybersecurity standards to cybersecurity core areas (Appendix D).

Continue reading “NIST Releases Draft Report on IoT Cybersecurity Standards; Comments Due April 18”

Information Injury Workshop Covers Non-Financial Harms Faced By Consumers

Share

The Federal Trade Commission held its Information Injury Workshop in December in Washington D.C. The goal of the workshop was to explore how to characterize and measure information injuries to consumers.

Information injury is the harm that a victim suffers as a result of privacy or data security breach. Financial, health and safety injury are the most common types of alleged injuries that the FTC has seen in privacy and data security in the past few years. Yet, injury that does not cause financial harm can be challenging to quantify.

Continue reading “Information Injury Workshop Covers Non-Financial Harms Faced By Consumers”

China Releases New Personal Information Privacy Standards

Share

On January 25, 2018, China released the final version of the Personal Information Security Specification, new voluntary standards on the protection of personal information.  The standards anticipate and address the “issues faced in personal information security during the rapid development of IT technology; with the protection of personal information as their core” and is meant to “regulate all phases of big data operations and related conduct, such as the collection, storage, processing, use and disclosure of personal information.”  The standards will go into effect on May 1, 2018.

The standards will apply to organizations using information systems to process personal information; specific departments that involve network security, third party assessment organizations; and other organizations that deal with the oversight, management, and assessment of personal information security.  Generally, they lay out the following 8 basic principles of personal information security.

Continue reading “China Releases New Personal Information Privacy Standards”

Data Security Concerns Continue in 2018 – Survey Provides New Insight

Share

A vast majority of companies report feeling vulnerable to data breaches and security threats, according to a recent report published by a data security provider and information technology advisory company. It is predicted that companies are planning on spending more than ever before to protect themselves in 2018.

The report, published by Thales eSecurity and 451 Research, summarizes the surveyed responses of more than 1,200 senior security executives employed in the U.S., U.K., Germany, Japan, Sweden, the Netherlands, Korea, and India. Of these respondents, more than one-third had major influence on security-decision making, and nearly half had sole-decision making authority.

Continue reading “Data Security Concerns Continue in 2018 – Survey Provides New Insight”

©2025 Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP. All Rights Reserved. Attorney Advertising.
Privacy Policy