(October 31, 2014) -- Credit Union Natl. Assn. (CUNA) President and CEO Jim Nussle issued the following statement this evening in response to a joint letter from merchants’ groups about credit union comments on data security and merchant adoption of the same data standards as credit unions and other financials follow:
“As we have documented in two surveys this year, data breaches at retailers have cost credit unions and their members a minimum of $90 million – and those are the costs only for breaches at Target, for $30 million, and Home Depot, at nearly $60 million. With the many other breaches that have also occurred – at Staples, Neiman-Marcus and others -- certainly credit unions have incurred millions more in costs this year. In our most recent survey, released just today, credit unions told us that – to date – they have received no reimbursements for the Target breach, now more than 10 months after the breach occurred. In short, we’ll back off highlighting the costs of data breaches on credit unions when merchants step up and take responsibility, adopt the same data standards, and stop making consumers vulnerable.”
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With its network of affiliated state credit union leagues, Credit Union National Association (CUNA) serves America's credit unions, which are owned by nearly 100 million consumer members. Credit unions are not-for-profit cooperatives providing affordable financial services to people from all walks of life. For more information about CUNA, visit www.cuna.org or follow @CUNA on Twitter. For more information about credit unions, visit www.aSmarterChoice.org and follow @asmarterchoice on Twitter. Visit the CUNA Press Room for a full listing of media mentions, press releases and resources to stay informed on current events within the credit union industry.