It seems we hear a new story about a privacy breach daily: unauthorized parties are obtaining credit reports, employers are accessing the financial information of their employees, etc. In response, four banking organizations have agreed on principles to protect consumer information.
The groups involved are the American Bankers Association, the Bankers Roundtable, The Consumer Bankers Association, and the Independent Bankers Association of America. The group said the rules are designed ". . . to demonstrate the commitment of bankers to address consumer concerns about personal privacy."
The adopted principles are:
1. Banks should recognize customers' expectations of privacy.
2. Customer information should be used, collected, and retained only if the bank believes the customer would benefit.
3. Banks should maintain accurate information.
4. Bank employees' access to customer information should be limited.
5. Information should be protected by established security procedures.
6. Disclosure of account information should be restricted.
7. Customer privacy should be maintained in dealings with third parties.
8. A bank should make its privacy policies known to its customers.
