Privacy of Consumer Financial Information (Regulation P)

Title V, Subtitle A of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) [1] governs the treatment of nonpublic personal information about consumers by financial institutions. Section 502 of the Subtitle, subject to certain exceptions, prohibits a financial institution from disclosing nonpublic personal information about a consumer to nonaffiliated third parties, unless (i) the institution satisfies various notice and opt-out requirements, and (ii) the consumer has not elected to opt out of the disclosure. Section 503 requires the institution to provide notice of its privacy policies and practices to its customers. Section 504 authorizes the issuance of regulations to implement these provisions.

Title X of the Dodd-Frank Act Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) [2] granted rulemaking authority for most provisions of Subtitle A of Title V of GLBA to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) with respect to financial institutions and other entities subject to the CFPB’s jurisdiction, except securities and futures-related companies and certain motor vehicle dealers. The Dodd-Frank Act also granted authority to the CFPB to examine and enforce compliance with these statutory provisions and their implementing regulations with respect to entities under CFPB jurisdiction. [3] In December 2011 the CFPB re-codified in Regulation P, 12 CFR Part 1016, the implementing regulations that were previously issued by the Board, the FDIC, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the NCUA, the OCC, and the former OTS. [4]

On December 1, 2009, the eight federal agencies jointly released a voluntary model privacy form designed to make it easier for consumers to understand how financial institutions collect and share nonpublic personal information. [5] The final rule adopting the model privacy form was effective on December 31, 2009.

On October 28, 2014, the CFPB published a final rule amending the requirements regarding financial institutions’ provision of their annual disclosures of privacy policies and practices to customers by creating an alternative delivery method that financial institutions can use under certain circumstances. [6] The amendment was effective immediately upon publication. The alternative delivery method allows a financial institution to provide an annual privacy notice by posting the annual notice on its web site, if the financial institution meets certain conditions.

As of December 4, 2015, section 75001 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act [7] (FAST Act) amended section 503 of GLBA to establish an exception to the annual privacy notice requirements whereby a financial institution that meets certain criteria is not required to provide an annual privacy notice to customers. The amendment was effective upon enactment.

There are fewer requirements to qualify for the exception to providing an annual privacy notice pursuant to the FAST Act GLBA amendments than there are to qualify to use the CFPB’s alternative delivery method; any institution that meets the requirements for using the alternative delivery method is effectively excepted from delivering an annual privacy notice.

Under the authority of GLBA and the Fair Credit Reporting Act, NCUA issued the Guidelines for Safeguarding Member Information, 12 CFR Part 748, Appendix A (Security Guidelines). The Security Guidelines require a credit union to establish standards relating to administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to ensure the security, confidentiality, integrity, and proper disposal of information. The Security Guidelines impose requirements separate from the privacy requirements of GLBA and Regulation P and address safeguarding the confidentiality and security of information and ensuring proper disposal of information. The Security Guidelines are directed toward preventing and responding to foreseeable threats to, or unauthorized access or use of, that information. The Security Guidelines provide that credit unions must contractually require their affiliated and nonaffiliated third-party service providers that have access to the credit union’s data containing personal information to protect that information. NCUA has also released the IT Security Compliance Guide, which is intended to help credit unions comply with the Security Guidelines.

You can find the full text of Regulation P here. You can find the sections of the GLBA relevant to consumer financial privacy here.

Associated Risks

Compliance Risk can occur when the credit union fails to implement the necessary controls to comply with Regulation P.

Reputation Risk can occur when members of the credit union learn of its failure to comply with Regulation P.

Examination Objectives