Five major breaches since October 30 have put the personally identifiable information (PII) of taxpayers at risk, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) told Congress on Monday, according to the Washington Post.
Each instance was blamed on insiders who, when leaving the agency, took corporate files with them. In affidavits, those involved testified they did not share the information.
The cases were reported only because of requirements that mandate that the FDIC – which provides banks with deposit insurance – disclose any breach exceeding 10,000 records.
The FDIC reported that it has stepped up security measures, including prohibitions on the use of removable media devices by the majority of its employees and the implementation of software “to force encryption of portable devices." The agency also will hire a contractor to conduct an IT security assessment and offer best practices.
