Cyber Risks For The Boardroom Part 1: The Recent Increase In Focus On Privacy Issues

Each day this week, we are going to explore some of the issues in the rapidly growing area of cyberliability. We will examine the recent increase in focus on privacy issues, why directors should be concerned, the top questions directors should ask when it comes to coverage for cyber investigations, and what kind of cover is available for privacy violations.

Part 1 of 5:  The Recent Increase In Focus on Privacy Issues

Privacy issues have been the focus of many state efforts over the past few years.  However, the SEC has increased their focus tremendously over the past few months (see our blog posts here, here, and here).  As early as October 2011, the SEC had demonstrated an interest in cybersecurity events by releasing guidance concerning public company cybersecurity disclosures. Otherwise, the SEC had remained relatively quiet. Recently, however, SEC involvement in this area has ratcheted up noticeably. On January 9, 2014, the SEC announced that it "will