Utah Attorney General Sean D. Reyes joined attorneys general from six other states in submitting a letter urging U.S. Congress leaders to support legislation to protect investors’ privacy.
The letter supports S. 2230/H.R. 4551, the Protecting Investors’ Personally Identifiable Information Act. This legislation would protect investors against the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT), which collects and stores information on every investment trade.
The need for legislation to protect Americans’ privacy from the CAT is clear. The CAT is a comprehensive surveillance database that stores every equity and option trade made by any investor. It subjects every person with money in the stock market to constant surveillance of their financial actions without suspicion of wrongdoing. The collection of retail investors’ PII is unwarranted and raises serious constitutional concerns.
The CAT is also a prime target for cyber thieves both at home and abroad due to its sheer size.
Congress must act on this issue since Americans with money in the stock market will be treated as presumed wrongdoers by the CAT, putting their personal information at risk. Congress never authorized the SEC to create a massive surveillance program, so it is up to them to stop it.
Other states joining the letter include Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, South Carolina, and West Virginia.
Read the letter here.
