Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, what type of information must financial institutions safeguard and protect?

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) is specifically designed to protect the privacy of consumers by requiring financial institutions to safeguard certain types of information. The focus of the GLBA is on non-public personal information (NPI), which encompasses any data that can be used to identify an individual and that is not available to the public.

NPI includes details such as names, addresses, Social Security numbers, financial account information, and transaction histories. The legislation mandates that institutions take appropriate measures to ensure that this sensitive information is secure and not disclosed to unauthorized parties. This is critical in maintaining consumer trust and ensuring the confidentiality of their personal data.

On the other hand, public information is already available to anyone and does not require the same level of protection, while national information and general business information do not specifically pertain to individual consumer privacy concerns in the context of financial institutions. This distinction is crucial in understanding the purpose and requirements of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act regarding consumer data protection.