State of Massachusetts Fines Broker-Dealer $100,000 for Mishandling Client Data
From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law LLC:
According to a consent order issued by the Massachusetts Securities Division, New Jersey-based Summit Equities has agreed to pay the state $100,000 for failing to supervise four registered agents, who mishandled private client information.
According to Massachusetts, from January 2013 to February 2018, four registered agents entered clients’ personal information into third-party customer relations management systems, which violated the broker-dealer’s privacy and security policies.
In its investigation, Massachusetts asserted that when these registered agents entered clients’ personal information into third-party customer relations management system, Summit Equities lost control and access over the information. The information included Social Security numbers and other personal information. Moreover, when the registered agents left to join other firms, Summit Equities lost complete control over the sensitive client information because it had measures in place to delete client information from agents’ devices but not from third-party systems.
In addition to paying the fine, Summit Equities agreed to take corrective steps to prevent third-party systems from taking control over sensitive client data and agreed to inform all of its clients in Massachusetts about the potential compromise of their private data.
The attorneys of Eccleston Law LLC represent investors and advisors nationwide in securities and employment matters. The securities lawyers at Eccleston Law also practice a variety of other areas of practice for financial investors and advisors including Securities Fraud, Compliance Protection, Breach of Fiduciary Duty, FINRA Matters, and much more. Our attorneys draw on a combined experience of nearly 65 years in delivering the highest quality legal services. If you are in need of legal services, contact us to schedule a one-on-one consultation today.
Related Attorneys: James J. Eccleston
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