Community Bankers of Iowa Monthly Banker Update May 2014 | Page 4

From the Top

Written By: John H. Buhrmaster, Chairman of ICBA

Securing Data Security
It wasn’t too long ago when consumers would
stand at the checkout, open up their wallets,
take out their credit cards, hand it to the
cashier and think nothing of it. Why? Because
why wouldn’t you? You simply swipe the card,
sign and go on your merry way with a few
bags in tow. It was that simple.
Well, it was that simple until news headlines
started surfacing. The story was out—just in
time for the holidays. On Dec. 19, 2013, Target
Corp. announced that approximately 40 million
credit and debit card accounts may have been
impacted between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15. And,
just after the start of the new year on Jan.
10, the Target investigation had determined
that the stolen information included names,
mailing addresses, phone numbers or email
addresses for up to 70 million individuals. And
then the very next day press stories noted that
Neiman Marcus was also involved in a data
breach similar to Target. Would the news ever
end?

“More needs to be done to
protect consumers and the
community banks that serve them
when a data breach occurs.”

Then came the blame game. On Jan. 21,
the National Retail Federation wrote a letter
to Congress placing blame for the data
breaches on the banks. ICBA was the first
to speak out—hitting back with all its might.
In a press statement, ICBA’s President and
CEO Camden Fine said that the NRF should
focus its attention on responding to the harm
that security breaches at several retailers
have done to consumers and their financial

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CBI BANKER UPDATE | MAY 2014

institutions, and that it was the retailers
and their processors—not banks—that are
responsible for the systems in their stores that
process payment cards.
I and other community bankers were glad to
see ICBA waste no time in hitting back. This
data breach was a huge issue for us and
our customers. ICBA estimated in February
that community banks had already reissued
more than four million credit and debit cards
at a total reissuance cost of more than $40
million following recent data breaches at major
retailers. That’s not pocket change. That’s
money that should have gone back into our
communities in the form of loans—not into
reissuing cards.
As a community banker who is passionate
about the payments space, I have made this
issue a priority and will continue to do so
during my tenure as chairman. More needs
to be done to protect consumers and the
community banks that serve them when a data
breach occurs.
While the banking and retail industries have
come together in a partnership to help solve
these critical cybersecurity issues, please
know that ICBA is there every step of the way.
We are at the table. Our goal is your goal—we
want community banks and their customers
to be protected in all of this. And we want
consumers to once again be able to stand at
the checkout line, open their wallets, take out
their cards, and swipe, sign and be on their
way without giving it another thought.
John H. Buhrmaster is Chairman of the ICBA
and President of 1st National Bank of Scotia,
in Scotia, New York.