ASA: CCP Breach of Federal Reserve and Federal Agencies Underscores the Danger Posed by the SEC's Consolidated Audit Trail

WASHINGTON – The American Securities Association (ASA) today responded to the Justice Department's announcement that it seized domains used by a People's Republic of China state-sponsored hacking group that breached the Federal Reserve, NASA, the Department of Energy, the Department of Justice, the National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Senate.

"This is another stark reminder that the Chinese Communist Party is an adversary actively targeting America's most sensitive institutions," said ASA President and CEO Chris Iacovella. "If the Federal Reserve or the Justice Department can be breached by these criminals, then the SEC's national registry, or CAT, which collects the personal and financial information of every American who owns a share of stock is also a sitting duck."

ASA called on the SEC to require the CAT LLC to confirm whether the CAT or any of its systems were affected by the intrusion campaign, and to disclose what steps it has taken to determine whether investor data was accessed or compromised.

The CAT collects personally identifiable information and complete transaction records for every investor in the U.S. equity and options markets. This intrusive surveillance system can be accessed by up to 3,000 simultaneous users, including Commission staff, self-regulatory organization employees, plan processor personnel, contractors, and vendors.

ASA has repeatedly warned that the CAT represents an irresistible target for foreign adversaries. CCP-backed actors previously stole 22 million records from the Office of Personnel Management and breached the U.S. Treasury. The SEC's own Office of Inspector General reported earlier this year that a former employee improperly accessed and shared nonpublic information.

ASA has urged the Commission to eliminate the collection of retail investor personally identifiable information, end the use of the Customer and Account Identifier, and move the CAT onto the SEC's budget so Congress has direct oversight of its costs, its data, and who can access it. ASA also supports the Protecting Investors' Personally Identifiable Information Act.

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The American Securities Association (ASA) represents the retail and institutional capital markets interests of regional financial services firms who provide Main Street businesses with access to capital and advise hardworking Americans how to create and preserve wealth. ASA’s mission is to promote trust and confidence among investors, facilitate capital formation, and support efficient and competitively balanced capital markets. This mission advances financial independence, stimulates job creation, and increases prosperity. The ASA has a geographically diverse membership of almost one hundred members that spans the Heartland, Southwest, Southeast, Atlantic, and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States.