SEC computers left open to attack

The Securities and Exchange Commission has informed the New York Stock Exchange that computers containing sensitive information belonging to the agency's critical Trading and Markets Division were left open to cyber attack.

There is no evidence that any information was actually compromised, but the thought that the computers left such sensitive information unprotected is disconcerting.

CNBC reports that, "The computers and other electronic devices in question belonged to a handful of employees in an office within the SEC's Trading and Markets Division. That office is responsible for making sure exchanges follow certain guidelines to protect the markets from potential cyber threats and systems problems...Some of the staffers even brought the unprotected devices to a Black Hat convention, a conference where computer hacking experts gather to discuss the latest trends. It is not clear why the staffers brought the devices to the event. The security lapses in the Trading and Markets Division are laid out in a yet-to-be-released report that by the SEC's Interim Inspector General Jon Rymer."

In addition, the agency was said to have spent "at least $200,000 and hire a third-party firm to conduct a thorough analysis to make sure none of the data was compromised."

This raises a big issue: How do companies know that confidential data it provides the SEC will be kept confidential? Unfortunately, it cannot be taken for granted in this day and age.

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