[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 149 (Thursday, September 14, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5730-S5731]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



               Data Breaches in Credit Reporting Agencies

  Mr. President, last week, 143 million Americans--in essence, half of 
our country--had their personal information exposed through no fault of 
their own. We are talking about names, dates of birth, Social Security 
numbers, addresses, and probably much more.
  Equifax, one of three huge data collection companies in our country, 
makes their money off of this information, and they failed to protect 
it.
  If a student at Bowling Green, in Northwest Ohio, or a homeowner in 
Springfield, OH, fails to make that monthly payment for her student 
loan debt or for their home mortgage, Equifax dings them on their 
credit report. Yet Equifax, even after last year when they allowed the 
breach of 400,000 employees of an Ohio company, Kroger--one of our best 
companies domiciled in Ohio--they just don't seem accountable when that 
happens. This is the worst example, so far, that we have seen.
  I spoke yesterday on the phone with Bill of Hamilton, OH, who is one 
of those 143 million Americans whose personal data was exposed to 
criminals, to somebody who can use this information, use this data, on 
literally up to 143 million Americans. Bill and his wife are retired. 
They have worked hard to pay their bills. They have excellent credit. 
He went to the Equifax website after this happened and discovered his 
information may have been breached.
  He talked about how worried he was. He talked about, after all his 
family's hard work, after years of following the rules, that someone 
could get access to his personal information and shred his credit 
history.
  This is a company whose job it is to gather this data and to protect 
this data, and they failed, without being held accountable.
  I am worried for folks in Ohio like Bill.
  I am really worried for servicemembers around this country whose 
private information might be compromised. The servicemember's credit 
history isn't just important when they want to buy a home or open up a 
new credit card. For a servicemember, a credit history damaged by 
hackers could mean losing their security clearance and maybe their job 
along with it. These patriotic men and women move around the country, 
around the world. They are not especially well paid. Their families 
rely on good credit to get housing and jobs wherever our military 
chooses to send them.
  Life for military families is stressful enough. I know that from Ray 
Patterson Air Force Base, one of the most important Air Force Bases in 
this country, near Dayton. I know that from meeting with these 
families. I know that when I see the kinds of consumer protections the 
Federal consumer bureau has provided to these servicemembers. So often 
financial companies try to prey on these servicemembers who, as I said, 
are not paid well. Maybe a servicemember is deployed overseas and the 
family struggles at home without one of their parents being present and 
with the generally low income they make. They sacrifice enough without 
them also having to worry about credit corporations and this company's 
breach putting them at risk.
  That is why I filed an amendment to the NDAA that would provide 
servicemembers with crucial consumer protections. First, the bill 
requires credit reporting agencies such as Equifax, TransUnion and 
Experian, the three big companies, to implement a cost-free and 
convenient way for all servicemembers to be able to lock down their 
credit reports if they think they are at risk.
  While credit freezes are currently available in some States, there is 
no national standard. There are often charges for starting and stopping 
a freeze, and it can be hard to figure out whom they should even 
contact. This amendment would create a standard simple and free process 
for servicemembers to protect their credit histories.
  There is so much more in this bill that will matter to 
servicemembers. We have an opportunity right now to move quickly to 
make sure this breach does not put our military men and women at risk.

[[Page S5731]]

  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Perdue). The question is, Will the Senate 
advise and consent to the Patenaude nomination?
  Mr. BROWN. I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There appears to be a sufficient second.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk called the roll.
  Mr. CORNYN. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator 
from Florida (Mr. Rubio).
  Further, if present and voting, the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio) 
would have voted ``yea''.
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. 
Menendez) and the Senator from Florida (Mr. Nelson) are necessarily 
absent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. (Mr. Cassidy). Are there any other Senators in 
the chamber desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 80, nays 17, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 196 Ex.]

                                YEAS--80

     Alexander
     Baldwin
     Barrasso
     Bennet
     Blunt
     Boozman
     Burr
     Cantwell
     Capito
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Cassidy
     Cochran
     Collins
     Coons
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Cortez Masto
     Cotton
     Crapo
     Cruz
     Daines
     Donnelly
     Durbin
     Enzi
     Ernst
     Feinstein
     Fischer
     Flake
     Franken
     Gardner
     Graham
     Grassley
     Hassan
     Hatch
     Heitkamp
     Heller
     Hoeven
     Inhofe
     Isakson
     Johnson
     Kaine
     Kennedy
     King
     Klobuchar
     Lankford
     Leahy
     Lee
     Manchin
     McCain
     McCaskill
     McConnell
     Moran
     Murkowski
     Murphy
     Murray
     Paul
     Perdue
     Peters
     Portman
     Reed
     Risch
     Roberts
     Rounds
     Sasse
     Scott
     Shaheen
     Shelby
     Stabenow
     Strange
     Sullivan
     Tester
     Thune
     Tillis
     Toomey
     Van Hollen
     Warner
     Wicker
     Young

                                NAYS--17

     Blumenthal
     Booker
     Brown
     Duckworth
     Gillibrand
     Harris
     Heinrich
     Hirono
     Markey
     Merkley
     Sanders
     Schatz
     Schumer
     Udall
     Warren
     Whitehouse
     Wyden

                             NOT VOTING--3

     Menendez
     Nelson
     Rubio
  The nomination was confirmed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motion to 
reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table and the President 
will be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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