Data privacy has been a major agenda item for both corporations and the government in the last five years. The protection of online data has become an increasingly important issue for Senators who seek to provide reassurance and security for their constituents. HSBC is the latest major corporation to announce a data security breach, with the company revealing this week that up to 1% of its U.S. customers were victims of hacking.

New Legislation Forced HSBC To Announce Breach Almost Immediately

HSBC, which has its head office based in the United Kingdom, is bound by European Union General Data Protection Regulation law (GDPR). The law, which became effective in May of this year, requires that companies publicly disclose data breaches within 72 hours of discovering them. Those that do not comply with the law can be subject to fines of up to 4% of their global revenue.

Although there is no equivalent law in the U.S., HSBC is still obligated to comply with E.U. regulations.

The bank told BBC News that “HSBC regrets this incident, and we take our responsibility for protecting our customers very seriously. We have notified those customers whose accounts may have experienced unauthorized access and are offering them one year of credit monitoring and identity theft protection service.”

The breach included complete customer names, addresses, email addresses, dates of birth, account types, balances, transaction histories, statements, and phone numbers. Essentially, every single detail necessary to commit fraud through identity theft.

HSBC has notified all customers confirmed or suspected to be impacted by the breach and has also advised all customers to change their banking passwords. The bank also gave practical advice for monitoring transactions and spotting fraudulent activity.

Leak May Strengthen the Movement for Data Security Laws in the United States

The E.U. was the first legislative organization to implement widespread data privacy regulations suited to an increasingly connected world. While there are various laws in the U.S. that aim to protect consumers from fraud, there is nothing as wide ranging or with as much legal power as the GDPR.

With senate and house positions now confirmed from the midterm elections, privacy and online data security could become a hot topic with lawmakers in the coming months.