Office of Thrift Supervision

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FOR RELEASE at 10:00 A.M. EDT

 

For further information

 

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

 

Contact: Erin Hickman

 

 

OTS 05-48

 

202/906-6677

 

 
Joint Release

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Office of Thrift Supervision

Federal Bank and Thrift Regulatory Agencies Publish Guide to Help Financial Institutions Comply with Information Security Guidelines

The federal bank and thrift regulatory agencies today announced the publication of a compliance guide for the Interagency Guidelines Establishing Information Security Standards (Security Guidelines). The compliance guide summarizes the obligations of financial institutions to protect customer information and illustrates how certain provisions of the Security Guidelines apply to specific situations.

The compliance guide provides detailed explanations of the core terms used in the Security Guidelines as well as information to help financial institutions assess risks, design and implement an information security program, properly dispose of customer and consumer information, respond to incidents of unauthorized access to customer information, and oversee service providers that have access to customer information. The compliance guide also lists resources that may be helpful in assessing risks and designing and implementing information security programs.

The compliance guide is not a substitute for the Security Guidelines. The compliance guide addresses only a financial institution’s obligations under the Security Guidelines and does not address the applicability of any other federal or state laws or regulations that may pertain to policies or practices for protecting customer records and information.

A copy of the compliance guide is attached. The guide is also available on the websites of the sponsoring agencies: the Federal Reserve Board; Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Office of the Comptroller of the Currency; and Office of Thrift Supervision.

AttachmentPDF Document<

Media Contacts:
Federal ReserveSusan Stawick(202)  452-2955
FDICDavid Barr(202)  898-6992
OCC Dean DeBuck (202)  874-5770
OTSErin Hickman(202)  906-6913

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The Office of Thrift Supervision, an office of the Department of the Treasury, regulates and supervises the nation's thrift industry. OTS's mission is to ensure the safety and soundness of, and compliance with consumer protection laws by, thrift institutions, and to support their role as home mortgage lenders and providers of other community credit and financial services. OTS also oversees the activities and operations of thrift holding companies that own or control thrift institutions. Copies of OTS news releases and other documents are available at the OTS web page at www.ots.treas.gov.