Nations Holding, a real estate company operating in 44 states, must improve its information security practices and submit to biennial security audits for the next 20 years under a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.The FTC charged that the company had allowed a common Web attack to compromise customer data, and that its Nations Title Agency (NTA) subsidiary had disposed of home-loan applications containing customers’ personal data in a public Dumpster.The resolution is similar to those of several cases the FTC has settled in the past couple of years, including cases against DSW, a footwear retailer, and BJ’s Wholesale Club, in which customer data was compromised. Data broker ChoicePoint received an even stiffer penalty in January—a $15 million fine—partly because it failed to tighten its procedures after law enforcement alerted the company to fraudulent activity.“Data security has been surprisingly lax at a number of companies,” said FTC Chairwoman Deborah Platt Majoras in a recent speech, adding that the agency looks for “reasonableness, not perfection” in company security practices. “The cases we’re bringing have not been close calls,” she said. Nations Holding and NTA obtain personal consumer information, including names, Social Security numbers and credit histories to provide home purchasing services such as appraisals and title insurance.Among the company’s security lapses, the FTC said, were the failure to implement “simple, low-cost, readily available” defenses to common website attacks and the failure to implement “reasonable” policies in key areas such as employee screening and training or the handling of personal data. The FTC said that in April 2004, a hacker used a common Web attack to gain access to Nations Holding’s computer network. The agency did not specify the type of attack. In addition, the FTC said, in February 2005, a Kansas City TV station found paperwork containing customers’ personal information in a Dumpster ¿outside the building. Related content brandpost Sponsored by SAP What goes well with Viña Concha y Toro wines? Meat, fish, poultry, and SAP Viña Concha y Toro, a wine producer that distributes to more than 140 countries worldwide, paired its operation with the SAP Business Technology Platform to enhance its operation and product. By Tom Caldecott, SAP Contributor Dec 04, 2023 4 mins Digital Transformation brandpost Sponsored by Azul How to maximize ROI by choosing the right Java partner for your organization Choosing the right Java provider is a critical decision that can have a significant impact on your organization’s success. By asking the right questions and considering the total cost of ownership, you can ensure that you choose the best Java p By Scott Sellers Dec 04, 2023 5 mins Application Management brandpost Sponsored by DataStax Ask yourself: How can genAI put your content to work? Generative AI applications can readily be built against the documents, emails, meeting transcripts, and other content that knowledge workers produce as a matter of course. By Bryan Kirschner Dec 04, 2023 5 mins Machine Learning Artificial Intelligence feature The CIO’s new role: Orchestrator-in-chief CIOs have unique insight into everything that happens in a company. Some are using that insight to take on a more strategic role. By Minda Zetlin Dec 04, 2023 12 mins CIO C-Suite Business IT Alignment Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe