Voters Want Washington to Ensure Open Banking Comes with Guardrails

The Trump administration has the opportunity to put consumers back in control, hold every company that accesses financial data to the same high standards as banks and require data middlemen to help pay the cost of keeping that data secure.

Who’s looking at my data?

Voters are worried about who can access their bank data.

Nearly three-quarters of likely voters say they are concerned about personal information, including account numbers, balances and transaction data, being accessed, transmitted or sold without their specific approval.

Less security? Count me

Voters want consumer control without weakening data security.

The survey shows that voters support data sharing when consumers are in control and all companies are held to clear, high security and accountability standards. They want a system that ensures that every company handling sensitive information is held to a strong security standard.

Data middlemen, who?

Voters are largely unaware of he role played by data middlemen.

A majority of likely voters say they were not aware that many popular apps and online retailers use third-party services known as data middlemen to process transactions, check account balances and power personal financial management apps.

Same data. Same rules.

Bank-level security is the strongest policy demand.

Nearly 9 in 10 voters say any company with access to financial data should be required to meet the same high standard financial instituations must meet in safeguarding financial information.

No free rides for middlemen.

Voters believe every company using financial data should help keep it secure.

More than 8 in 10 likely voters say every company that accesses or uses financial data should take on its share of cost of keeping that information secure.

Consumers hold the keys.

The public expects accountability from every company in the financial data chain.

The central finding is clear: voters believe sensitive financial information should not be subject to open-ended access by companies they barely know. Consumer should be able to grant permission, revoke permission and trust that every company handling their data is helping keep it safe.