Financial

Financial data reveals personal details about your life, from spending habits to your financial health. Yet this information is regularly shared among financial institutions, data brokers, and credit agencies—often without your direct knowledge or meaningful consent.

Protecting Your Financial Information and Your Rights

Financial privacy is about your fundamental right to control who can access, use, or share your sensitive financial information. Banks, lenders, credit bureaus, and marketers handle your financial data daily, often in ways you might not realize or explicitly approve. Understanding your rights under federal laws like the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, as well as state laws like California’s Consumer Privacy Act, can help you manage and minimize these risks.

Below you will find resources to help you understand your rights, limit when your data is shared, reduce fraud, and respond when your rights are compromised.

What You Need to Know

Financial institutions, including banks, credit unions, credit bureaus, payment processors, and data brokers regularly access your financial information for various reasons such as lending decisions, credit evaluations, marketing campaigns, risk assessments, and fraud prevention. Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), these institutions must clearly disclose their data-sharing practices to you, including how they use your information and with whom they share it.

You have specific rights under GLBA to opt out of data sharing with non-affiliated third parties. This empowers you to limit how your financial information is circulated, although some data sharing, such as that needed for account maintenance or compliance purposes, remains permitted.

Yes, somewhat. Federal law—specifically the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA)—provides you with the right to opt out of certain types of data sharing, particularly with non-affiliated third parties. Financial institutions must inform you of their data-sharing practices annually and provide clear instructions for opting out.

California residents have stronger protections under state law. The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) gives consumers broader rights to opt out of both the sale and sharing of personal information, which includes financial details. These state-level protections offer additional control over how your financial data is used.

You have the right to access free credit reports weekly from the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. The Fair Credit Reporting Act also gives you the right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information, with credit bureaus required to investigate and correct any errors promptly.

California law provides additional protections, allowing residents to freeze and unfreeze their credit reports free of charge, at any time, without restrictions. This enables Californians to proactively guard against identity theft and unauthorized credit activities more effectively.

If you detect unauthorized activity, immediately notify your financial institution to leverage protections under federal laws like the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA), which limits your liability if you promptly report unauthorized electronic transactions. Additionally, placing fraud alerts or credit freezes with major credit bureaus can help prevent further misuse of your information.

If fraud or identity theft occurs, you have the right to file a detailed report with the Federal Trade Commission through IdentityTheft.gov, providing official documentation and personalized guidance for recovery. California residents also have the additional right to file a police report, enhancing their legal protections.

If your financial information is compromised, federal agencies such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) offer valuable assistance through complaint mechanisms, consumer guidance, and intervention capabilities. IdentityTheft.gov provides specialized tools and resources to aid victims of identity theft and financial fraud.

State-level agencies, particularly in California, offer additional resources through consumer protection offices, providing targeted support to ensure that your financial privacy rights are upheld and privacy violations are effectively addressed.