On July 25, 2019, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the Stop Hacks and Improve Electronic Data Security (SHIELD) Act (S.5575B/A.5635), which significantly increases obligations for businesses handling private data to notify affected consumers upon experiencing a security breach. Additionally, Governor Cuomo signed the Identity Theft Prevention and Mitigating Services Act (A.2374/S.3582), requiring consumer credit reporting agencies to offer identity theft prevention and mitigation services to consumers who have been affected by a security breach of the agency’s system.
In an official press release announcing his signature on both pieces of legislation, the Governor emphasized the significance of implementing such laws to protect New Yorkers against security breaches. Citing a recent significant data breach, Cuomo noted that “[a]s technology seeps into practically every aspect of our daily lives, it is increasingly critical that we do everything we can to ensure the information that companies are trusted with is secure . . . [t]he stark reality is security breaches are becoming more frequent and with this legislation New York is taking steps to increase protections for consumers and holding these companies accountable when they mishandle sensitive data.”