Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) released the following statement today in response to a year-old data breach at Uber that exposed information about 57 million customers and was not made public by the company until yesterday:
“Uber’s failures to protect consumer information and to disclose the breach for more than a year left 57 million riders and drivers at an increased risk. The security breach shows a sloppy approach by the company to protecting consumer data, and demonstrates a severe breach of trust with the public, its own employees and regulators who it failed to notify in a timely manner. If Uber did indeed secretly pay-off the hackers to keep the breach quiet, then a possible cover up of the incident is problematic and must be investigated.
“The unending barrage of breaches shows that the current system is not working for consumers. The Federal Trade Commission must immediately begin an investigation into both the breach itself and the company’s outrageous delay in disclosing the breach. As the Committee with jurisdiction over cyber matters such as this, I believe Uber needs to testify before the Committee to explain not only what data was disclosed in this incident, but also why the company chose to hide this incident for so long from the public and regulators. Congress can and should take action now to pass legislation that makes companies more accountable and provides meaningful protections for consumers."
