President Trump's new acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, has issued an order to indefinitely halt "all rulemaking, communications, litigation, and other activities" at the agency. This decision is seen as a significant threat to efforts aimed at protecting consumer privacy.
Alexandra Reeve Givens, president and CEO of the Center for Democracy & Technology, emphasized the importance of the CFPB's role in safeguarding against harmful impacts from the data broker industry. She stated, "When Americans’ private data, like Social Security numbers, banking history, and location and health data, gets sold to the highest bidder, consumers are more likely to be targeted with predatory offers for loans and other financial services. They’re also more likely to be doxed or face identity theft. That’s exactly the kind of harm CFPB should be preventing."
Reeve Givens also highlighted recent actions by President Trump that involved firing Democrat commissioners on several boards including the National Labor Relations Board and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She noted these actions have left agencies without a quorum necessary for further work.
“Today’s action is part of a broader effort to knee-cap key federal agencies that challenge unethical, predatory and illegal practices that affect people’s daily lives,” Reeve Givens added. “These attacks on bipartisan independent agencies will have devastating impacts for workers and consumers across the country and the political spectrum.”
The CFPB serves as a primary consumer protection agency within the financial sector. It was engaged in rulemaking processes concerning unethical behavior by data brokers and protections for consumers using online payment systems before today's order interrupted these initiatives.
Previously, CFPB had imposed open banking standards facilitating data sharing between banks to foster competition while maintaining consumer privacy. The agency had also addressed employer obligations under worker surveillance technology rules according to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Additionally, it drew attention to extensive data collection in video games affecting children and parents.
