Owing largely to heavy-handed federal rules, identity thieves have had a field day targeting banking consumers. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s very-much-in-flux Section 1033 “open banking” rule was promoted by the Biden administration as a modernization of the financial system, but in reality, made everyone’s data less secure.

The rule compelled banks to give third-party data aggregators access to consumers’ financial information at no cost, with few limits on how frequently that data could be accessed or how it might ultimately be used. By mandating these data-sharing arrangements, the CFPB overlooked significant consumer privacy and security concerns and saddled banks with extensive compliance obligations.