On Thursday, September 7, 2017, the credit reporting giant Equifax Inc. revealed that “highly sensitive personal and financial information for around 143 million U.S. consumers was compromised in an [ongoing] cybersecurity breach” that started as early as mid-May of 2017.1 According to Equifax, criminals were able to access, among other things, “the social security numbers,…
Tag: cybersecurity
Delaware Courts Should Add Meaning to Caremark’s Board Oversight Standards in the Cybersecurity Context
A prior blog post on corporate governance and cybersecurity mentioned recent high-profile cyberattacks on companies like Sony, Home Depot, Target, and Yahoo, and discussed the growing role the board of directors has in overseeing a corporation’s cybersecurity risk management.1 That blog post ended noting that, given the complexity of cybersecurity, the severe consequences an attack…
Examining the Board’s Oversight Duties in the Cybersecurity Context
Recent high-profile cyberattacks on companies including Sony, Home Depot, Target, and Yahoo underscore how important effective cybersecurity has become to a corporation’s stakeholders, including shareholders and customers. Given the serious threat hacks pose, oversight in this area has become a key duty of the corporation’s board of directors. Yet evidence shows that boards may not…
Issues of Cybersecurity and Issues with Material Adverse Change Provisions
On July 25, 2016, it was announced that Verizon would buy Yahoo for $4.83 billion.1 On September 22, 2016, Yahoo announced that personal data from at least 500 million accounts was stolen back in 2014.2 During a merger and acquisition, both parties undergo an extensive due diligence process. Part of this process does includes the…
Will Information Security Roles Help Women Enter the Corporate Boardroom?
Earlier this year, two major financial institutions appointed women to serve on their Board of Directors based on their cybersecurity expertise. Linda Mills was elected to the board of American Insurance Group in July of 2015, and was also added to the board’s technology committee.1 Before AIG, Mills spent more than a decade at security…