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CALIFORNIA FINANCIAL INFORMATION PRIVACY ACT - Consumer Information
What is the law?
Effective July 1, 2004, financial institutions must obtain your consent before they may share, disclose, or sell your nonpublic personal information.
A financial institution may not share, disclose or sell your information to another business without your express written consent ("opt-in").
A financial institution may not share, disclose or sell your information to a business affiliated with the financial institution unless the financial institution provides you the opportunity to "opt-out," or direct the financial institution not to share your information. If you do not provide any direction to the financial institution, it may then share or disclose your information to its affiliates.
For more information, see the Office of Privacy Protection's publication "Your Privacy Rights."
How do I stop the disclosure of my financial information?
Before a financial institution may share your information with an affiliated company, the financial institution must provide you with a form that you may fill out to direct the financial institution not to share your information.
A financial institution may not share your information to a nonaffiliated company without your written consent. Therefore, you need not take any action to stop the sharing of your information with these companies.
If I direct my financial institution not to disclose or share my financial information, and I discover the information has been shared, what can I do?
If you believe your financial institution has shared, disclosed, or sold your information in violation of the law, you may file a complaint with the Department of Corporations by calling our Consumer Services Office toll-free at 1-866-ASK-CORP (1-866-275-2677) or you may file a written complaint.
Note: On October 5, 2005, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California permanently enjoined enforcement of the affiliate sharing provisions of Senate Bill 1 (the California Financial Information Privacy Act), ruling that the provisions are preempted by federal law, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).