Forty-four of the 598 inquiries and complaints processed by its ombudsman’s office in 2024 related to data breaches and cyber threats at federally insured credit unions, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) said in releasing the office’s 2024 annual report.
The nine-page report says most of these 44 complaints were from credit union members who were concerned about the privacy of their data and applicable coverage of share insurance if their credit unions were to fail.
The report also notes “higher than usual contacts after a particular credit union experienced a ransomware attack.” After that incident, it said the office referred stakeholders “to pertinent state notification requirements.”
It noted the agency’s contention that “it is not the authoritative source for cyber threat/data breach information and asserts other agencies, such as the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, are responsible for industry-wide communications and response.”
Overall, last year’s 598 complaints and inquiries were up 33% from the 449 processed in 2023. In 2023, inquiries were up 9% from the total 411 processed in 2022.
The report also shows positive response from 94% of those completing the post-examination survey (see more details in the report).
The agency said the report overall highlights information about the ombudsman’s core programs, which inform recommendations the ombudsman makes to the agency board; and details other activities such as engagement with examiners, results from independent review of agency processes, and feedback from the post-exam survey.
A briefing on this report is slated for Thursday’s open NCUA Board meeting, which is set to begin at 10 a.m. Eastern.