As the integration of technology in the workplace accelerates, so do the challenges related to privacy, cybersecurity, and the ethical use of artificial intelligence (AI). Human resource professionals and in-house counsel must navigate a rapidly evolving landscape of legal and regulatory requirements. This National Privacy Day, it’s crucial to spotlight emerging issues in workplace technology
DOL Expands Fiduciary Obligations for Cybersecurity to Health and Welfare Plans
A little more than three years ago, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) posted cybersecurity guidance on its website for ERISA plan fiduciaries. That guidance extended only to ERISA-covered retirement plans, despite health and welfare plans facing similar risks to participant data.
Last Friday, the DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issued Compliance Assistance Release
White House Weighs In On the Use of AI by Businesses
On October 3, 2022, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy published its “Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights.” This adds to prior federal guidance released by the EEOC and DOJ regarding the use of AI in employment decisions.
The framework published by the White House is intended to apply
Do Employers Need a CISO for ERISA Compliance?
According to a recent survey, about 45% of companies do not have a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). As West Monroe’s “The Importance of a CISO” observes, it would be terrific for all organizations to have a CISO, but that simply may not be practical for some, particularly smaller organizations. Recent internal
Musings of Retirement Plan Fiduciaries on Cybersecurity: Episode Two
Individuals who serve as a fiduciaries to their company’s retirement plan often feel they may not be sufficiently informed or qualified to make prudent decisions for the plan. They might ask themselves: “How do I know which are prudent investments?” or “What amount of plan fees are ‘reasonable’”? Now, the DOL is requiring plan fiduciaries
DOL Has Started to Audit Compliance with Its Cybersecurity Guidelines
In April, we posted about the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issuing cybersecurity guidance for employee retirement plans. That is, April 14, 2021. Shortly thereafter, the DOL updated its audit inquiries to include probing questions for plan fiduciaries about their compliance with “hot off the press” agency guidelines.
So, what
Musings of Retirement Plan Fiduciaries on Cybersecurity: Episode One
By now, plan fiduciaries and their service providers likely have heard about the DOL’s cybersecurity guidance. The Department of Labor’s stepping into cybersecurity in this way – a posting of best practices on the agency’s website – has left plan fiduciaries with some questions. Here are a few:
- “When is this effective?”
- “Does this
Developing a Privacy and Cybersecurity Training Program for Employees
Increased remote work due to the COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated privacy and cybersecurity concerns, and likely has not changed the finding in Experian’s 2015 Second Annual Data Breach Industry Forecast:
Employees and negligence are the leading cause of security incidents but remain the least reported issue.
A more recent state of the industry
DOL Issues Cybersecurity Best Practices for ERISA Covered Retirement Plans
Today, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issued much anticipated cybersecurity guidance for employee retirement plans. This comes more than four and a half years after the ERISA Advisory Council, a 15-member body appointed by the Secretary of Labor to provide guidance on employee benefit plans, shared with the federal
Could This Be Your Retirement Plan?
As reported by CBC, B.C. Pension Corporation announced a data breach involving pension plan records after discovering a box containing microfiche could not be found following a recent office move. The box contained personal information (names, social insurance numbers and dates of birth) on approximately 8,000 pension plan participants. The company employed those participants