Wall Street’s top regulator came under fire on Thursday about its cyber security and disclosure practices after admitting hackers had breached its database of corporate announcements in 2016 and may have used it for insider trading.
The incursion at the Securities and Exchange Commission struck at the heart of the U.S. financial system. The SEC’s EDGAR filing system houses market-moving information with millions of corporate filings ranging from quarterly earnings to statements on acquisitions.
The SEC said on Wednesday evening it had discovered last month that cyber criminals may have used a hack detected in 2016 to make illicit trades.
SEC Chairman Jay Clayton gave members of Congress a “courtesy call” about the hack on Wednesday afternoon before it was announced publicly, said Rep. Bill Huizenga, chairman of the U.S. House subcommittee that oversees the SEC.
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