This upcoming Sunday, the people of Venezuela will hold an election that, if legitimate, would put an end to years of the oppressive Maduro narco-regime. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) issued a statement in support of the Venezuelan people: “The...
Este próximo domingo, el pueblo venezolano tendrá una elección que, de ser legítima, pondría fin a años de opresión por parte del narco-régimen de Maduro. El senador estadounidense Marco Rubio (R-FL) grabó un mensaje de video en español y emitió una declaración en...
Twenty-three years ago, the United States was attacked by Islamic terrorists on September 11, 2001. Now, Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in a U.S. court for his role in the attack, has requested the U.S. Department of Justice to allow a prisoner transfer...
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) office will host virtual Mobile Office Hours next week to assist constituents with federal casework issues in their respective local communities. These office hours offer constituents who do not live close to one of Senator Rubio’s...
As the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) opens up new facilities, many veterans are losing access to the VA’s Community Care Program and, consequently, their long-term healthcare providers. Veterans throughout the country have reported a loss of care, including...
The U.S.-India partnership is vital to countering influences from Communist China. In order to strengthen this partnership, it is essential to enhance our strategic diplomatic, economic, and military relationship with New Delhi. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)...
Miami, FL — U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Ben Cardin (D-MD), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Representative Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Small Business, sent a letter to Jovita Carranza, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), asking the agency for a complete accounting with regard to recent reports of a data breach of personally identifiable information for nearly 8,000 businesses that had applied for the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.
“SBA must immediately provide a complete accounting of this incident, including a summary of information about the data breach and how the breach occurred, the number of individuals and firms that may have been affected, when SBA notified those individuals and firms possibly affected, the period of time information was compromised, and what steps SBA has taken to ensure that applicant information is secure going forward,” the Members wrote. “We do not need to emphasize how vulnerable the nation’s small businesses are right now. More than ever, they are counting on SBA to deliver vital assistance in a responsible and competent manner. Please know that Congress stands ready to work with you to prevent future breaches of this kind.”
The full text of the letter .
Dear Administrator Carranza:
We are writing to express serious concern about recent reports in the media that the Small Business Administration (SBA) permitted sensitive, personally identifiable information of thousands of Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applicants to become exposed.
We appreciate that SBA is taking on an unprecedented role in the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic and is rapidly expanding its capacity in real time. As we have worked to address COVID-19, Congress has relied on SBA’s assessment of the resources necessary for this undertaking, providing $675 million for administrative costs in the CARES Act and an additional $2.1 billion in the interim supplemental. The American people deserve a detailed accounting of what policies and procedures SBA has implemented to protect small business owners’ personally identifiable information given the volume and sensitivity of the information the agency now receives.
SBA must immediately provide a complete accounting of this incident, including: a summary of information about the data breach and how the breach occurred; the number of individuals and firms that may have been affected; when SBA notified those individuals and firms possibly affected; the period of time information was compromised; and what steps SBA has taken to ensure that applicant information is secure going forward.
We do not need to emphasize how vulnerable the nation’s small businesses are right now. More than ever, they are counting on SBA to deliver vital assistance in a responsible and competent manner. Please know that Congress stands ready to work with you to prevent future breaches of this kind.
Atentamente,