Red Flags Enforcement Delayed Again

The Federal Trade Commission announced that it will, again, delay enforcement of the Red Flags Rule - this time until August 1, 2009 - "to give creditors and financial institutions more time to develop and implement written identity theft prevention programs."

According to FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz, “Given the ongoing debate about whether Congress wrote this provision too broadly, delaying enforcement of the Red Flags Rule will allow industries and associations to share guidance with their members, provide low-risk entities an opportunity to use the template in developing their programs, and give Congress time to consider the issue further.”

"The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA) directed financial regulatory agencies, including the FTC, to promulgate rules requiring “creditors” and “financial institutions” with covered accounts to implement programs to identify, detect, and respond to patterns, practices, or specific activities that could indicate identity theft. " The result was the Red Flags Rule.

The FTC originally slated enforcement to commence November 1, 2008. That was pushed off to May 1, 2009. And now, enforcement has been pushed off again to August 1, 2009.