Big SEC fines for off-channel app messaging shows employee risks

Tracking risk of employee behaviors–like off-channel messaging–is a part of Know Your World (KYW)

Knowing your customer may be a cornerstone of Risk in Governance, Risk, and Compliance, but KYW—Know Your World—is important, too. That was evident yet again in late September when the SEC announced nearly $2 billion in fines for Wall Street firms that allowed—and sometimes encouraged—their staff to use off-channel messaging apps on their personal phones for work-related messaging. And some managers encouraged their team members to delete messages.

After extensive investigations, the SEC determined that certain institutions were either failing to monitor off-channel messaging or else were openly encouraging it. Federal law related to Compliance requires all work-related communications be a part of record-keeping available for examination.

The SEC has noted that these types of off-channel communications on personal devices can hinder official investigations and regulatory monitoring of activities of financial institutions.

The SEC requires bank employees to conduct work-related communications within official channels, and it requires that records of those communications be maintained and the messaging preserved, according to SEC chairperson Gary Gensler.

While banks have systems in place to preserve in-house emails, employees who leverage messaging technologies on personal devices make monitoring and preservation of messages more difficult. But institutions fined by the SEC in these investigations agreed to review their policies and procedures related to identifying and preserving any work-related messaging on the personal devices of employees.


Logo for RegTech One--RegTech Platform for AML/KYC and GRC

Governance, Risk, and Compliance: Software solutions that transform results, costs, and efficiency

With AML Partners’ platform technology for RegTech, updating and upgrading your AML and eGRC software solutions is easier, faster, and much less expensive. Contact us today to explore how platform technology and our end-to-end AML Ecosystem powered by the RegTechONE platform–can transform the efficiency and effectiveness of your unique AML Compliance efforts. RegTechONE software for AML Compliance includes fully integrated modules for CDD KYC software for on-boardingbehavior and transaction monitoring software, and sanctions screening software for comprehensive AML screening. And AML Partners simplifies your end-to-end fully integrated AML Compliance efforts even further with an optional Subpoena Search module for FinCEN 314a and similar subpoena searches. Contact us today to learn about our proof-of-concept option or schedule a demo of RegTechONE, the AML software ecosystem. With extraordinary configurability and built for API extensibility, the RegTechONE AML software platformpowers not only an end-to-end AML software solution but also vendor managementAML client lifecycle managementeKYC Golden RecordsPerpetual KYC, and so much more.

Start achieving more today.

We are so confident in the power of RegTechONE to transform your GRC and AML Compliance solutions that we will prove it to you. Contact us today to experience all the ways that RegTechONE is The Power of Everything.

AML Partners logo/wordmark in white

347 Village Street
Concord, NH USA 03303

Copyright © 2024 AML Partners. All rights reserved.