Today, the legal and regulatory walls are breaking down that previously have restricted or limited affiliations between banks, securities firms, and insurance companies.
Electronic commerce can allow corporations to become more efficient and workers more productive.
But this same technology can avail financial services conglomerates of the opportunity to track personal information, compile sophisticated, highly personal consumer profiles of peoples' buying habits, hobbies, financial information, health information, and other data. As a consequence, as our nation moves to allow securities, insurance companies, and banks to affiliate, we must recognize that the resulting conglomerates will have virtually unprecedented access to the most sensitive personal and financial information, and they will be largely free to share this information among the various affiliates or even sell it to others. But it may also facilitate intrusions into personal privacy. These companies will exploit their access to consumer personal information whenever they see a business advantage in doing so. The consequences for consumers can be disastrous.