SEC Approves Tamer Stock Audit Trail for Privacy
Published Date: 1/16/2026
Notice
Summary
The big stock market players agreed to share less customer info in the national audit system to keep things safer and simpler. This change affects all major U.S. stock exchanges and trading firms and will roll out soon without extra costs. It’s a smart move to protect investors while keeping the market running smoothly.
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
CAT stops storing customer PII
If you have a brokerage account or are a legal entity reported in the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT), the Plan no longer requires reporting names, addresses, years of birth (YOB), Social Security Numbers/ITINs, or Employer Identification Numbers (EINs) to CAT. The amendment approved by the Commission on January 13, 2026 also requires CAT LLC to direct the Plan Processor to delete previously reported customer data stored in the CAIS/Reference Database.
CCID process codified; TIDs retained
The Commission codified the two‑phase CCID process so CAT will continue to use anonymized customer identifiers (CCIDs) instead of storing individual SSNs/ITINs. The amendment also preserves the retention of intermediate transformed identifiers (TIDs) in a secured CCID Subsystem so CCIDs can be consistently mapped, while limiting access to that subsystem.
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