In the wake of recent notable data breaches, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission issued an interpretive release designed to improve the timeliness and accuracy of public companies’ disclosures of cybersecurity risks and incidents and prevent insider trading.  The SEC’s guidance release and this post raise several issues and concerns that all companies, regardless of size and ownership, need to take seriously to improve their cybersecurity planning and legal compliance.

In a recent post by Bob Loesch, he discussed the difficult topic of how to tell if information should be considered “material” under the federal securities laws. He concluded that if the company would prefer to withhold the information because it is likely to have an adverse effect on…

In a recent post by Bob Loesch, he discussed the difficult topic of how to tell if information should be considered “material” under the federal securities laws. He concluded that if the company would prefer to withhold the information because it is likely to have an adverse effect on the stock price, then it is, practically by definition, material.