Adrienne Harris nominated as Superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services

On August 31, 2021, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced that Adrienne Harris has been nominated as the next Superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services. Ms. Harris began her career at Sullivan and Cromwell LLP and later worked for the United States Department of the Treasury under President Obama. She then joined the Obama White House as a Special Assistant to the President at the National Economic Council. Throughout her tenure at the Department of the Treasury and the White House, Ms. Harris executed initiatives for the advancement of financial technology and cybersecurity. 

As Superintendent of DFS, Ms. Harris will lead an agency at the forefront of national cybersecurity policy and regulation. DFS’s Cybersecurity Regulation has served as a model for other regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission, multiple states, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. The Cybersecurity Regulation became effective in March 2017, with additional implementation time for certain provisions that became fully effective in March 2019. In 2021, DFS enforcement efforts have resulted in settlements with mortgage lenders and insurance companies for breaches of the Cybersecurity Regulation, including by failing to report cybersecurity breaches and failing to implement Multi-Factor Authentication. 

Jose Fernandez is an associate in Thompson Coburn's New York Office. Jim Shreve is the chair of Thompson Coburn's Cybersecurity group and has advised clients on cybersecurity and privacy issues for over 20 years. Luke Sosnicki is a Los Angeles partner in Thompson Coburn’s Business Litigation group who has written and spoken extensively about data privacy litigation and regulatory risks.