The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has highlighted new guidance from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) clarifying how financial institutions can share information regarding suspected fraud under Section 314(b) of the USA PATRIOT Act.
FinCEN’s updated Section 314(b) Fact Sheet provides a safe harbor, protecting institutions from liability when sharing data to improve the identification and reporting of money laundering or terrorist activities. This guidance now explicitly extends to suspected fraud, supporting the administration’s whole-of-government efforts to combat such illicit activities.
The clarifications allow financial institutions to share information about suspected fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, or other unlawful activities with any other eligible participant. Examples of shareable data include video surveillance footage, cyber-related data like IP addresses, and fraud indicators such as newly added payees followed by large transfers or login activity from geographically distant places.
A registered institution can share information even if it has no reason to believe the data relates to a specific customer, account, or transaction of the receiving institution. The OCC remains committed to addressing fraudulent activities and continues to encourage banks, including community banks, to voluntarily participate in this program.