The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has asked public companies to disclose any cyber attacks against them. This is the first time the SEC has made such a request.

Following several high-profile cyber attacks, the commission  issued guidelines last week detailing what companies should report in their cyber attack disclosures, including any activity that could lead to financial losses.

“Intellectual property worth billions of dollars has been stolen by cyber criminals, and investors have been kept completely in the dark,” said Senator John Rockefeller, D-W.Va., in a statement. “This guidance changes everything.” Rockefeller had asked the SEC to issue the guidelines as concerns grew among investors regarding the ability to assess security risks if companies failed to mention data breaches in their public filings.

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