Trust is the basis of labor unions and other membership-based organizations. Members provide personal information with the expectation that it will be used responsibly to manage benefits, communications, and representation. However, these organizations are increasingly creating repositories of data that are equivalent to those of financial services companies, but do not provide similar security resources.

Membership-based organizations often create a centralized database housing a member's name, social security number, employment information, and contact information — although most of these organizations do not have dedicated cybersecurity teams or real-time monitoring systems, as do many commercial businesses.

This situation creates an opportunity for cybercriminals. The CSEA Local 1000 data breach exemplifies how organizations that focus on promoting their members' interests may be attractive high-impact targets for cybercriminal activity.

Another challenge is operational complexity. Many large unions serve hundreds of thousands of members spread throughout the country; to coordinate payrolls, administer benefits, and facilitate internal communications, unions utilize many interconnected systems, creating an increase in the total number of potential access points for cybercriminal activities.

A key challenge in protecting member information is the length of time membership information is stored. Many organizations retain member records for decades (or even, in some instances, for hundreds of years) to provide for pensions, seniority, and historical perspectives about the member’s experience with an organization. The length of time that membership information is retained causes a long open exposure to theft or other malicious acts if the organization fails to modernize its systems on a regular basis.

In addition to the financial risks associated with a data breach, an additional consequence of a Membership Association breach is that members may not only lose money, they may feel a loss of trust in the organization that was supposed to represent and protect their interests. Once that trust is lost, rebuilding it can be significantly more difficult than simply restoring the systems that were breached.

As organizations continue to develop online (digital) products and services for members, organizations will need to balance their long-standing mission-based goals with the increasing number and level of current cyber threats to maintain not only the organization's institutional credibility, but also the long-term financial health of their organizational for members.

As unions modernize to meet member expectations, data protection must evolve alongside organizing strategies. Transparency around digital risk, regular system audits, and clearer accountability frameworks are becoming essential—not just to prevent breaches, but to preserve the collective confidence that sustains membership organizations.