Rockefeller hints Snapchat ‘hiding something’

Social networking app Snapchat turned down an invitation to testify at the Senate Commerce Committee’s hearing on data breaches.

During Wednesday’s hearing, Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) said his panel invited the social messaging service to testify but the invitation was declined.

{mosads}Last year, Snapchat was made aware of a security vulnerability that would allow attackers to create a database of all Snapchat users and their corresponding phone numbers.

Rockefeller said Wednesday he wanted the company to testify about its experience with data security vulnerabilities.

“When people refuse to testify in front of this committee, my instincts … are that they’re hiding something,” he said.

In a statement, the company said it provided some information to the committee prior to the hearing.

“While a representative from Snapchat was not able to testify, we did cooperate fully with the committee and its staff,” the company said. “We provided information in advance of the hearing and we are committed to continuing that dialogue.”

Recent high-profile data security issues — including Snapchat’s and last year’s data breach at Target, which put at risk the financial and personal information of tens of millions of the retailer’s customers — have raised concern among lawmakers.

The Senate Commerce Committee hearing Wednesday included testimony from Target’s Chief Financial Officer John Mulligan and followed on the heels of a committee report showing that Target missed multiple opportunities to prevent last year’s data breach.

Earlier this year, Rockefeller introduced legislation that would allow the Federal Trade Commission to set and enforce data security standards.