Final answer:
Under regulations such as the GLBA, affiliates can share certain consumer information without an opt-out option, provided consumers are notified through a privacy notice. Sharing sensitive data generally requires consent or an opt-out offer. The correct option regarding third-party information sharing without opt-out is that the company only needs to notify consumers.
Step-by-step explanation:
When it comes to sharing consumer information among affiliates in the United States, there are specific guidelines set forth by the financial privacy provisions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) as well as other related regulations. These guidelines dictate when and how financial institutions can share personal information with their affiliates as well as non-affiliated third parties.
Under the GLBA, a financial institution can share certain consumer information with its affiliates without offering the consumer the opportunity to opt-out in some scenarios, provided it has informed consumers through a privacy notice. This information can be shared for marketing purposes, among other reasons, but it must pertain to transactional or experiential information - things derived from the consumer's transactions or experiences with the financial institution. For example, if Reliable Credit Services is sharing account numbers among its affiliates, this information could be used by those affiliates to market their own products to the consumer unless the consumer opts out of such information sharing.
Other types of information, such as certain types of non-public personal information, require express consent or an offer of an opt-out to the consumer before they can be shared with affiliates. Furthermore, even with an opt-out option, companies are restricted in how they can share sensitive data such as Social Security numbers or income information.
It's also important to note that keeping consumer information secure and private aligns with broader concerns around privacy and security for businesses, organizations, and governments. The FTC enforces certain rules that require truthful advertising, which in turn can affect how consumer information is handled in marketing.
Therefore, the correct option regarding the sharing of third-party information among affiliates without consumer opt-out would be: c) Reliable Card Services only needs to notify consumers of information sharing.