Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) teamed up tointroduce the Data Security Act of 2014 on Wednesday, which wouldcreate consistent national rules for public and privateinstitutions to follow to safeguard consumers' sensitiveinformation.

The bill would require entities, including financialinstitutions, retailers and federal agencies, to investigate securitybreaches and inform consumers when they are at risk of identitytheft or fraud. If passed and signed into law, the bill wouldreplace existing state laws with a set of national standards.

“These new requirements would apply to businesses that takecredit or debit card information, data brokers that compile privateinformation, and government agencies that possess nonpublicpersonal information,” said a press release issued by Carper'soffice.

“Today, 49 states and U.S. territories have enacted lawsgoverning data security and data breach notification standards.Inconsistent and conflicting state-by-state standards force publicand private entities to comply with multiple regulations, leavingmany consumers in a confusing web of regulation depending on thestate,” said the release.

Carper said the Target and Neiman Marcus incidents show that data breaches arebecoming more common.

Read more about the Target databreach:

• Target Confirms POS Malware
• PCI Standard Losing Ground: Data Security Exec
• Hensarling Rep Mum on Hearings
• TargetingTarget: Alabama State Employees CU Files Suit

“For millions of Americans, data breaches can cause worry andconfusion and, in some cases, serious financial harm. We cannotallow technology advances to outpace the security measures in placeto safeguard the transactions we conduct in person and online,”said Carper, the chairman of the Homeland Security and GovernmentalAffairs Committee, in the release.

“This bipartisan and comprehensive approach would better serveconsumers by ensuring that businesses and government agencies takethe steps necessary to secure personal and financial informationand respond swiftly and effectively in the unfortunate event of abreach.”

Blunt said new technologies pose new opportunities, which alsobring new security challenges.

“As recent headlines have once again reminded us, now is thetime to strengthen our nation's data security and defend consumersagainst data breaches by both businesses and government agencies,”said Blunt in a release. “I'm glad to work with Senator Carperagain as we continue our bipartisan effort to create consistent,national standards to better protect consumers and businesses fromidentity theft and account fraud.”

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) recently reintroduced a separate data securitybill called the Personal Data Privacy and Security Act in the wakeof the Target breach.