Content provided by Michael Forker, CLS Compliance Officer

Be careful what you post online, even on Facebook or message boards, because the regulators are watching.  In a recently announced FINRA action, an agent of a broker/dealer agreed to a settlement with FINRA regarding comments he had posted to his Facebook page and on a financial commentary message board.

The agent posted comments in response to a financial commentator’s analysis of a specific security.  The agent personally owned the security and had recommended the security to several of his clients.  These comments violated several FINRA rules because he did not disclose that he owned the securities.   As a result, the agent was fined $5,000 and suspended from associating with a broker/dealer for ten days.

As the saying goes, when posting something online, don’t post anything you wouldn’t want your mother the regulators to read.

2031-CLS-10/18/2013