Truework, Rippling, Gusto launch the Payroll Network to establish consumer privacy controls for data sharing

New partnerships give millions of consumers the power of consent and transparency in how their data is shared with third parties

News provided by

Truework

Dec 16, 2021, 07:00 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Truework, the one-stop income and employment verification platform, today announced the launch of the Payroll Network, a growing set of partnerships that puts millions of consumers in control over how their sensitive data is shared with third parties, such as banks and prospective employers. The Payroll Network introduces data controls and consumer protection into a space that has seen rapid innovation in recent months.

The Payroll Network gives payroll providers the ability to extend data consent controls to any employee within their particular payroll ecosystem, increasing transparency for end users. Currently, many of the industry's verification providers do not notify employees when their data is being shared nor do they offer user-friendly consent controls, increasing the risk of fraud and abuse.

"At Gusto we believe that people should always have control over when and how their personal information is shared with third parties," said Fredrick "Flee" Lee, Chief Security Officer at Gusto. "By partnering with Truework, we are proud to offer employees on our platform access to a service that was founded on the premise that people deserve full visibility, informed consent, and control of their data, especially in an area like employment and income verification where many companies have not put user consent at the forefront of their product decisions."

Consumers benefit from more accessible payroll data by accelerating time-consuming transactions like buying a home. Truework has established the Payroll Network alongside strategic partners Gusto, Rippling and others as the payroll industry faces the task of improving privacy and security standards while broadening access to impactful payroll data.

"Rippling's modern workforce platform provides businesses with a single synchronized, customized & automated source of employee data. We believe it's important for employers and employees to have control over their data," said Rippling's General Counsel Vanessa Wu. "Joining Truework's Payroll Network is a key partnership to ensure proper protections are in place for our customers and their employees."

When a payroll provider joins the Payroll Network, they are able to deliver privacy controls to employees through their employer organization. Employees, by default, are notified every time a third party requests to view employment and income information. Employees will be able to exercise further security measures by restricting data to specific third parties or turning off data access altogether. Additionally, because the Payroll Network is an API-enabled aggregation of payroll sources as opposed to a centralized data repository, duplication of sensitive data is minimized and accuracy ensured.

"We created the Payroll Network because everyone – regulators, payroll providers, and employees themselves – wants and will benefit from a data network that prioritizes privacy, access, compliance and security," said Ryan Sandler, CEO and co-founder of Truework. "With the help of our current partners, we're giving hundreds of thousands of employers the tools they need to protect their workforce and help employees unlock new financial opportunities through improved access to their own data."

Legacy systems in the income verification space operate as closed databases without clear visibility into who is accessing sensitive information, leaving consumers in the dark during high-impact life events such as applying for a mortgage. The Payroll Network solidifies a new alternative for payroll providers to help employers and employees control their data.

Earlier this year, Truework announced a partnership with Gusto that added more than 200,000 small and medium businesses to what is now the Payroll Network, making Truework the largest verification provider for SMB. Because the Payroll Network incorporates multiple data sources, modern workers like 1099 employees are able to aggregate different sources of income when applying for a mortgage or other loan.

Truework puts an emphasis on security and compliance by operating as a Consumer Reporting Agency under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. This ensures Network partners have the highest levels of data security and legal compliance. Truework only shares the appropriate data after the verifying party (i.e., lender) has been authorized and provided proper consent from the employee, according to the employee's privacy settings.

Truework plans to add additional partners to the Payroll Network in the coming months. To learn more about becoming a Network partner, visit https://www.truework.com/blog/announcements/posts/2021-12-16-Payroll-Network

About Truework

Truework is an API-enabled platform for employment and income verification that lets banks, lenders and background check providers verify any U.S. employee. Through partnerships with payroll providers such as Gusto, Zenefits, and BambooHR, Truework has the second-largest instant verification network with over 35 million employees. Founded by Ryan Sandler, Ethan Winchell and Victor Kabdebon in 2017, the company is backed by Activant Capital, Sequoia Capital, Khosla Ventures and others. To learn more, visit www.truework.com.

CONTACT: Margaret Huang, [email protected]

SOURCE Truework