SEC Charges Co-Founder of Technology Company for Violating Whistleblower Protection Rule
ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDING
File No. 3-20820
April 12, 2022 - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against David Hansen, co-founder and former Chief Information Officer of NS8, Inc., a technology company based in Las Vegas, Nevada that offered fraud detection and prevention software, for violating a whistleblower protection rule that prohibits taking any action to impede an individual from communicating directly with SEC staff about a possible securities law violation.
According to the SEC's order, in August 2019, an NS8 employee raised concerns to Hansen and others at NS8 that the company was overstating its numbers of paying customers. After notifying NS8's Chief Executive Officer of the employee's concerns, Hansen and the CEO removed the employee's access to NS8's computer systems, including to NS8's customer data. Later that week, the CEO fired the employee.
The SEC's order finds that Hansen willfully violated Rule 21F-17(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Hansen has agreed, without admitting or denying the SEC's findings, to a cease-and-desist order and a civil penalty in the amount of $97,523.
The SEC's investigation was conducted by John Dwyer of the Denver Regional Office and supervised by Danielle R. Voorhees and Jason J. Burt.
Last Reviewed or Updated: April 12, 2022