Did Wine Wholesalers Know About Security Failures at Drizly?

Wine Wholesalers Helped Direct the Company that let 2.5 million Customers' Personal Information Fall Into The Hands of Hackers

In 2015, the most powerful trade association in the wine and spirits sector—The Wine & Spirits Wholesalers Association (WSWA)—made a strategic investment in Drizly, the then-young tech platform that linked consumers to wine retailers in their area to arrange remote purchases and local delivery. It isn’t known how much the investment amounted to, but it appears to have gotten WSWA a seat on the Board of Directors.

At the time of the investment, which raised eyebrows in the industry, WSWA had this to say about Drizly and the strategic partnership:

“WSWA Services's strategic alliance with Drizly demonstrates the commitment of wholesalers to support next generation technology that will directly benefit consumers, retailers, suppliers and wholesalers."

"Most importantly, this alliance will enhance the three-tier system and amplify the benefits this system currently provides consumers: the widest array of product available anywhere in the world, delivered in a manner that is well regulated and ensures consumer protection, appropriate oversight, and product integrity."

Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission announced it is taking severe action against Drizly for security failures that exposed 2.5 million users’ data and personal information to hackers, who actually took that customer data and sold it on the dark web.