Item 1A. RISK FACTORS.
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Item 1A. RISK FACTORS.
The risk factors discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in the Company’s and the Operating Partnership’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 continue to apply to our business and should be supplemented with the following risk factor:
We may be vulnerable to breaches, or unauthorized access to, or disruption of our physical and information technology and operational technology infrastructure and systems.
Security breaches, or disruption, of our or our customers’ physical or information technology or operational technology infrastructure, networks and related management systems and controls could result in, among other things, unauthorized access to our facilities, a breach of our and our customers’ networks and information technology infrastructure, the misappropriation of our or our customers’ or their customers’ proprietary or confidential information, interruptions or malfunctions in our or our customers’ operations, delays or interruptions to our ability to meet customer needs, breach of our legal, regulatory or contractual obligations, inability to access or rely upon critical business records or other disruptions in our operations. We may be required to expend significant financial resources to protect against or to remediate such security breaches. We may not be able to implement security measures in a timely manner or, if and when implemented, these measures could be circumvented. Any breaches that may occur could expose us to increased risk of lawsuits, material monetary damages, potential violations of applicable privacy and other laws, penalties and fines, loss of existing or potential customers, harm to our reputation and increases in our security and insurance costs, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Although our customers’ computing equipment resides in our buildings, we generally do not have access to, nor do we have knowledge of, what applications and data are being housed and processed on their equipment. In certain instances, we provide digital infrastructure and platforms as a service to our customers, which increases the risk of loss of data, and have recently expanded these aspects of our business. In the event of a breach resulting in loss of data, such as personally identifiable information or other such data protected by data privacy or other laws, we may be liable for damages, fines and penalties for such losses under applicable regulatory frameworks despite not handling the data. Further, the regulatory framework around data custody, data privacy and breaches varies by jurisdiction and is an evolving area of law. For example, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and any subsequent amended versions of it, and similar regulations that apply to our business globally may have significant impact on our compliance frameworks and operations. If we fail to comply with these various regulations, we may have to pay fines or damages. We may not be able to limit our liability or damages in the event of such a loss.
The Division of Enforcement of the Securities and Exchange Commission is conducting an investigation into the adequacy of our disclosures of cybersecurity risks. We are cooperating with the SEC and are not aware of any cybersecurity issue or event that caused the Staff to open this matter. Responding to an investigation of this type can be costly and time-consuming. While we are unable to estimate the likelihood of the outcome of this matter, our potential cost or exposure or the duration of the process, based on the information we currently possess, we do not expect the total potential cost to be material to our financial condition. If the SEC believes that violations occurred, it could seek remedies including an order prohibiting future violations and a civil money penalty.
We have made, and continue to make, investments to update and modernize our information technology systems and expect such investments to continue in order to meet our business needs, including for ongoing improvements for our customer experience. Additionally, as part of our global platform strategy, we have acquired and invested in, and continue to acquire and invest in, businesses and operations globally, including in new regions with complex and
evolving regulatory frameworks and different risk profiles. Transitioning to new or upgraded systems, and integrating acquired networks and data, can create difficulties, including potential disruptions to current processes and cybersecurity complexities. In addition, our information technology systems may require further modification as we grow and as our business needs change, which could prolong difficulties we experience with such transitions and integrations. Such significant investments in our systems may take longer to deploy and cost more than originally planned. In addition, we may not realize the full benefits we hoped to achieve, and we may need to expend significant attention, time and resources to correct problems or find alternative sources for performing various functions. Difficulties in implementing new or upgraded information or operational technology systems or significant system failures or delays or the failure to successfully modify our systems and respond to changes in our business needs could adversely affect our business and results of operations.
ITEM 2. UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES, USE OF PROCEEDS, AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES.
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.
None.
Digital Realty Trust, L.P.
During the three months ended September 30, 2023, Digital Realty Trust, L.P. issued partnership units in private placements in reliance on the exemption from registration provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act, in the amounts and for the consideration set forth below:
During the three months ended September 30, 2023, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. issued an aggregate of 47,480 shares of its common stock in connection with restricted stock unit awards for no cash consideration. For each share of common stock issued by Digital Realty Trust, Inc. in connection with such an award, Digital Realty Trust, L.P. issued a restricted common unit to Digital Realty Trust, Inc. During the three months ended September 30, 2023, Digital Realty Trust, L.P. issued an aggregate of 47,480 common units to Digital Realty Trust, Inc., as required by Digital Realty Trust, L.P.’s partnership agreement. During the three months ended September 30, 2023, an aggregate of 28,646 shares of its common stock were forfeited to Digital Realty Trust, Inc. in connection with restricted stock unit awards for a net issuance of 18,834 shares of common stock.
For these issuances of common units to Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Digital Realty Trust, L.P. relied on Digital Realty Trust, Inc.’s status as a publicly traded NYSE-listed company with approximately $42.0 billion in total consolidated assets and as Digital Realty Trust, L.P.’s majority owner and general partner as the basis for the exemption under Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.
ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES.
None.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES.
Not applicable.
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