An apparatus and method for sharing data in a communications system include a bootstrapping server function (BSF) configured to transmit a first message. The first message includes a timestamp parameter corresponding to a generic bootstrapping architecture user security settings (GUSS) stored in the BSF. A home subscriber server (HSS) is configured to receive the first message, to compare the timestamp parameter corresponding to the GUSS stored in the BSF with a timestamp parameter corresponding to a GUSS stored in the HSS, and to transmit a second message back to the BSF excluding the GUSS when the timestamp parameters of the GUSS of the BSF and the HSS are equal.