White House raises stakes in cybersecurity debate

By Gautham Nagesh, The Hill

The White House on Thursday issued long-awaited legislative recommendations for fortifying U.S. computer networks in a proposal that notably omitted any talk of a “kill switch” for the Internet.

No previous administration had ever released legislative guidance on cybersecurity, which has become a pressing issue now that computer networks have become an essential part of most industries, including transportation and communication.

Government and military officials have issued warnings for years about increasing attacks on U.S. networks from enemy states and criminal organizations. Experts are in wide agreement that the nation’s digital security laws are badly outdated and have failed to keep pace with technological change.
But attempts to deal with cybersecurity in Congress have been bogged down by accusations that the government wants to create a “kill switch” authority for the Web, to be used during emergencies.

The recent turmoil in Egypt and Tunisia heightened the “kill switch” fears, as the regimes in both countries succeeded in blacking out Internet access in an attempt to quell internal revolts.

To read more, visit:  http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/160941-white-house-raises-stakes-in-cybersecurity-debate

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Posted by gadsden on May 13 2011. Filed under Breaking News, Headlines, Technology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry