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Senate weighs bigger government role in cyber security
Lawmakers are proposing increased government regulation of computer security for "critical" businesses like nuclear power plants, water utilities and chemical factories.
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Jeremy Hobson: Now to Washington where the Senate is working on some legislation this week aimed at boosting the nation's defenses against cyber-crime.
But as our Washington Bureau Chief John Dimsdale reports, utility companies oppose new regulation because they say it allows too much government intrusion into their business.
John Dimsdale: Most of America’s critical infrastructure is owned and operated by private companies. Increasingly, they use networked software, making them vulnerable to hackers.
Jacob Olcott is a cyber security expert at Good Harbor Consulting. He says given the potential catastrophic consequences of an attack...
Jacob Olcott: Many people are coalescing around the idea that the government does play a role, some role, in protecting those systems and assets.
But companies are warning Congress not to add to their regulatory burden. Liesyl Franz, for example, with TechAmerica says new government requirements could make it tougher to react.
Liesyl Franz: Probably the most salient example is the time it takes to devise and promulgate and enforce a regulatory framework vis-a-vis the time it takes for a cyber attack to occur.
Franz says instead of imposing new regulations, government should make it easier for industries that are under threat to quickly share information.
In Washington, I'm John Dimsdale for Marketplace.
Quote: "Franz says instead of imposing new regulations, government should make it easier for industries that are under threat to quickly share information."
Just how does she propose that they share information after a cyber attack or other disaster such as an EMP has collapsed large parts of the electrical grid or other critical infrastructure? Semaphore? Smoke signals? Statements like Ms. Franz's indicate a willful or unwitting ignorance of the possible consequences of our almost total dependence on the electrical grid. By the time anyone is aware that they are "under threat", it will all be over.
Just call me Worried in Flyover Country.
