Shutdown Kills Key Federal Cybersecurity Information-Sharing Program

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Amid the ongoing US government shutdown, a key piece of cybersecurity legislation has expired—and both security experts and lawmakers warn it could endanger critical national infrastructure, Politico reports.

The 2015 Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act facilitated information sharing between the government and the private sector, thereby protecting companies from the legal risks associated with sharing sensitive data.

It was instrumental in uncovering attacks by foreign powers on US critical infrastructure, including a campaign by the state-sponsored Chinese hacking group dubbed “Salt Typhoon,” in which China allegedly gained access to US telecommunications networks, including AT&T and Verizon. The campaign involved Chinese hackers attempting to spy on high-profile politicians, including Donald Trump, and is believed to have accessed records belonging to approximately 1.3 million Americans, primarily in the Washington, DC area.

Michael Daniel, president of the Cyber Threat Alliance, an information-sharing group, told Cybersecurity Dive he expects some companies will “suspend some sharing activities with the government,” though it will depend on “each company’s risk tolerance.”

Politicians have been vocal about the potential dangers of leaving the bill unaddressed. In April, Sens. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.) introduced legislation to extend the law.

Without the law, “we will lose one of our most effective defenses against cyberattacks, as our adversaries’ attacks continue to grow more aggressive and more sophisticated,” Sen. Peters said last week. “If this law expires, it will be harder to protect businesses and critical infrastructure against cyberattacks, and cybercriminals and our adversaries will be emboldened to continue trying to breach our defenses.”

According to Politico, Sen. Rounds, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s cyber subcommittee, told Congress earlier this week that the law’s expiration “will dry up the sharing of information at a time in which we don’t need our adversaries to have another opportunity to mess with our cyber systems.”

The US Chamber of Commerce echoed that sentiment. “CISA 2015 provides safeguards for businesses regarding public disclosure, regulatory issues, and antitrust concerns to facilitate the timely exchange of information between the public and private sectors. Industry and government have a strong history of protecting privacy and civil liberties under this law.”

However, despite several bipartisan efforts to prevent its expiration, lawmakers were unable to resolve disagreements over the bill’s finer details, so Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, canceled a planned markup of the bill.

A spokesperson for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) told Politico that the law expiring represents “a serious blow” to federal cyber defenses, saying that their agency deserves “both the tools and the support to meet growing threats.”

Earlier this week, The Washington Post reported that CISA was also significantly impacted by furloughs during the shutdown, retaining only 35% of its workforce as of May of this year.

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I’m a reporter covering weekend news. Before joining PCMag in 2024, I picked up bylines in BBC News, The Guardian, The Times of London, The Daily Beast, Vice, Slate, Fast Company, The Evening Standard, The i, TechRadar, and Decrypt Media.

I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to install games from multiple CD-ROMs by hand. As a reporter, I’m passionate about the intersection of tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.

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