After Defeat Of Senate Cybersecurity Bill, Obama Weighs Executive-Order Option...

[paulitician]

I have to applaud the U.S. Senate for their actions on this 'Cybersecurity' Bill. It's one of the few commendable things they've done in recent memory. But now, Big Brother's Puppet in Chief wants to reverse it. How sad.


Senate Republicans recently blocked cybersecurity legislation, but the issue might not be dead after all.

The White House hasn't ruled out issuing an executive order to strengthen the nation's defenses against cyber attacks if Congress refuses to act.

“In the wake of Congressional inaction and Republican stall tactics, unfortunately, we will continue to be hamstrung by outdated and inadequate statutory authorities that the legislation would have fixed," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said in an emailed response to whether the president is considering a cybersecurity order.

"Moving forward, the President is determined to do absolutely everything we can to better protect our nation against today’s cyber threats and we will do that," Carney said.

The White House has emphasized that better protecting vital computer systems is a top priority.

The administration proposed its own legislation package in 2011, sent officials to testify at 17 congressional hearings and presented more than 100 briefings on the issue. In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, President Obama warned that a successful cyber attack on a bank, water system, electrical grid or hospital could have devastating consequences.

The president urged Congress to pass the Cybersecurity Act, which was offered by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine). The bill would have encouraged private companies and the government to share information about cyber threats and would have required critical infrastructure operators to meet minimum cybersecurity standards.

But Senate Republicans, led by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), worried the bill would burden businesses with unnecessary and ineffective regulations...

Read More:
After defeat of Senate cybersecurity bill, Obama weighs executive-order option - The Hill's Hillicon Valley
DRUDGE REPORT 2012®

 

[AquaAthena]

I have to applaud the U.S. Senate for their actions on this 'Cybersecurity' Bill. It's one of the few commendable things they've done in recent memory. But now, Big Brother's Puppet in Chief wants to reverse it. How sad.


Senate Republicans recently blocked cybersecurity legislation, but the issue might not be dead after all.

The White House hasn't ruled out issuing an executive order to strengthen the nation's defenses against cyber attacks if Congress refuses to act.

“In the wake of Congressional inaction and Republican stall tactics, unfortunately, we will continue to be hamstrung by outdated and inadequate statutory authorities that the legislation would have fixed," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said in an emailed response to whether the president is considering a cybersecurity order.

"Moving forward, the President is determined to do absolutely everything we can to better protect our nation against today’s cyber threats and we will do that," Carney said.

The White House has emphasized that better protecting vital computer systems is a top priority.

The administration proposed its own legislation package in 2011, sent officials to testify at 17 congressional hearings and presented more than 100 briefings on the issue. In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, President Obama warned that a successful cyber attack on a bank, water system, electrical grid or hospital could have devastating consequences.

The president urged Congress to pass the Cybersecurity Act, which was offered by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine). The bill would have encouraged private companies and the government to share information about cyber threats and would have required critical infrastructure operators to meet minimum cybersecurity standards.

But Senate Republicans, led by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), worried the bill would burden businesses with unnecessary and ineffective regulations...

Read More:
After defeat of Senate cybersecurity bill, Obama weighs executive-order option - The Hill's Hillicon Valley
DRUDGE REPORT 2012®

Yes, I have been expecting that. He loves to do it, but I would rather take my chances with cyber-attacks, than this current administration, with their goals of stifling economic growth in America, and ultimate domination. I would fully expect Obama to overrule Congress. He needs any excuse for more power and control.

 

[Katzndogz]

A cyber attack? Does this have anything to do with the white house leaking the pass codes to the drones in the middle east? One drone was able to be landed without damage in Iran and two, TWO, in the Chinese controlled Seychelles.

That kind of cyber attack. Is that what they mean? With obama in charge we don't have to worry about cyber attacks, obama will just leak the pass codes.

 

[paulitician]

This from a prominent Democrat:

Wyden: Cybersecurity bill would have sacrificed Internet users’ privacy, civil liberties

Oregon Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden voted Thursday against bringing the controversial Cybersecurity Act of 2012 up for debate, citing what he said was the bill’s failure to protect civil liberties and Internet users’ privacy.

Wyden’s vote was a defection from Senate Democrats’ support of the controversial bill.

Wyden, known for his work in the defense of digital privacy and civil liberties, said in a statement following Thursday’s vote that the vote itself asked Senators to “sacrifice Internet users’ privacy and civil liberties for weak proposals to improve cybersecurity.”

“In its current form, the Cybersecurity Act does not sufficiently safeguard Internet users’ privacy and civil liberties, nor would it create the correct incentives to adequately protect the nation’s critical infrastructure from cyber threats,” he said.

The bill required the support of 60 Senators in order to be considered for further debate and a floor vote; it received the support of only 52 members.

Read more: Wyden: Cybersecurity bill would have hurt Internet privacy | The Daily Caller

 

[Jackson]

A cyber attack? Does this have anything to do with the white house leaking the pass codes to the drones in the middle east? One drone was able to be landed without damage in Iran and two, TWO, in the Chinese controlled Seychelles.

That kind of cyber attack. Is that what they mean? With obama in charge we don't have to worry about cyber attacks, obama will just leak the pass codes.

You beat me to it, Katz. lol

 

[paulitician]

This one will say it all about this President. I hope he does the right thing and declines the Executive-Order option. We'll see i guess.

 

[Mad Scientist]

Of course he'll issue an Executive Order. Gotta' protect America against Internet Threats like StuxNet or Flame that were created by America and Israel.

 

[paulitician]

Of course he'll issue an Executive Order. Gotta' protect America against Internet Threats like StuxNet or Flame that were created by America and Israel.

It's all for the children. Always for the children. Big Brother cares, he really does. It's all for your own good. And if you disagree, you're an "America-Hating Terrorist." CAPISCE!!

 

[paulitician]

When will this stuff end? How long before Americans get it together and put an end to the NWO Globalist agenda?

 

[waltky]

FTC Tightening Web Privacy Rules for Kids...

U.S. Is Tightening Web Privacy Rule to Shield Young
September 27, 2012 - Biggest revamp in decade requires more consent from parents

Federal regulators are about to take the biggest steps in more than a decade to protect children online. The moves come at a time when major corporations, app developers and data miners appear to be collecting information about the online activities of millions of young Internet users without their parents’ awareness, children’s advocates say. Some sites and apps have also collected details like children’s photographs or locations of mobile devices; the concern is that the information could be used to identify or locate individual children.

These data-gathering practices are legal. But the development has so alarmed officials at the Federal Trade Commission that the agency is moving to overhaul rules that many experts say have not kept pace with the explosive growth of the Web and innovations like mobile apps. New rules are expected within weeks. “Today, almost every child has a computer in his pocket and it’s that much harder for parents to monitor what their kids are doing online, who they are interacting with, and what information they are sharing,” says Mary K. Engle, associate director of the advertising practices division at the F.T.C. “The concern is that a lot of this may be going on without anybody’s knowledge.”

The proposed changes could greatly increase the need for children’s sites to obtain parental permission for some practices that are now popular — like using cookies to track users’ activities around the Web over time. Marketers argue that the rule should not be changed so extensively, lest it cause companies to reduce their offerings for children. “Do we need a broad, wholesale change of the law?” says Mike Zaneis, the general counsel for the Interactive Advertising Bureau, an industry association. “The answer is no. It is working very well.”

The current federal rule, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998, requires operators of children’s Web sites to obtain parental consent before they collect personal information like phone numbers or physical addresses from children under 13. But rapid advances in technology have overtaken the rules, privacy advocates say. Today, many brand-name companies and analytics firms collect, collate and analyze information about a wide range of consumer activities and traits. Some of those techniques could put children at risk, advocates say. Under the F.T.C.’s proposals, some current online practices, like getting children under 13 to submit photos of themselves, would require parental consent.

MORE

 

[waltky]

Panetta Warns of 'Cyber Pearl Harbor'...

Panetta Warns of Dire Threat of Cyberattack on U.S.
October 11, 2012 - He urges Congress to pass cybersecurity bill

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta warned Thursday that the United States was facing the possibility of a “cyber-Pearl Harbor” and was increasingly vulnerable to foreign computer hackers who could dismantle the nation’s power grid, transportation system, financial networks and government. In a speech at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York, Mr. Panetta painted a dire picture of how such an attack on the United States might unfold. He said he was reacting to increasing aggressiveness and technological advances by the nation’s adversaries, which officials identified as China, Russia, Iran and militant groups. “An aggressor nation or extremist group could use these kinds of cyber tools to gain control of critical switches,” Mr. Panetta said. “They could derail passenger trains, or even more dangerous, derail passenger trains loaded with lethal chemicals. They could contaminate the water supply in major cities, or shut down the power grid across large parts of the country.”

Defense officials insisted that Mr. Panetta’s words were not hyperbole, and that he was responding to a recent wave of cyberattacks on large American financial institutions. He also cited an attack in August on the state oil company Saudi Aramco, which infected and made useless more than 30,000 computers. But Pentagon officials acknowledged that Mr. Panetta was also pushing for legislation on Capitol Hill. It would require new standards at critical private-sector infrastructure facilities — like power plants, water treatment facilities and gas pipelines — where a computer breach could cause significant casualties or economic damage. In August, a cybersecurity bill that had been one of the administration’s national security priorities was blocked by a group of Republicans, led by Senator John McCain of Arizona, who took the side of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and said it would be too burdensome for corporations.

The most destructive possibilities, Mr. Panetta said, involve “cyber-actors launching several attacks on our critical infrastructure at one time, in combination with a physical attack.” He described the collective result as a “cyber-Pearl Harbor that would cause physical destruction and the loss of life, an attack that would paralyze and shock the nation and create a profound new sense of vulnerability.” Mr. Panetta also argued against the idea that new legislation would be costly for business. “The fact is that to fully provide the necessary protection in our democracy, cybersecurity must be passed by the Congress,” he told his audience, Business Executives for National Security. “Without it, we are and we will be vulnerable.”

With the legislation stalled, Mr. Panetta said President Obama was weighing the option of issuing an executive order that would promote information sharing on cybersecurity between government and private industry. But Mr. Panetta made clear that he saw it as a stopgap measure and that private companies, which are typically reluctant to share internal information with the government, would cooperate fully only if required to by law. “We’re not interested in looking at e-mail, we’re not interested in looking at information in computers, I’m not interested in violating rights or liberties of people,” Mr. Panetta told editors and reporters at The New York Times earlier on Thursday. “But if there is a code, if there’s a worm that’s being inserted, we need to know when that’s happening.” He said that with an executive order making cooperation by the private sector only voluntary, “I’m not sure they’re going to volunteer if they don’t feel that they’re protected legally in terms of sharing information.” “So our hope is that ultimately we can get Congress to adopt that kind of legislation,” he added.

MORE

 

[paulitician]

Look for them to stage a Wag the Dog style 'Cyber-Attack' any day now. That's if they haven't already done it. Gotta do it for the childen. Big Brother's on it.

 

[BlindBoo]

"Rarely have I been so disappointed in the Senate's failure to come to grips with a threat to our country," said Sen. Susan Collins, the ranking Republican on the Senate Homeland Security Committee and one of the bill's chief sponsors, who had tried in vain to sway her GOP colleagues. Just four sided with her.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce leads defeat of cyber-security bill - Los Angeles Times

6 Democrats also join in the filibuster. The vote was 52-46 to not allow a vote on the matter.

An EO will not be as effective as the bill. But as we've seen in Lybia, the GOP wants a successful attack on the country so they can blame the President. Of course..........

 

[Intolerant]

Jay cumguzzler boy kings mouth piece.

 

[kiwiman127]

Naturally, I'd prefer that Obama doesn't use another Executive Order to strengthen our nations cyber defense. Exactly how many EOs has the guy issued already?
But the idea of strengthening our cyber defense is vital,,very vital.
From the wildly liberal Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN):

America's Cyber Defenses: A Digital Pearl Harbor?
WASHINGTON - The critical infrastructure that keeps this country running is surprisingly, and some would even say shockingly, vulnerable.
It is vulnerable not so much to physical attacks, but to cyber attacks that can be just as lethal.
Why? Because complex computer systems control almost all of what keeps America powered and functioning. These systems are best-known by their acronym SCADA.
"Everything is now controlled by Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition systems - a system of systems," said Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer, a cyber defense expert at the Center for Advanced Defense Studies.
These systems control nuclear and chemical plants, gas pipelines, dams, railroad switches, water treatment plants, just to name a few.
"The electrical grid is a SCADA system. The aviation system, the air traffic control system, has a SCADA system. All your metropolitan transportation networks are run on a SCADA system," explained James Carafano, a national security analyst at the Heritage Foundation.
And most of America's cash flow runs because of them.
"Nine trillion dollars a day moves through the Internet. And SCADA systems - almost all of which are connected to the Internet for ease of use - power the financial system," Shaffer told CBN News.
"So if you have literally the lifeblood of the economy plus the brain synapses that control your networks on this Internet, you may want to think about how you protect that," he added.
<snip>
A Digital Pearl Harbor?
Accidents and snafus that have led to incidents like major blackouts have shown if even a part of the grid is knocked out, much of the rest of it can go down because so much of it is interconnected.
So hackers might be able to launch small cyber attacks on one part of the system that could lead to a major disaster over a much wider area.
"A lot of people talk about a digital Pearl Harbor," Carafano said. "Where you'd go in and you'd have a cascading series of systems in failure, and you'd take down the electrical grid and everything starts to cascade from that, and essentially the whole country goes black."
America's Cyber Defenses: A Digital Pearl Harbor? - US - CBN News - Christian News 24-7 - CBN.com

Has not the US or Israel used cyber attacks on Iran?

Iran sees cyber attacks as greater threat than actual war
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran is prepared to defend itself in case of a "cyber war" which could cause more harm than a physical confrontation, a commander in the country's Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday.
The Islamic Republic has tightened cyber security since its uranium enrichment centrifuges were hit in 2010 by the Stuxnet computer worm, which it believes came from Israel or the United States.
"We have armed ourselves with new tools, because a cyber war is more dangerous than a physical war," said Abdollah Araqi, deputy commander of ground forces in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), according to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA).
Israel has threatened to bomb Iran's nuclear sites if diplomatic efforts fail to stop the nuclear work it believes is aimed at getting weapons capability, a charge Tehran denies.
Many analysts are skeptical that airstrikes could completely destroy Iran's nuclear projects and that cyber attacks like Stuxnet might be more effective

Iran sees cyber attacks as greater threat than actual war - Yahoo! News

Now think what a cyber attack could do to the US.

 

[Vel]

I'm tired of seeing Obama claim that "Congress has failed to act", before he tries to use an EO. Congress acted but simply did not reach the conclusion that Obama wants. Sometimes the answer is no.

 

[kiwiman127]

I'm tired of seeing Obama claim that "Congress has failed to act", before he tries to use an EO. Congress acted but simply did not reach the conclusion that Obama wants. Sometimes the answer is no.

Well then, let's take politics out of the equation! Our national security is much more important than either political party and playing politics is hurting our national security.
Read this:

Threat of cyberattacks on utilities is growing, McCaul says
U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul on Thursday huddled behind closed doors with local and state electricity officials to discuss the escalating threat of cyberattacks against utilities.
McCaul, a leader in Congress on cybersecurity issues, heard from officials with the City of Austin, Austin Energy, the Lower Colorado River Authority and Electric Reliability Council of Texas.
The Austin Republican said he is reassured about the steps local officials have taken, including keeping some critical functions unconnected to the Internet, but said the threat remains.
He noted that the National Security Agency has predicted a major cyberattack on U.S. infrastructure over the next 12 to 18 months and that a recent al Qaeda video calls for "electronic jihad."
"This isn't science fiction," McCaul said. "This is real."
Although cybercrimes against banks and businesses have become commonplace, successful attacks against critical infrastructure, such as electricity grids, remain rare.
However, attempts to penetrate the systems that control the generation and transmission of electricity have grown dramatically over the past three years, according to testimony before McCaul's Homeland Security subcommittee last month.
In 2009, almost half of the executives surveyed in the energy and power sector reported they had never faced large-scale denial of service attacks or network infiltrations, testified Stuart McClure, chief technology officer with McAfee Inc., a cybersecurity firm.
By the next year, McClure said, 85 percent of the executives reported network infiltrations. Nearly two-thirds said they found malware designed for sabotage on their system at least monthly.
Threat of cyberattacks on utilities is growing, McCaul says | www.statesman.com

 

[paulitician]

Yep, another Boogeyman gon get us. Big Brother gon make things all betta. Uh huh, that's right.

 

[daveman]

Of course he'll issue an Executive Order. Gotta' protect America against Internet Threats like StuxNet or Flame that were created by America and Israel.

Those? Pffft. This is the greatest threat to America.

It must be eliminated!

 

[daveman]

I'm tired of seeing Obama claim that "Congress has failed to act", before he tries to use an EO. Congress acted but simply did not reach the conclusion that Obama wants. Sometimes the answer is no.

The One believes the role of Congress is to hand him whatever he wants.