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Graves, Tom
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Rep. Tom Graves Votes to Boost Voluntary Efforts to Combat Cyber Attacks
Washington, Apr 23 -
Rep. Tom Graves (R-GA-14) issued the following statement today after voting in favor of the National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act (H.R. 1731), legislation that would enhance cybersecurity by offering a basic level of protection to companies that voluntarily share cyber threat information with the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC): H.R. 1731 passed the House by a bipartisan vote of 355 to 63. ###
“Our privacy is under constant assault by criminals and foreign governments that use cyber attacks to steal our identities, bank and credit card information, and health records. By improving the voluntary flow of information about attacks, law enforcement and businesses can more effectively fight back, and American citizens are better protected.
“The key to this bill is its mandatory security measures that protect the privacy and civil liberties of American citizens. Information sharing cannot include personal information, period. The goal is to be sure that Americans are protected at every stage of cyber warfare.”
H.R. 1731 provides liability protections for private-sector companies that voluntarily share cyber threat indicators with NCCIC, which is a civilian-run program within the Department of Homeland Security where private, federal, state and local entities can share information concerning cyber threats. The bill also provides private companies the ability to operate defensive measures to proactively counter cyber threats.
H.R. 1731 contains robust, multi-layer privacy protections, which ensures that information about individuals is not shared. First, private companies must remove all personal information before it’s shared with NCCIC. Then, NCCIC must double check to ensure all personal information is removed before sharing the cyber threat information with any other entity.