SafeUM
Home Blog Services Download Help About Recharge

Axarhöfði 14, 110 Reykjavik, Iceland

Iceland - 2015
SafeUM
Blog
Services
Download
Help
About
Recharge
Menu
Archive
TOP Security!
28 Oct 2015

Security trumps privacy as Senate passes controversial cyber bill

If you value security over your privacy, you might applaud the US Senate's vote Tuesday to pass the controversial Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA).

The bill allows companies to voluntarily share evidence of cyberattacks with the US government, without fear of lawsuits if that information also violates your privacy. Proponents say CISA makes it easier for the government to coordinate threat information and responses across the companies and organizations that need it.

Opponents, including Apple and more than 20 other leading tech companies, say the bill could give the government even greater leeway to spy on US citizens. The ayes had it on the Senate floor. "While there is no silver-bullet solution to stopping cyberattacks, this legislation is a positive step toward enhancing our nation's cybersecurity," US Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue said in a statement. He called CISA a victory for cybersecurity.

In contrast, Minnesota Democrat Al Franken was among the 21 senators voting against CISA and quickly expressed his disappointment. "There is a pressing need for meaningful, effective cybersecurity legislation that balances privacy and security: this bill doesn't do that," he said in a statement. Apple, Twitter and Dropbox declined to comment on the passage of the bill, though they all opposed the bill before its passage.

The vote Tuesday marks the end of a five-year struggle to encourage companies to share information about cyberthreats with the Department of Homeland Security. CISA was first introduced in 2014 but failed to reach the Senate before that session of Congress ended. Two years ago, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) was approved by the House, but died in the Senate. President Barack Obama said he supports the bill.

High-profile cyberattacks on government agencies and companies such as Sony, United, and Ashley Madison might have prompted the Senate to approve the bill, security experts say. "With security breaches like T-mobile, Target, and OPM becoming the norm, Congress knows it needs to do something about cybersecurity," Mark Jaycox of the Electronic Frontier Foundation said in a statement Tuesday. "It chose to do the wrong thing."

At issue is the fact that CISA allows companies to share information directly with law enforcement and intelligence organizations. Even more troubling, that information can include email, text messages and other data that can identify individuals. Companies are supposed to delete that information before they send it, but there's always the chance that our "personal identifiers" could still slip through. "I do not believe [CISA] imposes a sufficiently stringent standard for the removal of irrelevant personally identifiable information," Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas wrote in a letter to Franken.

The bill as written "raises privacy and civil liberties concerns," Mayorkas noted. After the vote Tuesday, NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden tweeted the names of senators who approved the bill. CISA now heads to a conference of Congress members who will match the passed Senate and House bills before sending it to Obama's desk.

Tags:
surveillance USA
Source:
CNet
1567
Other NEWS
3 Jul 2020 safeum news imgage An encrypted messaging service has been infiltrated by police
4 May 2020 safeum news imgage Two-Factor Authentication ​What Is It and Why You Should Use It
12 Dec 2019 safeum news imgage Encryption is under threat - this is how it affects you
4 Nov 2019 safeum news imgage Should Big Decisions Be Based on Data or Your Intuition?
7 Jun 2018 safeum news imgage VPNFilter malware infecting 500,000 devices is worse than we thought
4 Jun 2018 safeum news imgage Hackers target Booking.com in criminal bid to steal hundreds of thousands from customers
1 Jun 2018 safeum news imgage Operator of World's Top Internet Hub Sues German Spy Agency
30 May 2018 safeum news imgage US says North Korea behind malware attacks
29 May 2018 safeum news imgage Facebook and Google targeted as first GDPR complaints filed
25 May 2018 safeum news imgage A new reason to not buy these cheap Android devices
24 May 2018 safeum news imgage Flaws in smart pet devices, apps could come back to bite owners
23 May 2018 safeum news imgage Google sued for 'clandestine tracking' of 4.4m UK iPhone users' browsing data
21 May 2018 safeum news imgage LocationSmart reportedly leaked phone location data onto the web
18 May 2018 safeum news imgage The SEC created its own scammy ICO to teach investors a lesson
17 May 2018 safeum news imgage Thieves suck millions out of Mexican banks in transfer heist
All news
SafeUM
Confidential Terms of Use Our technologies Company
Follow us
Download
SafeUM © Safe Universal Messenger

Axarhöfði 14,
110 Reykjavik, Iceland

Iceland - 2015