Ruppersberger Issues Statement on President’s Information-Sharing Cybersecurity Proposal

(Washington, D.C.) – “I applaud President Obama for proposing cybersecurity legislation that prioritizes information-sharing. As I have been saying for years, strengthening communication between the private and public sectors is the single most important thing we can do to combat increasingly-aggressive cyber attacks on American corporations and consumers.  

The President’s proposal looks a lot like the bill I introduced along with former Republican Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, the “Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act,” a bill that has twice passed the House of Representatives with wide bipartisan margins. CISPA also creates a voluntary system for the government and private sector to share anonymous cyber threat information – generally computer codes – so that we can better protect networks from attacks like we have seen hit Target, Home Depot and Sony.

 I agree with much of the President’s proposal, but there are several outstanding issues that must be addressed. It is now up to Congress to work though the differences between these proposals, which share a common end-goal. President Obama and I agree we can no longer afford to play political games while rogue hackers, terrorists, organized criminals and even state actors sharpen their cyber skills. I look forward to working with the President and my colleagues in the House to pass information-sharing legislation this session.”