Kent Bressie and Madeleine Findley Analyze the Impact - Wiltshire ...

15wake of the President’s action,Representatives Mike Rogers (R-Mich.)and Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.)reintroduced the Cyber IntelligenceSharing and Protection Act (“CISPA”),which passed the House but notthe Senate in the last Congress. TheHouse Permanent Select Committee onIntelligence held a hearing on the billon February 14, 2013, and the Secretaryof Homeland Security testified beforea hearing of the Senate Committee onHomeland Security and GovernmentalAffairs on cybersecurity issues onMarch 7, 2013. Before passing anylegislation, however, Congress mustfirst resolve several key contentiousissues, including whether to mandatespecific cybersecurity standards orprovide liability protection to industry.Representative Mike McCaul (R-Tex.),chairman of the House’s HomelandSecurity Committee, and SenatorTom Carper (D-Del.), chairman ofthe Senate’s top homeland securitycommittee, have both expressed theirintent to push for legislation in thecoming months. 55. Preliminary Recommendations forIndustry InvolvementGiven the risks and uncertainties of the5. See, e.g., Rep. Michael McCaul, Opinion, Hardening Our Defenses Against Cyberwarfare,Wall St. J., Mar. 6, 2013, available at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324‌662404578336862508763442.html; Rep. Michael McCaul,Statement, Legislation Needed to Bolster Cybersecurity Executive Order, Feb. 12,2013, available at http://homeland.house.‌gov/‌‌‌press-release/legislation-needed-bolster-cybersecurity-executive-order.processes established by the ExecutiveOrder and PPD, we think it importantfor the undersea cable industry to takeseveral actions. First, the industryshould participate actively in thestandards-development and otherimplementation proceedings alreadybegun by various U.S. Governmentagencies, including the NIST RFI andstakeholder meetings. Second, it shouldcontinue to monitor and influencecybersecurity legislation. If possible,it should consider introducing othercable-protection elements in suchlegislation, including an increasein the statutory penalties for cabledamage and a broader definition ofcable damage. Third, it should engageproactively with U.S. Governmentagencies, the U.S. Congress, and otherstakeholders to share informationabout existing industry cybersecurityefforts and the impact of proposalsfor new or additional compliancerequirements. Fourth, it should takeany and all opportunities to remindthe U.S. Government and otherstakeholders of the critical importanceof undersea cable infrastructure andservices to the U.S. economy andnational security. Fifth, it shouldremind the U.S. Government andother stakeholders that infrastructureprotection—and undersea cable