US Cybersecurity Act "Kill Switch" Removal Questioned
In August, the US Cybersecurity Bill was met with harsh criticicsm because it allowed the President to shut down internet traffic by seizing private networks. The new draft, which passed last week, has removed the explicit "kill switch" language from the bill, but Donny Shaw's blog has led many to believe that the President would still possess "kill switch" power under the new bill. Shaw says that the language is still vague, and does not limit what the President can do in an "emergency response and restoration." This is a plan (replacing the "kill switch") that the President would develop by collaborating with government agencies and private industries. A cybersecurity emergency response may be declared "in the event of an immediate threat to strategic national interests involving compromised Federal Government or United States critical infrastructure information systems." This seems to indicate that the President would only be able to declare an emergency if there were a cyber threat to US critical systems. It's unlikely that we'll see the government shutting down newspapers or any other subversive websites anytime soon.
Read more: DZone
Posts
