United States government agencies and private sector organizations alike continue to fall victim to cyberattacks and data breaches, prompting a group of Senate committee leaders to recently introduce new legislation designed to improve the security of critical systems.
The proposed Cybersecurity Act of 2012 would require the Department of Homeland Security to assess security vulnerabilities of essential infrastructure systems, government agencies and enterprises. Additionally, the DHS would examine current security standards for critical industries to determine if each sector is sufficiently regulated.
"I can’t think of a more urgent issue facing this country," said Commerce Committee chairman Jay Rockefeller. "Hackers are stealing information from Fortune 500 companies, breaking into the networks of our government and security agencies and toying with the networks that power our economy. The new frontier in the war against terrorists is being fought online and this bill will level the playing field."
The legislation also calls on federal agencies and private companies to share information regarding cyberthreats, data breaches, best practices and security solutions.
Public and private sector organizations are battling more sophisticated cyberattacks than ever before, making it imperative that they implement advanced security technologies. Some IT departments are using event monitoring solutions to secure data across numerous users, devices and systems.
