President’s Initiatives Regarding Cybersecurity and Data Protection

On January 20, President Barak Obama made his State of the Union Address. Among the “tasks that lie ahead,” the President’s initiatives involve cybersecurity and data privacy.

In his address, the President’s initiatives specifically urged members of Congress work together to pass bi-partisan legislation that would help deter data breaches and cyber attacks on both businesses and individuals. He specifically stated:

No foreign nation, no hacker, should be able to shut down our networks, steal our trade secrets, or invade the privacy of American families, especially our kids.  We are making sure our government integrates intelligence to combat cyber threats, just as we have done to combat terrorism.  And tonight, I urge this Congress to finally pass the legislation we need to better meet the evolving threat of cyber-attacks, combat identity theft, and protect our children’s information.  If we don’t act, we’ll leave our nation and our economy vulnerable.  If we do, we can continue to protect the technologies that have unleashed untold opportunities for people around the globe.

As discussed last week, the White House has also already announced several data security proposals. To help speed up the notification process and ease the burden on businesses,  the President’s wants to create a uniform data breach notification standard. The President’s initiatives also previewed plans to bring fast and affordable Internet throughout the United States through a number of new initiatives, including technical and financial assistance to cities and towns that want to provide their own broadband access.

In his State of the Union address, President’s initiatives also tackled concerns about government surveillance and alluded to a new report about data privacy. he stated:

As Americans, we cherish our civil liberties — and we need to uphold that commitment if we want maximum cooperation from other countries and industry in our fight against terrorist networks. So while some have moved on from the debates over our surveillance programs, I haven’t. As promised, our intelligence agencies have worked hard, with the recommendations of privacy advocates, to increase transparency and build more safeguards against potential abuse. And next month, we’ll issue a report on how we’re keeping our promise to keep our country safe while strengthening privacy.

Here is a copy of the full text of the State of the Union Address.

Do you have any feedback, thoughts, reactions or comments regarding the President’s initiatives on data privacy initiatives at the State of the Union Address? Feel free to leave a comment below and follow the twitter accounts @CyberPinguelo, @eWHW_Blog, @S_H_Law