The White House has unveiled a new cybersecurity strategy aimed at addressing the growing threat of cyberattacks. The plan calls for tech companies to take a more active role in preventing such attacks and shifts responsibility for defending against ransomware attacks from individuals, small businesses, and local governments. China is singled out as the biggest and most persistent threat to government and private sector networks.
While the strategy document outlines goals rather than immediate rules, it could result in expanded cybersecurity requirements for companies that run digital infrastructure deemed critical by the White House, such as cloud computing services. These companies would need to meet minimum security standards or face legal liability. The strategy also calls for software companies to be held liable for shipping products without adequate security measures.
The Biden administration aims to strengthen the digital ecosystem to protect against national security consequences resulting from an individual’s momentary lapse in judgment or failure to use adequate security measures. The responsibility for protecting data and ensuring critical systems’ reliability lies with the owners, operators, and technology providers of these systems. The document also focuses on combatting the growing threat of ransomware and illicit cryptocurrency exchanges that make ransomware profitable.
Biden’s new cybersecurity strategy replaces a 2018 document created by former President Donald Trump.
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