Anyone who knows me very well is aware that I listen to a lot of talk radio. (Some might say too much!) Public Radio is my preferred source of news, however, I do listen to some of the right and left-wing talking heads.
On Saturdays, my local Clear-Channel affiliate (WTVN), has a four hour
block of open phones. The callers are
98% Christian Conservatives, and a great deal of them are as articulate as a
rock. In fact, it may be worth
dedicating an entire post to this microcosm of the talk radio community, but this has little to do with my point.
While listening to the radio two weeks ago, one astute listener brought to my attention The Cybersecurity Act of 2009. Her accusations were that:
Der Fuehrer, Herr Obama, mochte 'Free Speech' und
'Democracy' zu toten. Er Hasst
I have decided in this maiden voyage of ATFTF, to describe
in some detail this 52 page piece of legislation.
(Little did I realize how difficult this would be...)
This relatively short bill, only 23 sections in its 52
pages, lays out legal framework to allow the government to begin
making its computer networks more secure from the threat of cyberterrorism. Included in this legislation is the power to regulate protect private enterprises, such as small and medium business.
It does this by, among other things, setting up a Cybersecurity Panel (Sec. 3) to advise the President, mandating the creation of both Cybersecurity standards (Sec. 6) and licensing procedures for Cybersecurity professionals (Sec. 7), creating Cybersecurity Centers (Sec. 5) to assist with creating and enforcing the new standards, regulating the Domain Name Addressing System (Sec. 8 and 9), and funding Cybersecurity research and education (Sec 11, 12, and 13).
After reading a majority of the bill, I found the section that had our radio caller friend and a good part of the Internet in an uproar.
SEC. 18. CYBERSECURITY RESPONSIBILITIES AND AUTHORITY.
The President--
(2) may declare a cybersecurity emergency and order the limitation or shutdown of Internet traffic to and from any compromised Federal Government or United States critical infrastructure information system or network;
(6) may order the disconnection
of any Federal Government or
Giving the President these powers does not seem so scary at first glance. However, a good point has been made:
What
constitutes a Cybersecurity Emergency?
Furthermore, what assurances do American citizens have that this authority
will not be used limit Freedom of Speech?
Arguments have been made that this authority should be given to Congress much like a Declaration of War. I might agree with this statement if our fine members in the Legislative Branch were not constantly engaged in partisan bickering, the sole source of which is the selfish propagation their own career.
Drawing from that theme of checks and balances, I would suggest that the Supreme Court be incharge of supervising the President's use of this power. Those dudes (and dudettes) have their act together.
I also have some concerns about the Cybersecurity Centers:
5(b) The purpose of the Centers is to enhance the cybersecurity of small and medium sized businesses
However, lets be fair to this subject. The government is in dire need of beefing up the security their networks. I do not like the idea of some 14 year-old hacker from across the ocean obtaining plans for F-22's. That may be a bit of a stretch, but America does need to protect its infrastructure. So lets do it responsibly.
Furthermore, there are parts of this bill that I am particularly fond of, specifically Sections 11 through 13, which creates incentives, such as grants and scholarships, for research in this field.
My favorite of these is Sec. 13. Cybersecurity competition and challenge. Legislation that empowers:
13(A) The Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology ... (to) establish Cybersecurity competitions and challenges with cash prizes.
13(B) targeting the following groups: (1) High school students (2) Undergraduate students (3) Graduate students and (4) Academic and research institutions.
Awesome! The idea of creating a game out of hacking for high schooler's could really motivate teenagers to put down their XBoxes and PSPs and actively thinking about their future. If we would have had this legislation in the '90s, I might have pursued a career in software development as opposed to hardware. I hope Congress will seriously pursue this idea regardless of the fate of this bill.
In honor of waxing threat of cyberterrorism, I wanted to post a link to Andy Duguid Remix of John O'Callaghan song 'Never Fade Away' Featuring Lo-Fi Sugar. Of the countless hours of trance I listen to each week, this song has really caught my ear.
Also for your reading enjoyment:
The Cybersecuirty Act of 2009
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