FOURTEEN YEARS LATER, CYBER SECURITY IS STILL A PROBLEM

I caught this Reuters article on Yahoo News today:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The cyber attack on Sony Pictures underscores the need for U.S. businesses and government to cooperate on cyber threats and for chief executives to assess their companies' cybersecurity, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said on Friday.

"The Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies are here to help. We seek to raise the level of cybersecurity in both the private sector and civilian government, and provide timely information to protect all our systems against cyber threats," he said in a statement.

Johnson urged companies to adopt the voluntary Cybersecurity Framework of best practices to protect against cyber risks.

And I thought this issue has been around for over a decade & I was correct:

The Washington Post

June 20, 2000, Tuesday, Final Edition

Reno Urges Better Cyber-Security

BYLINE: John Schwartz , Washington Post Staff Writer

SECTION: FINANCIAL; Pg. E04

LENGTH: 292 words

Two-thirds of Americans are concerned about "cyber-crime" and more than 60 percent are less likely to do business over the Internet because of it, according to a new survey released at a "Cyber Crime Summit" in Herndon yesterday.

"We are very dependent on cyber-technology--we have not kept up with cyber-security," said Attorney General Janet Reno in remarks to the meeting, which brought together law enforcement officials and information technology firms for a day of discussion.


The groups have had a rocky relationship. Companies have been reluctant to share too much information about cyber-attacks with government for fear of embarrassment or legal liability if a firm's vulnerability is exposed. Many companies have also said criminal investigations disrupt business.

Reno said the government was still learning how to investigate cyber-crime without disrupting companies, but said that investigation was nonetheless necessary. Comparing the situation with a home burglary, she said the police need to be able to get to work right away after any crime. "If the crime scene is messed up . . . clues and pieces of evidence are vacuumed up, police are going to have a hard time solving your burglary," Reno said.

Reno said a solution would have to come from industry with government help. She said she was asking U.S. attorneys in 93 federal districts to talk with local business officials to build better relationships.

The summit was hosted by Electronic Data Systems Corp. and the Information Technology Association of America; EDS and ITAA also commissioned the survey. "This poll underscores the fact that Americans are not satisfied with existing protections from computer criminals," said EDS Chairman Dick Brown.


LOAD-DATE: June 20, 2000

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH