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DHS official says ISPs would likely be covered by Obama cybersecurity plan
A top Department of Homeland Security cybersecurity official told lawmakers Internet Service Providers (ISPs) would likely be among the private-sector firms that would be subject to federal oversight under the White House's proposed cybersecurity legislation.
At a hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, DHS acting Deputy Under Secretary Greg Schaffer acknowledged that under the White House's plan, ISPs would likely be among the private firms deemed critical infrastructure and therefore subject to federal security standards.
Schaffer emphasized that the administration's legislative proposal doesn't explicitly lay out which industries would be deemed critical and core critical infrastructure, but witnesses at Tuesday's hearing mentioned transportation, financial services, utilities and healthcare providers as among those sectors that could be included.
Subpanel Chairman Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) noted that ISPs are in a unique position to know when consumers' computers are under attack or have been enslaved by malicious botnets. He suggested ISPs should take action against infected devices in the event consumers are not aware of the breach.
Schwartz said DHS would sort out what's covered under the legislation but added that some aspects of firms' businesses may be considered critical infrastructure under the bill while others wouldn't be. He said ISPs may face security regulation for some of their products and services but not all of them.
The administration's proposal and a series of high-profile data breaches in recent months have built momentum for comprehensive cybersecurity legislation, but reaching a bipartisan compromise that can pass both chambers remains an uphill task.
A number of committees in the Senate have expressed interest in the issue, while House Republicans have yet to tip their hand as to how they would protect private-sector networks.
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