Technology industry huddles with privacy group over cybersecurity bill

A major software industry group met with one of the leading critics of a cybersecurity bill on Monday to try to find common ground on the legislation.

The Business Software Alliance (BSA), which represents companies including Microsoft, Apple and Adobe, met with the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) to discuss the nonprofit group's privacy concerns with the the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA).

CDT, along with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union, Free Press and other groups, is leading a week of protests against the cybersecurity bill.

The bill would tear down legal barriers that discourage companies from sharing information about cyber attacks, but privacy groups warn the legislation could lead companies to hand over personal user information to spy agencies.

Many technology companies including Microsoft and Facebook support CISPA, which they say will help them protect their systems from cyberattacks.

The House is expected to vote on the bill next week.

Tom Molino, vice president of government affairs for the BSA, said he is confident that the two sides can find a solution.

"I really believe that progress was made," Molino told The Hill. "The two sides aren't diametrically opposed."

Molino emphasized that privacy is important to the technology industry.

"We think this is not the same thing as SOPA-PIPA," Molino said, referring to anti-piracy legislation that Congress abandoned after pressure from Internet activists. "We're doing our best to make sure that people understand that."

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