Government

CISPA: How the New Cyber Security Bill Isn‘t SOPA But Some Say It’s ‘Just as Bad’

Cybersecurity Intelligence Sharing Protection Act Compared to SOPA and Raises Privacy Concerns

(Photo: Shutterstock)

With the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protecting Intellectual Property Act (PIPA) stifled after strong protests at the end of 2011 and through the beginning of 2012, a new and relatively quiet piece of cybersecurity legislation is rearing its head, finding support among big-name companies and opposition from privacy advocates.

The Cybersecurity Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act was introduced in the House in Nov. 2011 and now has more than 100 co-sponsors. The Huffington Post explains the proposed legislation would encourage businesses to voluntarily share information about cyberattacks with the government by providing more legal protection for the sharing of this information. Opposition is concerned private customer data could be shared under the bill as well.

Here’s more from co-sponsors Rep. Mike Rodgers (R-Mich.) and Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.):

“Every day U.S. businesses are targeted by nation-state actors like China for cyber exploitation and theft,” Rogers said.  “This consistent and extensive cyber looting results in huge losses of valuable intellectual property, sensitive information, and American jobs.  The broad base of support for this bill shows that Congress recognizes the urgent need to help our private sector better defend itself from these insidious attacks,” he said.

Many of the same vulnerabilities used to steal intellectual property can also be used to attack the critical infrastructure we depend on every day.

“Without important, immediate changes to American cybersecurity policy, I believe our country will continue to be at risk for a catastrophic attack to our nation’s vital networks – networks that power our homes, provide our clean water or maintain the other critical services we use every day.  This small but important piece of legislation is a decisive first step to tackle the cyber threats we face,” said Ranking Member C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger.

The Huffington Post reports that most business don’t share information of cyberattacks on their systems with the government because they “fear violating anti-trust law.” CISPA’s “overly broad” language about the definition of consumer data is what has privacy advocates seeing how the information obtained by the government in this manner could be used abused in the name of cybersecurity:

Michelle Richardson, a legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, called the bill “a privacy disaster” and “a new backdoor around the Fourth Amendment.”

“This is a whole new surveillance program,” she told The Huffington Post.

TechDirt has more on this concern:

CISPA states that the entity providing the information cannot be an individual or be working for an individual, but the data they share (traffic, user activity, etc.) will absolutely include information about individuals. There is no incentive in the bill to anonymize this data—there is only a clause permitting anonymization, which is meaningless since the choice of what data to share is already voluntary. Note that any existing legal protections of user privacy will not apply: the bill clearly states that the information may be shared“notwithstanding any other provision of law”.

So we’ve got the government collecting this data, potentially full of identifying information of users in the U.S. and elsewhere, and they are free to use it for any of those broadly defined cybersecurity or national security purposes. But, it gets worse: the government is also allowed to affirmatively search the information for those same reasons—meaning they are by no means limited to examining the data in relation to a specific threat. If, for example, a company were to provide logs of a major attack on their network, the government could then search that information for pretty much anything else they want.

HuffPo also reports that supporters of the bill deny recent criticism that it is the new SOPA. Rogers said comparing the two bills are is like comparing apples to oranges. But some tech blogs feel differently. GeekOSystem, while it acknowledges critical differences between the two bills, states CISPA is “just as bad.” According to GeekOSystem, unlike SOPA/PIPA, which sought to protect intellectual property, “CISPA operates under the guise national cybersecurity as opposed to economic concerns”. GeekOSystem states:

CISPA allows for the sharing of otherwise private data between private companies and the government (in both directions) so long as the exchange is ostensibly related to cybersecurity. What “cybersecurity” actually means is woefully unclear.

According to the bill, it would help “[protect] a system or network from — (A) efforts to degrade, disrupt, or destroy such system or network; or (B) theft or misappropriation of private or government information, intellectual property, or personally identifiable information.’ GeekOSystem points out that copyright can be considered intellectual property by the FBI.

TechDirt isn’t too optimistic about Congress appropriately addressing some of these concerns to fix the bill. It says making some definitions less broad and adding some oversight and liability to prevent the government from violating terms would make it more palatable. But, it still notes that the number of restrictions this would require “points to Congress’ inability to effectively design internet regulation.”

Forbes writes more than 569,000 people have signed a petition at Avaaz.org in opposition of the bill. Some industry leaders, such as Facebook, Verizon, Intel and Microsoft, have publicly supported it. See more supporters here.

The bill is expected to be voted on by the House during the week of April 23.

Comments (17)

  • duketurner
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 12:41pm

    So I just read Article 1 of the Constitution and I don’t see where this law would fit. I suggest a new ammendment.

    Amendment 28 “Congress shall specifically identify the Article, to include section, or Amendment of the Constitution to which the proposed bill, act of legislation, or policy applies.”

    If it doesn’t have this simple link identified, then it doesn’t become a law.

    Report Post » duketurner  
    • Baddoggy
      Posted on April 12, 2012 at 2:22pm

      It will never happen. If it did we would have a total collapse and we could dismantle 99% of the Government overnight…They would NEVER give up this kind of power. Too bad. Its nice to dream.

      Report Post » Baddoggy  
    • MrObvious
      Posted on April 13, 2012 at 3:16am

      75% of the links on new bills would point the to commerce clause.
      24% point to the 16th Amendment.
      The rest would just point to a clause or amendment chosen at random.

      Passing the Fair Tax has been proved doable (in the House).
      Given that fact, the 16th Amendment becomes repeal-able without pain.
      Now it’s just a matter of getting enough of our elected officials to realize that.

      Next we just need to pass an Amendment blocking abuse of the commerce clause.
      Probably something like requiring full agreement by at least 35 states, before a law based on the commerce clause may take effect.

      Report Post »  
  • duketurner
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 11:51am

    I know the job of the congress is to make laws, but what exactly are the laws they create suppose to do? I though they are supposed to protect our rights and enable more freedom as in civil liberties. It seems like the laws they create are more of a Parent-Child relationship. It’s like they are telling us what we MUST DO (go to bed at 9) rather than what OTHERS CAN’T do (make us where blue shirts on Monday) to us because it will infringe on our freedoms. The laws seem to say “You, the citizen, must do abc“ rather than ”Nobody is allowed to restrict the citizens ability to abc”. I don’t know if that makes sense, but these laws today seem WAY out of the scope of what our congress should be focusing on and making laws about.

    Report Post » duketurner  
  • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 9:15am

    Here we go again with another move from a ever more tyrannical government.

    Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
  • socialism.rocks
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 8:31am

    lmao government cant use simple ip blocking software what a joke~

    Report Post » socialism.rocks  
  • Baddoggy
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 7:25am

    Get over it. they are not going to stop until they have full control over everyday life. We are the frog in the boiling pot of water. We have been regulated into hell. It will never stop until the Revolution begins.
    That will start when they run out of money to supply the welfare recipient. Then when they all get shot looting and the big cities are burned to the ground the REAL revolution will begin to restore the Republic.

    Report Post » Baddoggy  
  • lukerw
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 6:47am

    Good Ole… Mike Rogers; It’s hard to tell a Republican from a Democrat in Michigan… unless they wear a Party Tag… for the State leans Left over the lap of the Unions who will Spank!

    Report Post » lukerw  
    • jhrusky
      Posted on April 12, 2012 at 10:26am

      There are no true differences between Reps and Dems. The only reason there are both parties is they want to give us the illusion that we actually have a choice. This is one of the biggest scams pulled on the American public in all time. They will do anything they can to prevent a 3rd party, or a non-conformist, to truly become a ‘player’; e.g. Ron Paul, Ross Perot.

      We the People are not rising up. We the People are allowing this to continue year after year. We the People seem to be pacified as long as we get our 6 pack of beer, our reality TV, and our time to arm-chair protest on some stupid blog as if that helps our goals.

      We the People are getting the very government we deserve.

      Report Post » jhrusky  
  • slvrserfr
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 4:07am

    With or without the bill, the NSA and the CIA already have an agenda to monitor all digital information both foreign and domestic. The NSA is already in the process of developing a massive facility designed specifically to process and monitor all domestic information sent by citizens in this country. Just another measure of the government subversively implying that they don’t trust anyone and labeling their reason for blatantly invading your privacy as a measure of national security.

    Report Post »  
  • NeoMouser
    Posted on April 12, 2012 at 12:47am

    its a setup plain and simple

    Report Post »  
    • Marci
      Posted on April 12, 2012 at 3:21am

      If Facebook supports it, they can kiss their multi-billion dollar company goodbye. And yes, agree with Mouser, just another setup.

      Report Post » Marci  
    • RepubliCorp
      Posted on April 12, 2012 at 3:36am

      Anyone on Facebook is a fool…….

      Report Post » RepubliCorp  
  • MAMMY_NUNN
    Posted on April 11, 2012 at 11:44pm

    This has nothing to do with security if it was security related they would be monitoring the countries deemed enemies and not what the private citizen is doing. I smell Microsoft trying to be the sole propriety in the U.S. as they are trying to force out the rivals by mandating hardware makers conform to Microsoft only compatibility. In other words if you ain‘t using Microsoft your computer won’t boot and if it ain‘t Microsoft certified you won’t be able to get a online connection.

    Report Post »  
    • Baddoggy
      Posted on April 12, 2012 at 7:27am

      Mammy…did you forget to refill your meds???

      Report Post » Baddoggy  
    • MAMMY_NUNN
      Posted on April 12, 2012 at 9:18am

      No my meds are fine look it up Microsoft is already in the process of requiring manufactur’s to lock out third party software from running on computers.

      Report Post »  
  • Smokey_Bojangles
    Posted on April 11, 2012 at 11:09pm

    Co-Sponsored by Rep. Mike Rodgers (Fascist-Mich.) and Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (Communist-Md.).

    Report Post » Smokey_Bojangles  

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