Obama Wields Executive Power Again: ‘Cyber World Is Sort of the Wild, Wild West’

President Barack Obama signed an executive order Friday to promote information sharing among companies and the government, while acknowledging concerns people have about protecting their privacy from the government.

“This cyber world is sort of the wild, wild west,” Obama said before signing the order at Stanford University, where he was speaking at the White House Summit on Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection. “To some degree we are asked to be the sheriff. When something like Sony happens, people want to know, what can government do about this? If information is being shared by terrorists in the cyber world people want to know: Are there ways of stopping that from happening? By necessity that means the government has its own significant capabilities in the cyber world.”

President Barack Obama speaks at the White House Summit on Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection in Stanford, Calif., Friday, Feb. 13, 2015. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

He said there has to be a balance.

“People rightly ask: What safeguards do we have on government intruding on our own privacy. It’s hard,” Obama continued. “It constantly evolves because the technology so often outstrips whatever rules and structures and standards have been put in place. Which means the government has to be constantly self critical and we have to be able to have an open debate about it.”

Stanford University is in the heart of Silicon Valley where Google, Apple, Facebook and other major tech companies are located. The conference included both administration officials and numerous executives from industries such as technology, banking and retail.

The executive order calls for private companies to work on concert to establish information sharing and analysis organizations, or ISAOs, to promote sharing in certain industries or certain regions to fend off cyber threats. The order further directs the Department of Homeland Security to establish rules for entering into the sharing organizations with companies.

“I’m signing a new executive order to promote more information sharing about cyber threats both within the private sector and within government and the private sector,” Obama said. “It will encourage more companies and industries to set up organizations, hubs, so you can share information with each other. It will call for a common set of standards, including protections and civil liberties so the government can share threat information with these hubs more easily.”

Obama submitted a proposal to Congress last month to set national standards for when companies must notify consumers that their personal information has been compromised. The proposal would also exempt companies from liability if they share information with the government to help catch the cyber terrorists.

Major corporations such as Anthem, Sony, Target and Home Depot were hacked. The federal government wasn’t safe either. Last month the twitter account of U.S. Central Command was hacked by a pro-Islamic State group, and even the White House reported concerns last October.

Earlier this week, the White House announced the establishment of a new agency to combat cyberterrorism.

https://www.theblaze.com/news/2015/02/10/white-house-announces-new-agency-it-says-could-keep-incidents-like-sony-hacking-from-becoming-the-norm/