A bipartisan group of Congressmen cheered the passing of the Cyber Diplomacy Act (H.R. 3776) yesterday by the House of Representatives.
The bill was introduced by Rep. Edward Royce, R-Calif., and Elliot Engel, D-N.Y., in September 2017 and will now move on to the Senate.
“This is a bipartisan, America-first cybersecurity bill. It will help protect Georgians and all Americans from foreign cybercriminals and other bad actors by ensuring the United States is a leading voice on international cybersecurity issues,” said Rep. Tom Graves, R-Ga.
If signed into law the Cyber Diplomacy Act would require the government to secure and implement commitments from other countries on proper cyberspace behavior. This would include generating agreements between nations to not support cybercriminal activity such as theft of intellectual property, cooperate in developing measures to keep their territories clear of intentionally wrongful acts using information and communications technology (ICT) in violation of international commitments and promote securely-designed ICT products.
“Our bipartisan legislation creates the structure, strategy and oversight necessary for the State Department to ensure that U.S. leadership extends to the critical area of cyberspace. Cyber concerns permeate every region and issue area, from intellectual property to human rights. That is why it is so important that the United States takes the lead on developing international cyber guidelines and enforcement mechanisms,” said Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif.
