5Q: Sheldon Whitehouse

 / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO
/ PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

1 Why is it important that the United States address vulnerabilities to cyberattacks?

Securing corporate and government networks against cyberattacks is one of the most important challenges America faces. The cyberthreats our nation needs to address are many and growing. Professional hackers deployed by China and other nations are conducting cyber industrial espionage, stealing the intellectual property of America’s businesses to help their defense industries and giving advantage to our high-tech competitors. Hostile nations like Iran and North Korea have launched cyberattacks directly against American industry, causing tens of millions of dollars in damage.

2 Why do the government and the business community need to work together to combat cyberthreats?

In addition to nation-state actors, cybercriminals hack American businesses on a massive scale for financial and commercial data they can sell in the black market, and deploy sophisticated malware against businesses to extort ransom payments for restoring access to critical files. Companies can’t fight these battles alone.

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3 How big of an issue is it here in Rhode Island?

Every business in Rhode Island that uses a computer is susceptible to hacking and other cyberattacks. But the issue takes on even more importance in our high-tech research industries like biotechnology and defense.

4 What are you doing in Congress to address cyberattacks on businesses?

While we build toward more comprehensive solutions, I have found bipartisan support for modernizing outdated cyber laws and giving prosecutors better tools to fight cybercrime. Sen. Lindsey Graham, [R-S.C.], and I recently introduced legislation to give prosecutors more authority to combat the plague of botnets – networks of compromised computers that enable a wide range of criminal activity on the internet.

5 How do Rhode Island businesses benefit from having both you and U.S. Rep. James R. Langevin so active on this issue?

Congressman Langevin and I work together closely on cybersecurity issues. … One collaboration recently bore fruit when the president signed into law legislation Jim and I wrote extending the reach of American prosecutors to foreign cybercriminals who buy and sell Americans’ stolen financial information overseas. •

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