[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 993 Engrossed in House (EH)]







109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 993

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to 
 raising awareness and enhancing the state of computer security in the 
 United States, and supporting the goals and ideals of National Cyber 
                       Security Awareness Month.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 12, 2006

 Mr. Daniel E. Lungren of California (for himself, Ms. Loretta Sanchez 
 of California, Mr. King of New York, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr. 
Boehlert, and Mr. Gordon) submitted the following resolution; which was 
                  referred to the Committee on Science

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION



 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to 
 raising awareness and enhancing the state of computer security in the 
 United States, and supporting the goals and ideals of National Cyber 
                       Security Awareness Month.

Whereas over 205,000,000 Americans use the Internet in the United States, 
        including more than 84,000,000 home-users through broadband connections, 
        to communicate with family and friends, manage their finances, pay their 
        bills, improve their education, shop at home, and read about current 
        events;
Whereas the approximately 26,000,000 small businesses in the United States, who 
        represent 99.7 percent of all United States employers and employ 50 
        percent of the private work force, increasingly rely on the Internet to 
        manage their businesses, expand their customer reach, and enhance their 
        connection with their supply chain;
Whereas according to the Department of Education, nearly 100 percent of public 
        schools in the United States have Internet access, with approximately 93 
        percent of instructional rooms connected to the Internet, to enhance our 
        children's education by providing access to educational online content 
        and encouraging responsible self-initiative to discover research 
        resources;
Whereas according to the Pew Institute, almost 9 in 10 teenagers between the 
        ages of 12 and 17, or 87 percent of all youth (approximately 21,000,000 
        people) use the Internet, and 78 percent (or about 16,000,000 students) 
        say they use the Internet at school;
Whereas teen use of the Internet at school has grown 45 percent since 2000, and 
        educating children of all ages about safe, secure, and ethical practices 
        will not only protect their systems, but will protect our children's 
        physical safety, and help them become good cyber citizens;
Whereas the growth and popularity of social networking websites have attracted 
        millions of teenagers, providing them with a range of valuable services, 
        teens must be taught how to avoid potential threats like cyber bullies, 
        predators and identity thieves they may come across while using such 
        services;
Whereas our Nation's critical infrastructures rely on the secure and reliable 
        operation of our information networks to support our Nation's financial 
        services, energy, telecommunications, transportation, health care, and 
        emergency response systems;
Whereas cyber security is a critical part of our Nation's overall homeland 
        security, in particular the control systems that control and monitor our 
        drinking water, dams, and other water management systems; our 
        electricity grids, oil and gas supplies, and pipeline distribution 
        networks; our transportation systems; and other critical manufacturing 
        processes;
Whereas terrorists and others with malicious motives have demonstrated an 
        interest in utilizing cyber means to attack our Nation, and the 
        Department of Homeland Security's mission includes securing the homeland 
        against cyber terrorism and other attacks;
Whereas Internet users and our information infrastructure face an increasing 
        threat of malicious attacks through viruses, worms, Trojans, and 
        unwanted programs such as spyware, adware, hacking tools, and password 
        stealers, that are frequent and fast in propagation, are costly to 
        repair, and disable entire systems;
Whereas according to Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, since February 2005, over 90 
        million records containing personally-identifiable information have been 
        breached, and the overall increase in serious data breaches in both the 
        private and public sectors are threatening the security and well-being 
        of United States citizens;
Whereas consumers face significant financial and personal privacy losses due to 
        identity theft and fraud, as reported in over 686,000 complaints in 2005 
        to the Federal Trade Commission's Consumer Sentinel database; and 
        Internet-related complaints in 2005 accounted for 46 percent of all 
        reported fraud complaints, with monetary losses of over $680,000,000 and 
        a median loss of $350;
Whereas our Nation's youth face increasing threats online such as inappropriate 
        content or child predators, according to the National Center for Missing 
        and Exploited Children 34 percent of teens are exposed to unwanted 
        sexually explicit material on the Internet, and with one in seven 
        children having been approached by a child predator online each year;
Whereas national organizations, policymakers, government agencies, private 
        sector companies, nonprofit institutions, schools, academic 
        organizations, consumers, and the media recognize the need to increase 
        awareness of computer security and enhance our level of computer and 
        national security in the United States;
Whereas the National Cyber Security Alliance's mission is to increase awareness 
        of cyber security practices and technologies to home users, students, 
        teachers, and small businesses through educational activities, online 
        resources and checklists, and Public Service Announcements; and
Whereas the National Cyber Security Alliance has designated October as National 
        Cyber Security Awareness Month, which will provide an opportunity to 
        educate the people of the United States about computer security: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved,  That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of National Cyber 
        Security Awareness Month; and
            (2) will work with Federal agencies, national 
        organizations, businesses, and educational institutions to 
        encourage the development and implementation of existing and 
        future computer security voluntary consensus standards, 
        practices, and technologies in order to enhance the state of 
        computer security in the United States.
                                 <all>