[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 306 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 306

  Supporting the goals and ideals of National Cybersecurity Awareness 
Month and raising awareness and enhancing the state of cybersecurity in 
                           the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

             October 21 (legislative day, October 20), 2011

Mr. Johnson of Wisconsin (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, Ms. Collins, Ms. 
 Landrieu, Mr. Begich, Mr. Akaka, Mr. Coons, Mr. Carper, Mr. Brown of 
Massachusetts, and Ms. Snowe) submitted the following resolution; which 
                      was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Supporting the goals and ideals of National Cybersecurity Awareness 
Month and raising awareness and enhancing the state of cybersecurity in 
                           the United States.

Whereas the use of the Internet in the United States to communicate, conduct 
        business, and generate commerce that benefits the overall United States 
        economy is ubiquitous;
Whereas the United States technological know-how, innovation, and 
        entrepreneurship are all digitally connected;
Whereas as the pace of innovation has accelerated, so too have methods to attack 
        the United States economic prosperity and security, spawning new, high-
        tech challenges, from identity theft to corporate hacking to 
        cyberbullying;
Whereas many people use the Internet in the United States to communicate with 
        family and friends, manage finances and pay bills, access educational 
        opportunities, shop at home, participate in online entertainment and 
        games, and stay informed of news and current events;
Whereas small businesses in the United States, which employ a significant 
        portion of the private workforce, increasingly rely on the Internet to 
        manage their businesses, expand their customer reach, and enhance the 
        management of their supply chain;
Whereas many schools in the United States have Internet access to enhance the 
        education of children by providing access to educational online content 
        and encouraging self-initiative to discover research resources;
Whereas cybersecurity is a critical part of the United States national and 
        economic security;
Whereas the United States critical infrastructure and economy rely on the secure 
        and reliable operation of information networks to support the United 
        States military, civilian government, energy, telecommunications, 
        financial services, transportation, health care, and emergency response 
        systems;
Whereas Internet users and information infrastructure owners and operators face 
        an increasing threat of cybercrime and fraud through viruses, worms, 
        Trojans, and malicious programs, such as spyware, adware, hacking tools, 
        and password stealers, that are frequent and fast in propagation, are 
        costly to repair, and may disable entire systems;
Whereas the intellectual property, including proprietary information, 
        copyrights, patents, trademarks, and related information, of businesses, 
        academic institutions, government, and individuals are vital to the 
        economic security of the United States;
Whereas millions of records containing personally identifiable information have 
        been lost, stolen, or breached, threatening the security and financial 
        well-being of the people of the United States;
Whereas consumers face significant financial and personal privacy losses due to 
        personally identifiable information being more exposed to theft and 
        fraud than ever before;
Whereas national organizations, policymakers, governmental agencies, private-
        sector companies, nonprofit institutions, schools, academic 
        organizations, consumers, and the media recognize the need to increase 
        awareness of cybersecurity and the need for enhanced cybersecurity in 
        the United States;
Whereas coordination between the numerous Federal agencies involved in 
        cybersecurity efforts is essential to securing the cyber infrastructure 
        of the United States;
Whereas in February 2003 the White House issued National Strategy to Secure 
        Cyberspace, which recommends a comprehensive national awareness program 
        to empower all people in the United States, including businesses, the 
        general workforce, and the general population, to secure their own 
        portions of cyberspace;
Whereas in May 2009 the White House issued Cyberspace Policy Review, which 
        recommends that the Federal Government initiate a national public 
        awareness and education campaign to promote cybersecurity;
Whereas ``STOP. THINK. CONNECT.'' is the national cybersecurity awareness 
        campaign founded and led by the National Cyber Security Alliance, the 
        Anti-Phishing Working Group as a public-private partnership with the 
        Department of Homeland Security, and a coalition of private companies, 
        nonprofits, and governmental organizations to help all digital people of 
        the United States stay safer and more secure online;
Whereas the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education, led by the National 
        Institute of Standards and Technology, is the coordinating body for the 
        Federal Government to establish a sustainable, operational, and 
        continually improving cybersecurity education program to enhance the 
        United States cybersecurity and support the development of a 
        professional cybersecurity workforce and cyber-capable people;
Whereas according to U.S. Cyber Challenge, the initiative is working to identify 
        ``10,000 of America's best and brightest to fill the ranks of 
        cybersecurity professionals where their skills can be of the greatest 
        value to the nation'';
Whereas the Cyber Innovation Center has established cyber camps and other 
        educational programs to bolster knowledge of science, technology, math, 
        and engineering to build a sustainable knowledge-based workforce capable 
        of addressing cyber threats and the future needs of government, 
        industry, and academia; and
Whereas the National Cyber Security Alliance, the Multi-State Information 
        Sharing & Analysis Center, the Department of Homeland Security, and 
        other organizations working to improve cybersecurity in the United 
        States have designated October 2011 as the eighth annual National 
        Cybersecurity Awareness Month, which serves to educate the people of the 
        United States about the importance of cybersecurity: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of National Cybersecurity 
        Awareness Month;
            (2) continues to work with Federal agencies, businesses, 
        educational institutions, and other organizations to enhance 
        the state of cybersecurity in the United States;
            (3) commends the work of National Initiative for 
        Cybersecurity Education and all the Federal agencies, 
        nonprofits, educational institutions, businesses, and other 
        organizations that support this effort;
            (4) recognizes ``STOP. THINK. CONNECT.'' as the national 
        cybersecurity awareness campaign to educate the people of the 
        United States and help all people of the United States stay 
        safer and more secure online; and
            (5) congratulates the National Cyber Security Alliance, the 
        Multi-State Information Sharing & Analysis Center, the 
        Department of Homeland Security, and other organizations 
        working to improve cybersecurity in the United States on the 
        eighth anniversary of National Cyber Security Awareness Month 
        during October 2011.
                                 <all>