[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 158 (Thursday, October 20, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6880-S6881]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 306--SUPPORTING THE GOALS AND IDEALS OF NATIONAL 
 CYBERSECURITY AWARENESS MONTH AND RAISING AWARENESS AND ENHANCING THE 
              STATE OF CYBERSECURITY IN THE UNITED STATES

  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:

                              S. Res. 306

       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

[[Page S6881]]

     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.

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