[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 199 (Tuesday, November 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8272-S8273]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 4676. Ms. KLOBUCHAR submitted an amendment intended to be proposed 
to amendment SA 3867 submitted by Mr. Reed and intended to be proposed 
to the bill H.R. 4350, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2022 
for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military 
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, 
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for 
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

        At the appropriate place in title X, insert the following:

     SEC. ___. VETERANS CYBERSECURITY AND DIGITAL LITERACY GRANT 
                   PROGRAM.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       (1) Adversaries from Russia, China, and Iran are using 
     information warfare to influence democracies across the 
     world, and extremist organizations often use digital 
     communications to recruit members. Influence campaigns from 
     foreign adversaries reached tens of millions of voters during 
     the 2016 and 2018 elections with racially and divisively 
     targeted messages. The Unites States can fight these 
     influences by ensuring that citizens of the United States 
     possess the necessary skills to discern disinformation and 
     misinformation and protect themselves from foreign influence 
     campaigns.
       (2) Researchers have documented persistent, pervasive, and 
     coordinated online targeting of members of the Armed Forces, 
     veterans, and their families by foreign adversaries seeking 
     to undermine United States democracy in part because of 
     public trust placed in these communities.
       (3) A 2017 report by the University of Oxford's Graphika 
     Institute, titled ``Social Media Disinformation Campaigns 
     Against US Military Personnel and Veterans'', concluded that 
     ``The pubic tends to place trust in military personnel and 
     veterans, making them potentially influential voters and 
     community leaders. Given this trust and their role in 
     ensuring national security, these individuals have the 
     potential to become particular targets for influence 
     operations and information campaigns conducted on social 
     media. There are already reports of US service personnel 
     being confronted by foreign intelligence agencies while 
     posted abroad, with details of their personal lives gleaned 
     from social media.''.
       (4) The Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate 
     found in its investigation of the interference in the 2016 
     election that social media posts by the Internet Research 
     Agency (IRA) of Russia reached tens of millions of voters in 
     2016 and were meant to pit the people of the United States 
     against one another and sow discord. Volume II of the 
     Committee's investigation found that the Internet Research 
     Agency's Instagram account with the second largest reach used 
     the handle ``@american.veterans'' and was ``aimed at 
     patriotic, conservative audiences, collected 215,680 
     followers, and generated nearly 18.5 million engagements.''.
       (5) A 2019 investigative report by the Vietnam Veterans of 
     America (VVA) titled ``An Investigation into Foreign Entities 
     who are Targeting Troops and Veterans Online'', found that 
     the Internet Research Agency targeted veterans and the 
     followers of several congressionally chartered veterans 
     service organizations with at least 113 advertisements during 
     and following the 2016 election and that ``this represents a 
     fraction of the Russian activity that targeted this community 
     with divisive propaganda.''. The report also found that 
     foreign actors have been impersonating veterans through 
     social-media accounts and interacting with veterans and 
     veterans groups on social media to spread propaganda and 
     disinformation. To counter these acts, Vietnam Veterans of 
     America recommended that the Department of Veterans Affairs 
     ``immediately develop plans to make the cyber-hygiene of 
     veterans an urgent priority within the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs. The VA must educate and train veterans on personal 
     cybersecurity: how to mitigate vulnerabilities, vigilantly 
     maintain safe practices, and recognize threats, including how 
     to identify instances of online manipulation.''.
       (6) The Cyberspace Solarium Commission, a bicameral and 
     bipartisan commission, established by section 1652 of the 
     John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
     Year 2019 (Public Law 115-232), concluded in its finished 
     report that the ``U.S. government should promote digital 
     literacy, civics education, and public awareness to build 
     societal resilience to foreign, malign cyber-enabled 
     information operations and that the U.S. government must 
     ensure that individual Americans have both the digital 
     literacy tools and the civics education they need to secure 
     their networks and their democracy from cyber-enabled 
     information operations.''. The report recommended that 
     Congress authorizing grant programs to do this.
       (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that, 
     given the threat foreign influence campaigns pose for United 
     States democracy and the findings and recommendations of 
     Congress and experts, Congress must immediately act to pass 
     legislative measures

[[Page S8273]]

     to increase digital and media literacy as well as cyber-
     hygiene among veterans.
       (c) Program Required.--The Secretary shall establish a 
     program to promote digital citizenship and media literacy, 
     through which the Secretary shall award grants to eligible 
     entities to enable those eligible entities to carry out the 
     activities described in subsection (e).
       (d) Application.--An eligible entity seeking a grant under 
     the program required by subsection (c) shall submit to the 
     Secretary an application therefor at such time, in such 
     manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 
     require, including, at a minimum the following:
       (1) A description of the activities the eligible entity 
     intends to carry out with the grant funds.
       (2) An estimate of the costs associated with such 
     activities.
       (3) Such other information and assurances as the Secretary 
     may require.
       (e) Activities.--An eligible entity shall use the amount of 
     a grant awarded under the program required by subsection (c) 
     to carry out one or more of the following activities to 
     improve cyber-hygiene and increase digital and media literacy 
     among veterans:
       (1) Develop competencies in cyber-hygiene.
       (2) Develop media literacy and digital citizenship 
     competencies by promoting veterans'--
       (A) research and information fluency;
       (B) critical thinking and problem solving skills;
       (C) technology operations and concepts;
       (D) information and technological literacy;
       (E) concepts of media and digital representation and 
     stereotyping;
       (F) understanding of explicit and implicit media and 
     digital messages;
       (G) understanding of values and points of view that are 
     included and excluded in media and digital content;
       (H) understanding of how media and digital content may 
     influence ideas and behaviors;
       (I) understanding of the importance of obtaining 
     information from multiple media sources and evaluating 
     sources for quality;
       (J) understanding how information on digital platforms can 
     be altered through algorithms, editing, and augmented 
     reality;
       (K) ability to create media and digital content in 
     civically and socially responsible ways; and
       (L) understanding of influence campaigns conducted by 
     foreign adversaries and the tactics employed by foreign 
     adversaries for conducting influence campaigns.
       (f) Reporting.--
       (1) Reports by grant recipients.--Each recipient of a grant 
     under the program required by subsection (c) shall, not later 
     than one year after the date on which the recipient first 
     receives funds pursuant to the grant, submit to the Secretary 
     a report describing the activities the recipient carried out 
     using grant funds and the effectiveness of those activities.
       (2) Report by the secretary.--Not later than 90 days after 
     the date on which the Secretary receives the last report the 
     Secretary expects to receive under paragraph (1), the 
     Secretary shall submit to Congress a report describing the 
     activities carried out under this section and the 
     effectiveness of those activities.
       (g) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the Secretary should--
       (1) establish and maintain a list of eligible entities that 
     receive a grant under the program required by subsection (c), 
     and individuals designated by those eligible entities as 
     participating individuals; and
       (2) make that list available to those eligible entities and 
     participating individuals in order to promote communication 
     and further exchange of information regarding sound digital 
     citizenship and media literacy practices among recipients of 
     grants under the program required by subsection (c).
       (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000 for 
     fiscal year 2022.
       (i) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Cyber-hygiene.--The term ``cyber-hygiene'' means 
     practices and steps that users of computers and other 
     internet connected devices take to maintain and improve 
     online security, maintain the proper functioning of computers 
     devices, and protect computers and devices from cyberattacks 
     and unauthorized use.
       (2) Digital citizenship.--The term ``digital citizenship'' 
     means the ability to--
       (A) safely, responsibly, and ethically use communication 
     technologies and digital information technology tools and 
     platforms;
       (B) create and share media content using principles of 
     social and civic responsibility and with awareness of the 
     legal and ethical issues involved; and
       (C) participate in the political, economic, social, and 
     cultural aspects of life related to technology, 
     communications, and the digital world by consuming and 
     creating digital content, including media.
       (3) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
       (A) a civil society organization, including community 
     groups, nongovernmental organizations, nonprofit 
     organization, labor organizations, indigenous groups, 
     charitable organizations, professional associations, and 
     foundations; and
       (B) congressionally chartered veterans service 
     organizations.
       (4) Media literacy.--The term ``media literacy'' means the 
     ability to--
       (A) access relevant and accurate information through media 
     in a variety of forms;
       (B) critically analyze media content and the influences of 
     different forms of media;
       (C) evaluate the comprehensiveness, relevance, credibility, 
     authority, and accuracy of information;
       (D) make educated decisions based on information obtained 
     from media and digital sources;
       (E) operate various forms of technology and digital tools; 
     and
       (F) reflect on how the use of media and technology may 
     affect private and public life.
       (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of Veterans Affairs.
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