In this article, we discuss today’s most prevalent types of ransomware attacks, considerations for whether to make the ransom payment, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control’s (OFAC) ransomware guidance, and the U.S. government’s efforts in connection with these attacks.
Biden administration
Congress Passes 72-Hour Federal Breach Reporting Law for Critical Infrastructure
As part of a larger spending bill signed by President Biden on March 15, 2022, Congress passed the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act (CIRA) to increase funding for the federal Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Agency (CISA). CIRA requires companies considered to be in a “critical infrastructure” sector to notify CISA within 72 hours…
Jena M. Valdetero Quoted in Law360 Article, ‘As Hacks Hit A Nerve, Admin. Pushed Reporting Of Breaches’
A ransomware attack on a major U.S. gas pipeline sharpened people’s concerns about cybercrime in 2021, while the Biden administration balanced working with the private sector and threatening penalties for keeping breaches secret. GT Shareholder Jena M. Valdetero was mentioned in this article on cybersecurity steps the Biden administration has taken, published by Law360 Dec.…
With New Cybersecurity Enforcement, the SEC Puts Its Money Where Its Mouth Is
The past 12 months have seen an increase in cybersecurity attacks against major companies, placing data breaches on the front page of virtually every major newspaper. The U.S. government has taken notice. In May, the Biden administration issued an executive order requiring government agencies and certain government contractors to comply with cybersecurity requirements. In July,…
Executive Order on Improving US Cybersecurity: An Ambitious and Timely Call for a Broad Range of Cybersecurity Improvements
On May 12, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order entitled Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity (EO). The EO was released only days after the cyberattack impacting Colonial Pipeline, and several months following discovery of the penetration of various federal agencies as a result of the Solar Winds cyber breach by Russian hackers in 2019. The…
FTC Consumer Privacy Protection Priorities Under New Acting Chairwoman Slaughter
On Feb. 10, 2021, Acting Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairwoman Rebecca Kelly Slaughter offered a glimpse of where the FTC may be headed under the Biden administration and confirmed that privacy remains among the Commission’s top priorities.
In her keynote address to the Future of Privacy Forum, Slaughter shared her views on the FTC’s role…