The Cybersecurity Information and Sharing Act is new legislation introduced in the Senate as S. 2588 by Dianne Feinstein (D–CA) on July 10, 2014
The intended goal of this legislation is to allow for the identification of online threats through the broad sharing of information between private information technology businesses and governmental agencies.
Opponents to this bill have argued that the duty to protect individual privacy is shifted from the responsibility of independent businesses and into the hands of overreaching governmental agencies.
This shift would result in the widespread sharing of personal information with seven large governmental agencies including the NSA.
Additionally, the bill makes it simple for private companies to share information about perceived cyber threats with government and without the permission or knowledge of targeted individuals. The potential for abuse of this provision is staggering. With the current state of affairs and growing abuse of authority by law enforcement agencies against vulnerable communities, it is ever troubling to see more power given to law enforcement agencies to regularly intimidate and invade the privacy of individuals.
The bill included provisions for privacy, removing personal identification and information not relevant to a specific investigation. The shared cyber threat indicators can ultimately be used as evidence in a crime. As with the Patriot Act, the overall lack of transparency to the mechanisms of the legislation leads to broader concerns for the potential for abuse of power against those deemed enemies of the State or of a particular administration.
Proponents of the bill include the United States Chamber of Commerce and the National Cable & Telecommunications Association and the Financial Services Roundtable. Opponents to the bill include the Computer and Communications Industry Association and IT businesses such as Yelp, Reddit and Apple.
BSA, The Software Alliance, recently drew heat for seemingly supporting cyber information sharing, through publishing a letter of support of CISA in July 21, 2015 and later sending a letter of support of CISA to Congress on September 14, 2015. The letter of support for sharing consumer data was signed by BSA board members Adobe, Apple Inc., Altium, Autodesk, CA Technologies, DataStax, IBM, Microsoft, Minitab, Oracle, Salesforce.com, Siemens, and Symantec.
This action prompted a protest from the internet watchdog and digital rights advocacy Fight for the Future. In the face of the storm of backlash the BSA softened its position to one of supporting sharing information between private industry and government to thwart cyber threats, though not the CISA bill specifically
The main supporters of the bill include Diane Feinstein (D-CA), and Richard Burr (R-NC). Opponents of CISA included Ron Wyden (D-OR), Rand Paul (R-KY), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Senator Wyden has opposed the bill based on its birth during the Bush Era and a judicial ruling made in secret by the Justice Department. The memo detailing the basis for this ruling has never been made public, prompting skepticism of the bill’s transparency and integrity. Since 2010 Wyden has repeatedly requested the US Attorney General that the memo that this ruling was based on be declassified, to no avail.
The US Department of Homeland Security has also voiced concerns about the privacy issues related to the cyber-sharing legislation. DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson called for the bill to move forward in September 15, 2015, but DHS deputy secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, a month prior on August 3, 2015 wrote to Al Franken with concerns about potential abuses of power and privacy. The DHS has recommended that they handle and analyze the information and remove personally identifiable content. Critics again suspect and argue that there is no guarantee that the targets go unidentified in real life scenarios.
CISA has been compared to its predecessor CISPA Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. CISPA initially passed in the House but failed at the Senate level under widespread protest following growing international, anti-government, student-led political movements worldwide. CISA’s main opponents include organizations the Electronic Frontier Foundation, May First/People Link, the American Civil Liberties Union and Fight For the Future.
The Massachusetts Pirate Party stands in allegiance with these organizations in opposing the unmonitored sharing of personal information by private business in collusion with the growing Surveillance State. As demonstrated in the fight for Net Neutrality, the fight for personal privacy and an open internet is not one to be taken lightly. After CISPA, was defeated in the Senate, and after winning in the House, many activists lost sight of the greater problem and did not bring the same amount of wrath and vigor to the fight against the reconfigured CISA bill.
With legislation like the TPP gaining support and momentum in its final draft, there is no room to negotiate or drop the ball in fighting for people over corporations. We must be very active in calling our elected representatives and joining like-minded individuals and associations to spread the message of resistance to laws that trample on so many of our rights over the will and needs of the taxpayers. Nothing is gained without putting up in effort and putting up a fight.
With little oversight in mind, it is critical that all citizens stay engaged politically and hold our elected officials accountable for curtailing privacy and 4th amendment rights to protection from unwarranted and illegal search and seizure, including digitized information. With the passage of CISA it is ever crucial that we stay the course in fighting government overreach through creating realistic challenges to these proposed and intrusive bills. Direct action and vigilance are called for to oppose and defeat unfair laws that favor corporate interests over those of the people. It might again be time to get out the pitchforks on the TPP in the mean time.
For those interested in advocating, Evan Greer’s recent appeal and call to arms against TPP can be found a this link:
Advocating for social change through legislative change is hit or miss territory, and frequently frustrating, but the fight must continue on all fronts.
written by poetticjustice
The Cybersecurity Information and Sharing Act is new legislation introduced in the Senate as S. 2588 by Dianne Feinstein (D–CA) on July 10, 2014
Reintroduced in the Senate as S.754 by Richard Burr (R–NC) on March 17, 2015
Committee consideration by Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
The CISA bill passed in the Senate October 27, 2015
The intended goal of this legislation is to allow for the identification of online threats through the broad sharing of information between private information technology businesses and governmental agencies.
Opponents to this bill have argued that the duty to protect individual privacy is shifted from the responsibility of independent businesses and into the hands of overreaching governmental agencies.
This shift would result in the widespread sharing of personal information with seven large governmental agencies including the NSA.
Additionally, the bill makes it simple for private companies to share information about perceived cyber threats with government and without the permission or knowledge of targeted individuals. The potential for abuse of this provision is staggering. With the current state of affairs and growing abuse of authority by law enforcement agencies against vulnerable communities, it is ever troubling to see more power given to law enforcement agencies to regularly intimidate and invade the privacy of individuals.
The bill included provisions for privacy, removing personal identification and information not relevant to a specific investigation. The shared cyber threat indicators can ultimately be used as evidence in a crime. As with the Patriot Act, the overall lack of transparency to the mechanisms of the legislation leads to broader concerns for the potential for abuse of power against those deemed enemies of the State or of a particular administration.
Proponents of the bill include the United States Chamber of Commerce and the National Cable & Telecommunications Association and the Financial Services Roundtable. Opponents to the bill include the Computer and Communications Industry Association and IT businesses such as Yelp, Reddit and Apple.
BSA, The Software Alliance, recently drew heat for seemingly supporting cyber information sharing, through publishing a letter of support of CISA in July 21, 2015 and later sending a letter of support of CISA to Congress on September 14, 2015. The letter of support for sharing consumer data was signed by BSA board members Adobe, Apple Inc., Altium, Autodesk, CA Technologies, DataStax, IBM, Microsoft, Minitab, Oracle, Salesforce.com, Siemens, and Symantec.
This action prompted a protest from the internet watchdog and digital rights advocacy Fight for the Future. In the face of the storm of backlash the BSA softened its position to one of supporting sharing information between private industry and government to thwart cyber threats, though not the CISA bill specifically
The main supporters of the bill include Diane Feinstein (D-CA), and Richard Burr (R-NC). Opponents of CISA included Ron Wyden (D-OR), Rand Paul (R-KY), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Senator Wyden has opposed the bill based on its birth during the Bush Era and a judicial ruling made in secret by the Justice Department. The memo detailing the basis for this ruling has never been made public, prompting skepticism of the bill’s transparency and integrity. Since 2010 Wyden has repeatedly requested the US Attorney General that the memo that this ruling was based on be declassified, to no avail.
The US Department of Homeland Security has also voiced concerns about the privacy issues related to the cyber-sharing legislation. DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson called for the bill to move forward in September 15, 2015, but DHS deputy secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, a month prior on August 3, 2015 wrote to Al Franken with concerns about potential abuses of power and privacy. The DHS has recommended that they handle and analyze the information and remove personally identifiable content. Critics again suspect and argue that there is no guarantee that the targets go unidentified in real life scenarios.
CISA has been compared to its predecessor CISPA Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. CISPA initially passed in the House but failed at the Senate level under widespread protest following growing international, anti-government, student-led political movements worldwide. CISA’s main opponents include organizations the Electronic Frontier Foundation, May First/People Link, the American Civil Liberties Union and Fight For the Future.
The Massachusetts Pirate Party stands in allegiance with these organizations in opposing the unmonitored sharing of personal information by private business in collusion with the growing Surveillance State. As demonstrated in the fight for Net Neutrality, the fight for personal privacy and an open internet is not one to be taken lightly. After CISPA, was defeated in the Senate, and after winning in the House, many activists lost sight of the greater problem and did not bring the same amount of wrath and vigor to the fight against the reconfigured CISA bill.
With legislation like the TPP gaining support and momentum in its final draft, there is no room to negotiate or drop the ball in fighting for people over corporations. We must be very active in calling our elected representatives and joining like-minded individuals and associations to spread the message of resistance to laws that trample on so many of our rights over the will and needs of the taxpayers. Nothing is gained without putting up in effort and putting up a fight.
With little oversight in mind, it is critical that all citizens stay engaged politically and hold our elected officials accountable for curtailing privacy and 4th amendment rights to protection from unwarranted and illegal search and seizure, including digitized information. With the passage of CISA it is ever crucial that we stay the course in fighting government overreach through creating realistic challenges to these proposed and intrusive bills. Direct action and vigilance are called for to oppose and defeat unfair laws that favor corporate interests over those of the people. It might again be time to get out the pitchforks on the TPP in the mean time.
For those interested in advocating, Evan Greer’s recent appeal and call to arms against TPP can be found a this link:
Final TPP text confirms worst fears: shadowy agreement poses a grave threat to the Internet and freedom of expression
Advocating for social change through legislative change is hit or miss territory, and frequently frustrating, but the fight must continue on all fronts.
written by poetticjustice