The Obama Administration has issued a Cybersecurity National Action Plan (CNAP) consisting of near- and long-term measures intended to “enhance cybersecurity awareness and protections, protect privacy, maintain public safety as well as economic and national security, and empower Americans to take better control of their digital security.” Key parts of President Obama’s CNAP include the following:
- The creation of the “Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity” within the U.S. Department of Commerce comprised of top strategic, business, and technical thinkers from outside of the Federal government, which will make recommendations on actions that can be taken to strengthen cybersecurity in both public and private sectors;
- The creation of a permanent Federal Privacy Council, which will bring together privacy officials from across the Federal government to help ensure the implementation of more strategic and comprehensive Federal privacy guidelines;
- A proposed $3.1 billion “Information Technology Modernization Fund” to support measures to modernize Federal government IT, transform how the Federal government manages cybersecurity, and create a Federal Chief Information Security Officer to drive IT modernization across the Federal government;
- The creation of a “National Cybersecurity Awareness Campaign” to promote measures that will empower Americans to secure their online accounts by moving beyond just passwords and adding an extra layer of security; and
- A proposed 2017 Federal budget allocation of more than $19 billion for cybersecurity.
