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January 27, 2015

Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Cyber Threats

(Washington, DC) – Today, the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology’s Subcommittee on Research & Technology held a hearing on the threat of cybercrime, the Federal government’s role in preventing cyber-attacks, and the research necessary to properly prepare businesses and governments alike.

The witnesses testifying before the subcommittee were Ms. Cheri McGuire, Vice President of Global Government Affairs & Cybersecurity Policy at Symantec Corporation; Dr. James Kurose, Assistant Director of the Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) Directorate at the National Science Foundation (NSF); Dr. Charles H. Romine, Director of the Information Technology Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); Dr. Eric A. Fischer, Senior Specialist in Science and Technology at the Congressional Research Service; and Mr. Dean Garfield, President and CEO of the Information Technology Industry Council.

Rep. Daniel Lipinski (D-IL) said in his opening statement, “Cybersecurity remains a timely topic, it is a topic in which this Committee has an important role, and finally it is one for which we have much more agreement than disagreement across the aisle. So I am pleased that the Research and Technology Subcommittee is starting off the new Congress with this hearing. Cybercrimes are ever-increasing. The threats are not only growing in number, but in the level of sophistication... Cybercrime threatens our privacy, our pocketbooks, our safety, our economy, and our national security.”

Members discussed the challenges and importance of public-private partnerships, the need for stable funding for Federal sponsored research and development on cybersecurity, and the important role that NIST and NSF, among other agencies, play in U.S. cybersecurity efforts.