Bipartisan bill to allow for financial sanctions against foreign hackers of US

WASHINGTON—Bipartisan legislation aimed at combating cyber attacks on US companies has been introduced in the Senate.

Unlike similar legislation that has been bottled up in Congress, congressional staffers believe it this newest legislation has a strong chance of enactment this year, because its sponsors will seek to attach it to must-do legislation, the National Defense Authorization Act.

The Deter Cyber Theft Act of 2014, introduced May 22, updates legislation introduced last year with the purpose to take aggressive new steps against computer espionage and theft of valuable commercial data.

Sponsors said it would give US officials “a powerful new tool in the fight against computer espionage” – the ability to impose sanctions under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which allows for action to confront threats to US national security or the economy.

The bill would authorize the Treasury Department under the IEEPA to freeze assets of foreign individuals or companies that benefit from theft of US technology or other commercial information.

The bill retains a requirement that the Director of National Intelligence publish an annual report to identify countries that engage in computer espionage targeting valuable information of US companies; a priority watch list of the foreign countries that are the most egregious offenders; U.S. technologies and information targeted or stolen by foreign cyber espionage; goods and services produced using stolen information; and government actions to combat computer espionage.

The bill was introduced by Sens. Carl Levin, D-Mich.; John McCain, R-Ariz.; Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va.; and Tom Coburn, R-Okla.

It would combat what former National Security Agency head and U.S. Cyber Command commander Gen. Keith Alexander called “the greatest transfer of wealth in history” – the theft of valuable intellectual property from U.S. companies, the sponsors said.

“As this week’s indictment of five Chinese army officials on cyber theft charges shows, US companies are increasingly the targets of foreign countries and companies that illegally access valuable data and then use it to compete against American companies and workers,” the sponsors said in a statement.

“It is time to fight back back to protect American businesses and American innovation,” said Levin, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “Battling the wave of computer espionage targeting the American economy requires law enforcement actions such as this week’s indictment, and it requires action by Congress to hit those who profit from these crimes where they’ll feel it: in the wallet.”

“This bill will give us insight into those most culpable for cyber-based economic espionage aimed at U.S. innovation, and will disrupt those activities by authorizing the president to target with sanctions those exploiting our intellectual property for their financial gain,” said McCain.

“Focusing public attention on the individuals and governments that are stealing our intellectual property is a step in the right direction,” added Rockefeller. “We must send a strong signal to our adversaries that they will face major consequences for breaking into our networks.”