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Headline Roundup May 12th, 2021

Biden Signs Executive Order to Strengthen U.S. Cybersecurity, Colonial Pipeline to Launch Restart

Summary from the AllSides News Team

On Wednesday, President Joe Biden signed an executive order aimed at improving U.S. cybersecurity and defenses after a ransomware hack caused the Colonial Pipeline, which provides nearly half of the transportation fuel for the East Coast, to shut down. The order, which the White House had been working on for months, will establish a Cybersecurity Safety Review Board to review incidents in multiple agencies, and mandates that federal systems log cybersecurity incidents and use stronger encryption and authentication methods. Also on Wednesday, the Colonial Pipeline announced it will restart operations after a six-day shutdown, though the company warns that the restarting process will take several days. The story received coverage across the political spectrum. Outlets from the right and center tended to focus on the details of the executive order; some outlets on the left tended to focus on the several cybersecurity incidents Biden has had to respond to, including a Russian cyberespionage operation and Chinese cyberhacking campaign.

Featured Coverage of this Story

In Wake Of Pipeline Hack, Biden Signs Executive Order On Cybersecurity
In Wake Of Pipeline Hack, Biden Signs Executive Order On Cybersecurity

NPR (Online News)

News

President Biden signed an executive order Wednesday boosting America's cyber defenses following a ransomware attack on a company that operates a pipeline that provides nearly half of the gasoline and jet fuel for the country's East Coast.

The broad order, which the administration had been working on for months, aims to strengthen cybersecurity for federal networks and outline new security standards for commercial software used by both business and the public.

"Recent cybersecurity incidents such as SolarWinds, Microsoft Exchange, and the Colonial Pipeline incident are a sobering reminder that U.S....

Open on NPR (Online News)
Biden signs order on cybersecurity after pipeline hack upends gas market
Biden signs order on cybersecurity after pipeline hack upends gas market

New York Post (News)

News

President Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order intended to improve US cybersecurity after the hack of the Colonial Pipeline caused massive disruption to the US fuel market.

The order establishes a new multiagency Cybersecurity Safety Review Board to review incidents and mandates that federal systems log cybersecurity incidents and use multifactor authentication and stronger encryption.

The order also eliminates “any contractual barriers” to IT service provides informing the government of breaches and “requir[es] providers to share breach information that could impact Government networks,” according to a White House fact...

Open on New York Post (News)
Biden signs executive order designed to strengthen federal digital defenses
Biden signs executive order designed to strengthen federal digital defenses

Washington Post

News

President Biden signed an executive order Wednesday aimed at shoring up the federal government’s digital defenses as his administration grapples with cybersecurity crises, including a ransomware strike on a major fuel pipeline that has caused gas shortages.

Less than four months into his tenure, Biden has had to respond to a Russian cyberespionage operation that affected nine federal agencies and about 100 American companies, as well as a Chinese cyberhacking campaign that compromised tens of thousands of small and midsize firms that used Microsoft Exchange email servers.

On Saturday, Colonial...

Open on Washington Post

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