US Legislation Aims to Combat Chinese Cyber Threats

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Legislation recently introduced in the US House of Representatives would combat growing cyber threats from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) against critical infrastructure.

The bill is called Strengthening Cyber Resilience Against State-Sponsored Threats Act and it would create an interagency task force tasked with addressing the cyber security threats posed by People’s Republic of China-sponsored cyber actors including Volt Typhoon.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation would lead the task force.

“The CCP, acting through Volt Typhoon and other threat actors, has made a concerted effort to pre-position itself within our networks in order to target and compromise the critical infrastructure Americans rely on every day, from the transportation and water sectors to the energy sector,” US Rep. Laurel Lee (R-FL), who introduced the bill, said.

“While individual agencies have worked to examine and address the threats posed by malign cyber actors like Volt Typhoon, a siloed approach to cyber security will only give our adversaries the upper hand.

“It is critical that the federal government implements a focused, coordinated, and whole-of-government response to all of Beijing’s cyber threats, so no other actors succeed.”

The bill also would requires the task force to provide Congress with an annual classified report and briefing on findings, conclusions, and recommendations relating to malicious CCP cyber activity.

Chairman Moolenaar said, “At our Select Committee hearing earlier this year, FBI Director Wray broke the news that the United States had uncovered state-affiliated Chinese hackers, known collectively as Volt Typhoon, who infiltrated American critical infrastructure and installed malware to unleash a cyber-attack at a time of their choosing.

“I’m proud to co-sponsor this legislation alongside Rep. Laurel Lee that will help protect the American people.”

However, given Russia’s track record of using cyber attacks as political tools of punishment and coercion, and the current contentious relationship between Washington and Moscow over the Ukraine conflict, one would have thought Russia would be the first to be under this microscope.

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