Congress has passed a cybersecurity bill that would empower the National Institutes of Standards and Technology to coordinate with industry to develop infrastructure protection standards, GovInfoSecurity reported Friday.Eric Chabrow writes the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2014 was approved by the House and Senate on Thursday through voice votes.
Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va) introduced the legislation in February.
“NIST and our research agencies will have a leading role in this effort, and the authority to work closely with the private sector to identify and reduce cyber risks,” Rockefeller said, according to the report.
The bill would authorize federal agencies to support cybersecurity-related research and development, public awareness and workforce recruitment programs.
Chabrow reports separate authorization bills are needed to fund initiatives proposed in the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2014.
