House committee advancing pro-business cyber bill
Apr 10, 2013, 5:59 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) – The House Intelligence Committee is finalizing legislation that would give the U.S. government an unprecedented role in helping banks, manufacturers and other businesses protect against cyberattacks.
The committee’s approval, expected Wednesday, would pave the way for a vote by the full House next week. It is a defiant move by pro-business lawmakers who are locking horns with privacy advocates and civil liberties groups. A similar proposal failed to gain traction in the Senate last year after the White House threatened to veto it.
But Committee Chairman Mike Rogers says the political calculus has changed because too many companies are losing money to Chinese hackers. He says there is a long line of companies willing to tell Congress quietly how they have lost their entire intellectual property portfolio to hackers.
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