The financial sector must improve its cybersecurity to...

The financial sector must improve its cybersecurity to protect both the U.S. and consumers, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said at an Institutional Investor conference (http://1.usa.gov/1qfCjn9). “When credit card data is stolen, it disturbs lives and damages consumer confidence,” Lew said. “When trade secrets are robbed, it undercuts America’s businesses and undermines U.S. competitiveness. And successful attacks on our financial system would compromise market confidence, jeopardize the integrity of data, and pose a threat to financial stability.” Lew highlighted the Treasury Department’s work on executive order 13636 (http://1.usa.gov/1gcpbWo), and the resulting cybersecurity framework, developed in coordination with the Commerce Department and the private sector. But Congress must also do its part, Lew said. “Our laws do not do enough to foster information sharing and defend the public from digital threats,” Lew said. “We need legislation with clear rules to encourage collaboration and provide important liability protection.” The House recently passed the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (HR-624), and the Senate is now considering an analogous bill, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (S-2588) (CD July 9 p14). Verizon agrees with Lew on the importance of cybersecurity, said the telco on its blog (http://vz.to/1mkJQZD) after he visited its security operations center Tuesday in Ashburn, Va. (http://vz.to/1qKyJ0p).