Ruppersberger Releases Statement on New Report on Cyber Espionage

(Washington, DC) – Congressman C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), the Ranking Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, released the following statement about a new report on cyber espionage highlighting vital data stolen from U.S. companies and who might be behind it. 

“This extensive report proves what many of us in the intelligence community already knew.  China and Russia are aggressively hacking into our nation’s networks and stealing millions of dollars worth of critical information from American companies.  This commercial espionage is hurting the American economy and U.S. global competitiveness in the world market.  It is also an issue of national security that must be addressed. 

 The United States needs a cyber security strategy and we need it now.  The military, government and business must work together to beef up our nation’s cyber defenses.  We must harness the expertise of the National Security Agency and share the critical information it collects about potential threats with all of our nation’s networks.  We must have an active defense where we are staying one step ahead of cyber attackers by being on the lookout for malicious code, ready to wreak havoc and steal important data.  The signatures associated with the malicious code must be shared in a way that ensures it does not quickly land in the hands of our adversaries and criminals, the people who hacked us in the first place.  Congress must evaluate our existing laws, update them to achieve our goals and work together as an organized team to get this done.  Our nation and our way of life depend on it.”    

The report, entitled “Foreign Spies Stealing U.S. Economic Secrets in Cyberspace” was put together by the Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive (NCIX).  The full report can be found at the following here.