Cybersecurity

On 12 September 2023, the UK Information Commissioner, John Edwards, and the Chief Executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (“NCSC”), Lindy Cameron, signed a joint memorandum of understanding (“MoU”) detailing how the Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”) and NCSC will work together moving forward.

The MoU does not create legally binding obligations between the ICO and NCSC, but provides a strong signal of intent for areas of cooperation.  The statements about information sharing and engaging with NCSC leading to potentially reduced fines under the UK GDPR are likely to be of particular interest to commercial organizations.Continue Reading ICO Encourages Organizations To Cooperate with NCSC and Flags Potential Reduction in Fines

On August 4, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) final rule on Cybersecurity Risk Management, Strategy, Governance, and Incident Disclosure was published in the Federal Register, confirming the dates on which these new requirements will enter into force.  Covington has previously published a detailed summary of this rule, which imposes significant new disclosure requirements for publicly traded companies and, in certain instances, foreign private issuers.  As discussed in greater detail in that alert, the new rule requires U.S. public companies to report material cybersecurity incidents on Form 8-K within four business days of their determination that a material cybersecurity incident has occurred.  Foreign private issuers will be required to furnish information on Form 6-K about material cybersecurity incidents that they disclose or otherwise publicize to any stock exchange or to security holders in a foreign jurisdiction. Continue Reading Compliance Dates for SEC’s New Cyber Disclosure Rules Confirmed

According to a recently-released meeting agenda, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) upcoming July 26, 2023 meeting will include consideration of adopting rules to enhance disclosures regarding cybersecurity risk management, governance, and incidents by publicly traded companies. 

The SEC initially proposed these rules in March 2022.  If adopted as…

Continue Reading SEC to Consider Cyber Rules Next Week

On July 13, 2023 the White House issued the National Cybersecurity Strategy Implementation Plan (“NCSIP”).  The NCSIP identifies 65 initiatives – to be led by 18 different departments and agencies – that are designed as a roadmap for implementing the U.S. National Cybersecurity Strategy released earlier this year.  This is the first iteration of the plan, which is intended to be an evolving document that the Administration plans to update annually.  Consistent with the Strategy, the NCSIP contemplates five broad lines of effort (“pillars”):

  • Defending critical infrastructure;
  • Disrupting and dismantling threat actors;
  • Shaping market forces to drive security and resilience;
  • Investing in a resilient future; and
  • Forging international partnerships to pursue shared goals.

Among the many initiatives, the Administration has outlined several specific efforts over the next three years that will be of interest to technology companies, federal contractors, and critical infrastructure owners and operators.Continue Reading White House Releases Implementation Plan for the National Cybersecurity Strategy

Last week, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (“CISA”) released guidance on Security-by-Design and Security-by-Default principles for technology manufacturers that was jointly developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Security Agency, as well as cybersecurity authorities in Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands, and New Zealand.  While similar principles have been published in the past, such as those released by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, this guidance builds on the White House’s recent roll-out of the U.S. National Cybersecurity Strategy and is in line with efforts to encourage a consistent, international approach to software security that emphasizes the responsibilities of software manufacturers across various jurisdictions.  While the guidance primarily focuses on recommendations for technology manufacturers, it also includes recommendations for enterprise customers to “hold their supplying technology manufacturers accountable for the security outcomes of their products.”  CISA and the authoring agencies are seeking feedback on the guidance, and indicated plans to hold future listening sessions to collect feedback. Continue Reading CISA Publishes International Guidance on Implementing Security-by-Design and Security-by-Default Principles for Software Manufacturers and Customers

On March 8, 2023, the United States Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), through the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response and the Health Sector Coordinating Counsel Joint Cybersecurity Working Group, released an updated version of its Cybersecurity Framework Implementation Guide (the “Guide”) “to help the public and private health care sectors prevent cybersecurity incidents.”  Specifically, the Guide aims to help healthcare organizations leverage the NIST Cybersecurity Framework to “determine their cybersecurity goals, assess their current cybersecurity practices, or lack thereof, and help identify gaps for remediation.”  Continue Reading HHS Releases Guidance to Help Healthcare Organizations Align with the NIST Cybersecurity Framework

On March 7, 2023, the United States Transportation Security Administration (“TSA”) announced the issuance of new cybersecurity requirements for airport and aircraft operators on an emergency basis.  “The new emergency amendment requires that impacted TSA-regulated entities develop an approved implementation plan that describes measures they are taking to improve their cybersecurity resilience and prevent disruption and degradation to their infrastructure.”Continue Reading TSA Issues New Cybersecurity Requirements for Airport and Aircraft Operators

The United States National Cybersecurity Strategy, released on March 2, 2023, is poised to place significant responsibility for cybersecurity on technology companies, federal contractors, and critical infrastructure owners and operators.  The Strategy articulates a series of objectives and recommended executive and legislative actions that, if implemented, would increase the cybersecurity responsibilities and requirements of these types of entities.  The overall goal of the Strategy is to create a “defensible, resilient digital ecosystem” where the costs of an attack are more than the cost of defending those systems and where “neither incidents nor errors cascade into catastrophic, systemic consequences.”  The Strategy outlines two fundamental shifts to how the federal government will attempt to allocate roles, responsibilities, and resources in cyberspace. Continue Reading White House Releases National Cybersecurity Strategy

In February, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) published a blog post that elucidated key security principles from recent FTC data security and privacy orders.  Specifically, the FTC highlighted three practices that the Commission regards as “effectively protect[ing] user data.”  These practices include: (1) offering multi-factor authentication (“MFA”) for consumers and requiring it for employees; (2) requiring that connections within a company’s system be both encrypted and authenticated (e.g., deploying a “zero trust” methodology); and (3) requiring companies to develop data retention schedules.  The FTC noted that while these measures “are not the sum-total of everything the FTC expects from an effective security program, they are a sample of provisions [that the FTC has] seen recently that speak directly to the idea of attacking things at their root cause to produce uniquely effective results.”Continue Reading FTC Publishes Blog Post on Data Security Practices for Complex Systems

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) issued a final rule (Order No. 887) directing the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (“NERC”) to develop new or modified Reliability Standards that require internal network security monitoring (“INSM”) within Critical Infrastructure Protection (“CIP”) networked environments.  This Order may be of interest to entities that develop, implement, or maintain hardware or software for operational technologies associated with bulk electric systems (“BES”).Continue Reading FERC Orders Development of New Internal Network Security Monitoring Standards