Earlier today, the White House issued a Fact Sheet summarizing its Executive Order on a comprehensive strategy to support the development of safe and secure artificial intelligence (“AI”). The Executive Order follows a number of actions by the Biden Administration on AI, including its Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights and voluntary commitments from certain developers of AI systems. According to the Administration, the Executive Order establishes new AI safety and security standards, protects privacy, advances equity and civil rights, protects workers, consumers, and patients, promotes innovation and competition, and advances American leadership. This blog post summarizes these key components.Continue Reading Biden Administration Announces Artificial Intelligence Executive Order
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U.S. Tech Legislative & Regulatory Update – Third Quarter 2023
This quarterly update summarizes key legislative and regulatory developments in the third quarter of 2023 related to key technologies and related topics, including Artificial Intelligence (“AI”), connected and automated vehicles (“CAVs”), and data privacy and cybersecurity.Continue Reading U.S. Tech Legislative & Regulatory Update – Third Quarter 2023
White House Releases Blueprint for AI Bill of Rights
On September 4th, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (“OSTP”) released its Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights (“Blueprint”), which identifies five principles to minimize potential harms stemming from certain applications of AI. The Blueprint recognizes the “extraordinary benefits” that AI can provide, and the Blueprint states that harms stemming from AI are not inevitable. Continue Reading White House Releases Blueprint for AI Bill of Rights
President Trump Nominates Four New Commissioners to FTC
Last week, President Trump nominated four new commissioners to the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”): Joseph J. Simons, an antitrust attorney, as Chairman; Noah Joshua Phillips, chief counsel for Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas), for the second Republican seat; Christine Wilson, an executive for Delta Air Lines, for the third Republican seat; and Rohit Chopra, a senior fellow at the Consumer Federation of America, for a Democratic seat. By statute, no more than three commissioners may be members of the same political party. The fifth spot on the Commission would remain vacant pending an additional nomination by the President.
If confirmed by the Senate, these four nominees would establish a Republican majority at the FTC. Since early last year, the agency has been operating with just one Commissioner from each party – Acting Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen and Democratic Commissioner Terrell McSweeny. Earlier in the week, President Trump also announced his intent to nominate Acting Chairman Ohlhausen for a seat on the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. Therefore, these new nominations would completely change the composition of the Commission.Continue Reading President Trump Nominates Four New Commissioners to FTC
White House Releases Vulnerability Equities Policy and Processes
The White House released on November 15, 2017 the Vulnerabilities Equities Policy and Process for the United States Government (“VEP”) — the process by which the Government determines whether to disseminate or restrict information about new, nonpublic vulnerabilities that it discovers. This release was motivated by criticism following the allegations…
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Updated OMB Breach Response Policy Includes Required Breach-Related Provisions for Federal Agency Contracts
Last week, the Office of Management and Budget issued an updated breach response policy for federal agencies, replacing a policy last updated in 2007. The policy, set forth in memorandum M-17-12, provides minimum standards for federal agencies in preparing for and responding to breaches of personally identifiable information (PII). …
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White House Releases Presidential Policy Directive on U.S. Cyber Incident Response
The White House has released a Presidential Policy Directive on United States Cyber Incident Coordination (PPD-41). PPD-41 is part of President Obama’s broader Cybersecurity National Action Plan, which was unveiled this past February.
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White House Announces Artificial Intelligence Workshops and Working Group
Yesterday, the White House announced a series of workshops and an interagency working group devoted to the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence (AI). The announcement cited the growing influence of AI, and specifically its potential applications in healthcare, education, and transportation. On the other hand, the announcement noted the potential risks and policy challenges of AI, such as the potential for job losses and the challenges of predicting and controlling AI technology.
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White House’s Cybersecurity National Action Plan (CNAP) Includes Cybersecurity Awareness Campaign, Creation of Federal Privacy Council
Following the announcement of the President’s Cybersecurity National Action Plan (CNAP), an initiative designed to “enhance cybersecurity capabilities within the Federal Government and across the country,” the White House has released a fact sheet outlining the different components of the CNAP. The announcement of the CNAP follows the President’s request for $19 billion in funding for cybersecurity initiatives in fiscal year 2017, an increase of 35% over the previous year’s request. The CNAP includes a mixture of near-term measures and long-term objectives, with the ultimate goal of enhancing the federal government’s cybersecurity posture while encouraging private citizens and businesses to do the same. Some of the most significant aspects of the CNAP, discussed further below, include:
- The launch of a cybersecurity awareness campaign to promote the use of multi-factor authentication;
- A “systematic” review by the White House to identify areas where the federal government can reduce the use of Social Security Numbers as individual identifiers;
- Plans for the development of a Cybersecurity Assurance Program to test and certify connected devices against certain security standards;
- The creation of a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) position within the federal government, coupled with a $3.1 billion initiative to modernize federal agencies’ IT systems and applications;
- The establishment of a commission of private sector cybersecurity experts to offer recommendations on cybersecurity initiatives; and
- The establishment of a Federal Privacy Council, composed of representatives from various key federal agencies, to coordinate guidelines for the federal government’s collection and storage of data.
Covington at #SXSW 2015: MIT Professors “Tackle Privacy”
South by Southwest (“SXSW”) Interactive kicked off last week, and Covington was there once again to cover privacy. One panel of interest that we attended, entitled “Data (in)Security: MIT Scientists Tackle Privacy,” featured MIT professors Danny Weitzner, Ronald Rivest, and Sam Madden discussing their current research…
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