The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) will use a new Cyber-Digital Task Force to assess its current efforts to combat global cyberthreats and identify areas of improvement, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced on Tuesday.
The deputy attorney general will appoint a senior department official to lead the task force. Other members will represent the DoJ’s Criminal Division; the National Security Division; the U.S. attorneys; the Office of Legal Policy; the Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties; the Office of the Chief Information Officer; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Drug Enforcement Agency; and the U.S. Marshals Service.
“The Internet has given us amazing new tools that help us work, communicate and participate in our economy, but these tools can also be exploited by criminals, terrorists and enemy governments,” Sessions said. “At the Department of Justice, we take these threats seriously. That is why today I am ordering the creation of a Cyber-Digital Task Force to advise me on the most effective ways that this department can confront these threats and keep the American people safe.”
The deputy attorney general will also be given authority to invite additional representatives from the DoJ and outside federal agencies to take part in the task force and to establish subcommittees.
Sessions also directed the task force to prioritize efforts to interfere with U.S. elections and critical infrastructure, the use of the internet to spread violent ideologies, and the theft of information from companies, the government, and private citizens.