U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Jackie Rosen (D-NV), John Cornyn (R-TX), Angus King (I-ME), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) introduced a resolution Thursday that would designate October 2021 as National Cybersecurity Awareness Month.
As part of the resolution, the month would not only recognize the threat to the country’s national security that cyber-threats, like ransomware attacks, pose, but would also provide individuals and businesses with simple steps to protect networks.
“Many aspects of our daily life depend on the internet,” Cassidy said. “Cybersecurity Awareness Month is a reminder that we need to be constantly improving our defenses against new cyber threats.”
The resolution, the senators said, underscores how important public-private collaborations are to ensure the country has the tools and resources it needs to respond to and recover from cyber-attacks. The resolution also recognizes the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) for its continued efforts to protect networks across the country.
“National Cybersecurity Awareness Month is an important way to help educate people, businesses, and government officials about how they can protect themselves and their customers from cyber-attacks that could significantly disrupt our daily lives and livelihoods,” Peters said. “At a time when Americans are increasingly reliant on the internet to conduct day-to-day business — reminding folks of simple actions they can take to protect their security will help prevent cybercriminals from stealing personal information. This bipartisan resolution also highlights the need for an all hands on deck approach to prevent hackers from breaching American networks and compromising our national security.”