14 DAY TRIAL // The United States House of Representatives has passed the controversial Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) with 248 to 168 votes, despite the many protests made by regular internet users, hacktivists and professionals.
Michael Rogers, the congressman who initiated the bill applauded the decision. Again he highlighted the fact that CISPA is made to fight off countries such as China and Russia, not America.
“We can’t stand by and do nothing as U.S. companies are hemorrhaging from the cyber looting coming from nation states like China and Russia. America will be a little safer and our economy better protected from foreign cyber predators with this legislation. I commend the bipartisan effort on this bill,” Rogers said.
Ranking Member Dutch Ruppersberger, the other sponsor of CISPA, also welcomed the results of the vote.
“This is not just a victory on the House floor. This is victory for America. Our nation is one step closer to making a real difference protecting our country from a catastrophic cyber attack,” he explained.
“This shows what can happen when Democrats and Republicans work together for the good of our country. This robust, open, bipartisan process made a good bill even better. I look forward to seeing it taken up in the Senate.”
On the other side of the fence, Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) representatives are not happy. At first they were pleased with the fact that some of the amendments made to the bill were adopted, making it less of a threat to privacy and civil liberties.
However, they became disappointed after they learned that the House blocked two important amendments: one referring to the flow of information from the private sector directly to the National Security Agency, and the other one regarding the use of that information for national security purposes which are unrelated to cybersecurity.