The Political Freakshow

CISPA Passes House...It's Time For The Internet to Freak Out!!!

As expected, the House has passed the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), despite objections from the Obama administration. The bill allows private companies and the federal government to share information in order to prevent cyber-attacks. (You can read Adrian Chen’s far more eloquent explanation here.)

The Obama administration has threatened to veto the bill, instead championing a Senate measure that would give the Department of Homeland Security the responsibility to monitor domestic cybersecurity. At his weekly news conference today, House Speaker John Boehner responded to the administration’s rejection of the bill.

The White House believes the government ought to control the Internet, government ought to set standards and government ought to take care of everything that’s needed for cybersecurity. They’re in a camp all by themselves.

Of course, Boehner’s response does little to address the concerns voiced by the Obama administration and civli liberties groups — that CISPA violates the privacy of civilians. While the bill has been amended to further protect individual privacy, its opponents have argued that the changes are insufficient.

OK, internet: commence freaking out.