Cybersecurity Update: U.S. Sanctions On The Horizon For Malicious Cyber-Attackers

Executive Order 13694 is the Obama Administration's latest tool to combat cybersecurity threats.  On April 1, 2015, President Obama declared a national emergency to address the "increasing prevalence and severity of malicious cyber-enabled activities" originating from outside the United States that "constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States."

The order authorizes the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of State, to impose sanctions, including asset freezes and travel bans, on those persons and entities determined to be responsible for, or complicit in, malicious cyber-enabled activities that have the purpose or effect of: