The Cybersecurity Act Of 2015: Implications For Threat Sharing

On December 18, 2015, President Obama signed the Cybersecurity Act of 2015 (The "Act"), legislation designed to combat online threats to the federal government, state and local governments, and private entities. Within the Act are four titles, the most significant of which is Title I, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act ("CISA") (which begins at p. 694).

CISA addresses the manner in which the federal government and non-federal entities may share information about cyber threats and the defensive measures they may take to combat those threats.

CISA: An Optional Opportunity

• CISA does not require non-federal entities (private entities and state, local, and tribal governments, § 102(14)) to provide information to another entity (whether government or private). Nor does it permit federal entities to condition the provision of cyber threat indicators or the awarding of a grant, contract or purchase to a non-federal entity on that entity's provision of cyber