Biden Administration Orders Improvements To Cybersecurity And Federal Networks Amid Cyberattacks

On May 12, 2021, President Biden signed an executive order (EO) mandating that the federal government significantly improve cybersecurity within its networks and modernize federal cyber defenses. The EO acknowledges that the United States "faces persistent and increasingly sophisticated malicious cyber campaigns that threaten the public sector, the private sector, and ultimately the American people's security and privacy." This move follows a series of sweeping cyberattacks on private companies and federal government networks over the past year, including a recent incident that resulted in gasoline shortages across the U.S. East Coast.

In the past year, two major hacks targeted U.S. government agencies and corporations, both believed to have been sponsored by China and Russia. In one of the largest breaches in U.S. history, government contractor SolarWinds was hacked in December 2020, which compromised the cybersecurity of various federal agencies and thousands of