Pres. Obama authorizes sanctions against cybercriminals

President Barack Obama this week issued an executive order authorizing sanctions against cybercriminals who threaten the national security, economy, or foreign policy of the United States.

“Cyber threats pose one of the most serious economic and national security challenges to the United States, and my Administration is pursuing a comprehensive strategy to confront them,” the president said in a statement on the action. “As we have seen in recent months, these threats can emanate from a range of sources and target our critical infrastructure, our companies, and our citizens.  This Executive Order offers a targeted tool for countering the most significant cyber threats that we face.”

The order indicated that any persons located outside the U.S. found to be engaging in “malicious cyber-enabled activities” aimed at disrupting the nation’s critical infrastructure or halting its services would be subject to official sanctions. Also included are funding any such criminal activities, or disrupting major computer networks. Obama also authorized sanctions against the stealing of trade secrets that could jeopardize the financial security of the nation.

The action comes after the November 2014 hacking of Sony Pictures, attributed by the U.S. government to North Korea. The attack shut Sony down for weeks, reportedly destroyed much of their computers and systems, and halted the theatrical release of “The Interview,” a film satirizing North Korea and depicting fictional plans to assassinate Kim Jong-un. Shortly after the attack, the government officially sanctioned North Korea in response. Today’s order puts any and all cybercriminals on notice that the U.S. government has punitive plans for the future.

“This allows significant malicious cyber actors to be treated in the same way as state sponsors of terrorism, individual terrorists, and drug kingpins,” stated attorney Vincent Vitkowsky of the law firm of Seiger Gfeller Laurie in an email to Advisen.