President Donald Trump has just canceled the signing of an executive order on cybersecurity without providing any explanation as to why. The president was expected to sign the executive order earlier today to commission a review of the capabilities and defenses of the federal government, similar to the reviews ordered by former president Barack Obama when he took office during his second term in 2012, and again last year.
Similarities between Trump's order and that of the Obama administration were acknowledged by a White House official during a briefing. According to the official, the changes can be seen in "management philosophy, in enterprise risk management, and modernizing federal IT." He also added that President Trump already has a plan for accomplishing these changes.
The Washington Post was able to obtain a draft of the order and it summarizes all of the review measures that Trump wants the federal agencies to take and also raises plenty of questions and concerns on his policy concerning cyber security. The Depart of Defense and Department of Homeland Security both have 60 days to submit a list of regulations that can help protect U.S. government and private networks.
Instead of signing the order, the president told reporters that he would instead hold agency heads and cabinet members "totally accountable" for the security of the country's networks. According to Trump, government agencies "certainly" do not have the amount of cybersecurity needed to keep them safe. The president emphasized the need to protect federal networks and data, stating that his administration will be empowering agencies to beef up their IT systems in an effort to improve security and other uses. According to Trump, the cybersecurity plan will also be aimed at providing protection to critical U.S. infrastructure such as electrical grids and power plants.
According to a report by PC World, the president proceeded to take some shots at the Democratic National Committee, which hackers managed to infiltrate during his presidential campaign. "Despite how they spent hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars more than we did, the Democratic National Committee was hacked successfully, very successfully, and terribly successfully", Trump said.
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