U.S. Reps. Young Kim (R-CA) and Jason Crow (D-CO) recently applauded the House of Representatives’ advancement of their legislation, which seeks to bolster small business cybersecurity capabilities.
The SBA Cyber Awareness Act (H.R. 3462) would aid small businesses in handling and reporting cyber threats.
“For more than two decades, the SBA’s (Small Business Administration) Inspector General has listed IT security as one of the most pressing challenges facing the SBA,” said Kim, ranking member of the Small Business Subcommittee on Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Workforce Development. “Unfortunately, SBA cybersecurity vulnerabilities were brought to light with unprecedented demand of SBA loan programs during COVID-19, discouraging entrepreneurs from starting a business and creating jobs,” said Congresswoman Kim. “We must address this issue now and secure our systems so small business owners can safely utilize SBA’s resources as they work to recover from the pandemic, hire workers and adjust to rising costs of supplies. I thank my colleagues for coming together to pass the SBA Cyber Awareness Act and urge the Senate to swiftly take action to support small businesses.”
The measure would require the SBA to notify Congress of future breaches, including providing information on those impacted and how the breach occurred while also generating a report within six months of the legislation’s passage as a means of assessing the SBA’s ability to combat cyberthreats.
“Cyberattacks are one of the greatest modern threats to our economy,” Crow, chair of the Small Business Subcommittee on Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Workforce Development, said. “We must do everything we can to defend our small business owners from these attacks.”