I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5222 

To impose sanctions with respect to persons responsible for knowingly engaging in significant activities undermining cybersecurity on behalf of or 

at the direction of the Government of Iran, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 12, 2016 

Mr. RATCLIFFE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To impose sanctions with respect to persons responsible for 

knowingly engaging in significant activities undermining 

cybersecurity on behalf of or at the direction of the 

Government of Iran, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Iran Cyber Sanctions 

5 Act of 2016’’. 

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1 SEC. 2. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO PER2 SONS RESPONSIBLE FOR KNOWINGLY EN3 GAGING IN SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITIES UNDER4 MINING CYBERSECURITY ON BEHALF OF OR 

5 AT THE DIRECTION OF THE GOVERNMENT OF 

6 IRAN. 

7 (a) CYBERSECURITY REPORT REQUIRED.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act, and not less 

10 frequently than once every 180 days thereafter, the 

11 President shall submit to the appropriate congres12 sional committees a report on significant activities 

13 undermining cybersecurity conducted by persons on 

14 behalf of or at the direction of the Government of 

15 Iran (including members of paramilitary organiza16 tions such as Ansar-e-Hezbollah and Basij-e 

17 Mostaz’afin) against the Government of the United 

18 States or any United States person. 

19 (2) INFORMATION.—The report required under 

20 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

21 (A) The identity of persons that have 

22 knowingly facilitated, participated or assisted 

23 in, engaged in, directed, or provided material 

24 support for significant activities undermining 

25 cybersecurity described in paragraph (1). 

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1 (B) A description of the conduct engaged 

2 in by each person identified under subpara3 graph (A). 

4 (C) An assessment of the extent to which 

5 the Government of Iran or another foreign gov6 ernment directed, facilitated, or provided mate7 rial support in the conduct of significant activi8 ties undermining cybersecurity described in 

9 paragraph (1). 

10 (D) A strategy to counter efforts by per11 sons to conduct significant activities under12 mining cybersecurity described in paragraph 

13 (1), including efforts to engage foreign govern14 ments to halt the capability of persons to con15 duct those activities described in paragraph (1). 

16 (3) FORM.—The report required under para17 graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form but 

18 may include a classified annex. 

19 (b) DESIGNATION OF PERSONS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para21 graph (2), the President shall include on the spe22 cially designated nationals and blocked persons list 

23 maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control 

24 of the Department of the Treasury— 

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1 (A) any person identified under subsection 

2 (a)(2)(A); and 

3 (B) any person for which the Department 

4 of Justice has issued an indictment in connec5 tion with significant activities undermining cy6 bersecurity against the Government of the 

7 United States or any United States person. 

8 (2) EXCEPTION.—The President is not required 

9 to include a person described in paragraph (1)(A) or 

10 (1)(B) on the specially designated nationals and 

11 blocked persons list maintained by the Office of For12 eign Assets Control of the Department of the Treas13 ury if the President submits to the appropriate con14 gressional committees an explanation of the reasons 

15 for not including that person on that list. 

16 (c) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The President shall 

17 use authority provided in Executive Order 13694 (April 

18 1, 2015, relating to blocking the property of certain per19 sons engaging in significant malicious cyber-enabled ac20 tivities) to impose sanctions against any person included 

21 on the specially designated nationals and blocked persons 

22 list maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control 

23 of the Department of the Treasury pursuant to subsection 

24 (b). 

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1 (d) PRESIDENTIAL BRIEFINGS TO CONGRESS.—Not 

2 later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 

3 this Act, and periodically thereafter, the President shall 

4 provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional com5 mittees on efforts to implement this section. 

6 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT8 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com9 mittees’’ means— 

10 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

11 the Committee on Homeland Security and Gov12 ernmental Affairs, and the Committee on Bank13 ing, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

14 and 

15 (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

16 Committee on Homeland Security, the Com17 mittee on Financial Services, and the Com18 mittee on Ways and Means of the House of 

19 Representatives. 

20 (2) SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITIES UNDERMINING CY21 BERSECURITY.—The term ‘‘significant activities un22 dermining cybersecurity’’ includes— 

23 (A) significant efforts to— 

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1 (i) deny access to or degrade, disrupt, 

2 or destroy an information and communica3 tions technology system or network; or 

4 (ii) exfiltrate information from such a 

5 system or network without authorization; 

6 (B) significant destructive malware at7 tacks; 

8 (C) significant denial of service activities; 

9 and 

10 (D) such other significant activities as may 

11 be described in regulations prescribed to imple12 ment this section. 

13 (3) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 

14 ‘‘United States person’’ means— 

15 (A) an individual who is a citizen of the 

16 United States or an alien lawfully admitted for 

17 permanent residence to the United States; 

18 (B) an entity organized under the laws of 

19 the United States or any jurisdiction within the 

20 United States, including a foreign branch of 

21 such an entity; or 

22 (C) any government (Federal, State, or 

23 local) entity. 

Æ 

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