IV
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. CON. RES. 22
Expressing the sense of Congress regarding Internet security and
‘‘cyberterrorism’’.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 6, 2001
Mr. SAXTON (for himself and Mr. CHAMBLISS) submitted the following con-
current resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary,
and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, 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 com-
mittee concerned
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of Congress regarding Internet security
and ‘‘cyberterrorism’’.
Whereas computer networks and the Internet are becoming
an integral part of our society—in 1992 there were 50
sites on the World Wide Web, there are now over 3.6 mil-
lion sites;
Whereas computer networks and the Internet have become
vital in the dissemination of information between individ-
uals, governmental agencies, and academic institutions;
Whereas computer networks and the Internet are increasingly
used for electronic commerce and have the potential to
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account for a significant share of the United States econ-
omy;
Whereas an estimated 1 to 2 million people in the United
States used the Internet for some type of commercial
transaction in 1995;
Whereas over 4 million people were using electronic com-
merce in mid-1997, according to the Department of Com-
merce;
Whereas this number had increased to 10 million users by
the end of 1997, according to the Department of Com-
merce;
Whereas the Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce
has estimated that United States retail electronic com-
merce sales for the fourth quarter of 1999 (October
through December) totalled approximately $5.3 billion;
Whereas a study commissioned by the Department of Com-
merce estimates that electronic commerce in business-to-
business transactions will increase from $131 billion in
1999 to $1.5 trillion by 2003;
Whereas computer networks, electronic mail, and the Internet
are increasingly used to manage and operate critical in-
frastructures such as banking and finance, energy pro-
duction and distribution, transportation, and national de-
fense;
Whereas computer network and Internet security has become
vital to ensure the delivery of goods and services;
Whereas young ‘‘hackers’’ are not the only security threat to
computer networks and the Internet;
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Whereas terrorists groups and criminal syndicates also pos-
sess the capability to undermine the security and integ-
rity of computer networks and the Internet;
Whereas the number of nations—including many opposed to
United States interests at home and abroad—incor-
porating ‘‘Information Operations’’ as part of their mili-
tary capability and doctrine is growing;
Whereas the protection of the Nation’s critical electronic in-
frastructures is not solely under the purview of the Gov-
ernment, but private industry also has some measure of
responsibility;
Whereas the President’s National Plan for Information Sys-
tems Protection would help to protect computer networks
and the Internet from ‘‘cyber attacks’’;
Whereas it is important to fund entities designed to combat
‘‘cyber attacks’’, such as the National Infrastructure Pro-
tection Center of the Federal Bureau of Investigation,
the Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office of the De-
partment of Commerce, and other programs within the
Department of Defense, the National Security Agency,
and the Central Intelligence Agency; and
Whereas the legal framework for the prosecution of
‘‘cyberterrorists’’ is not comprehensive and does not re-
flect the current capabilities for wrongdoing: Now, there-
fore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That the Congress—
(1) designates cyberterrorism as an emerging
threat to the national security of the United States
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which has the potentiality to cause great harm to
the Nation’s critical electronic infrastructure; and
(2) calls for—
(A) a partnership between the Federal
Government and private industry in combatting
the ‘‘cyber menace’’;
(B) a revised legal framework for the pros-
ecution of ‘‘hackers’’ and ‘‘cyberterrorists’’; and
(C) a new interagency study to be con-
ducted by the Departments of Commerce and
Defense, the National Security Agency, the
Central Intelligence Agency, and the Federal
Bureau of Investigation to assess the threat
posed by ‘‘cyberterrorists’’.
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