Chabot Bill Targets Cybercriminals

Press Release

Chabot Bill Targets Cybercriminals

Congressman Steve Chabot (R-OH) today teamed up with Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) to introduce the bipartisan Cyber-Security Enhancement Act, a bill which seeks to deter cybercrime by strengthening the criminal code to reflect modern cybercriminal threats, increasing penalties for cybercrime and boosting resources to law enforcement for training and equipment.

"Cybercrime is a lucrative operation for high tech criminals that can bring severe hardship and financial loss to the victim," said Congressman Steve Chabot. "We must modernize our laws to better protect both consumers and business owners from cybercriminals who hijack computers to steal personal information or disrupt critical business functions."

Specifically, the Cyber-Security Enhancement Act strengthens existing law by making it a crime to access the personal information of individuals without permission and increases penalties for those who are found guilty of computer crimes. The bill also expands the scope of cybercrime offenses to make it easier to catch and prosecute cybercriminals and provides the Department of Justice greater latitude to investigate and prosecute cybercrimes originating overseas. Furthermore, the Cyber-Security Enhancement Act provides additional tools to investigate and assist in the prosecution of computer crimes.

Congressman Chabot noted that there are limited federal protections against cybercrime and the federal government needed to "keep up with advancing technology." Chabot, a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, is also a lead sponsor of the SAFE Act and the KIDS Act, two pieces of legislation designed to protect children from sexual predators on the Internet.

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