Benefits President Obama\'s Cybersecurity Internet Policy

¶ … President Obama's Cybersecurity and Internet Policy

In the recent past, cyber attacks have become commonplace in the U.S. And also in other parts of the world. The said attacks are also increasingly becoming sophisticated. In that regard, there exists an urgent need to rein in this problem before it gets out of hand. In this text, I discuss the benefits of President Obama's Cybersecurity and Internet Policy.

President Obama's Cybersecurity and Internet Policy: Key Benefits

As reported on the White House website, "Americans deserve an internet that is safe and secure, so that they can shop, bank, communicate, and learn online without fear that their accounts will be hacked or their identity stolen" (White House, 2013). With this in mind, the President has been very supportive of initiatives and measures that support a free and secure internet. Indeed, President Obama has in the past identified cyber threat as being amongst the most serious challenges (from an economic and national security perspective) the country faces today (White House, 2013). As the White House further points out, the president is of the opinion that going forward; the economic prosperity of this great country will be largely hinged on Cybersecurity.

Some of the initiatives that have been embraced in an attempt to guarantee the safety and openness of the internet as well as the privacy of data include but they are not limited to the International Strategy for Cyberspace and the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC). To begin with, it is important to note that the number of people using the internet to bank and do shopping has in the recent past increased exponentially. In that regard, there exists a need to protect the privacy of such users. According to Schmidt (2011), the measures organizations take to safeguard the privacy of individuals vary significantly. In his own words, Schmidt (2011) points out that "to bring clarity and transparency to these practices, NSTIC seeks to establish clear privacy rules based upon the Fair Information Practice Principles (FIPPs) that address the responsibilities of all participants in the identity ecosystem." In that regard, the said participants in this case are barred from unnecessarily exposing the private data of individuals. Thus in the final analysis, the Cybersecurity and Internet Policy continues to play a significant role in safeguarding the privacy of Americans.

It is also important to note that apart from addressing the existing challenges, President Obama's Cybersecurity and Internet Policy will also present other meaningful and exciting opportunities for both the country and its allies. For instance, the International Strategy for Cyberspace which according to Bayuk et al. (2012) was issued by President Obama seeks "to pursue a policy that would empower innovation as well as the ability to seek, receive, and impart information…" Theft of intellectual property is an issue that should be dealt with firmly and decisively. This is more so the case given that it effectively threatens or erodes the country's competitiveness as new paths of intellectual property theft and industrial espionage are created. Thanks to the said strategy, organizations will in the long-term be able to conduct or undertake research in an environment that guarantees the safety and integrity of data.