Cybersecurity Subcommittee Chairman John Ratcliffe on Anthem Cyber-attack

Statement

In an announcement today, the Anthem Health Insurance Company, a for-profit managed health care company in the Blue Cross network suffered a major cyber-attack. It is estimated that "tens of millions" of records were stolen.

Congressman John Ratcliffe, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Security Technologies in the U.S. House of Representatives released the following statement:

"The cyber-attack on Anthem Health Insurance reinforces the need for meaningful cybersecurity legislation to increase sharing of cyber threat information between private business and the government. The nature of this breach is especially troubling as it strikes at the heart of an individual's personal information. This event underscores the need for us to do more to detect and respond to the growing cyber threat. Protecting Americans' privacy is what compels us to act, because every day, nation-state actors and cyber criminals seek to do us harm."

"I will continue to work with Chairman McCaul and other committees of jurisdiction to pass legislation that will encourage and enable stronger cyber vigilance in both the private and public sectors. I believe in a strong defense that recognizes the need to protect against cyber threats as a critical component of broader efforts to defend our homeland. The threat to our borders--both physical and digital--is too great to ignore."

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