Administration Previews Optional Industry Cyber Standards

The Obama Administration released a draft of computer security protocols for companies that operate key systems, such as chemical plants and the electric grid. Final guidelines to protect the networks that run critical infrastructure are due, by executive order, in February 2014. A final draft is expected to be published in October, according to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the agency ordered to produce the standards. Although the guidelines will be optional, federal officials are weighing whether to make them mandatory for government contractors.