Cybersecurity: The key issue Trump and Clinton still need to address

[Commentary] America is under cyberattack; this is the harsh reality. Over the past few years, we’ve seen numerous high-profile hacks on government systems that have directly impacted government organizations, citizens, and in some cases even the presidential candidates themselves. The Office of Personnel Management breach exposed the addresses, health and financial history, and other private details of over 21 million people, including every person that was given a government background check for the last 15 years. Cyberwarfare is the attack vector of the future; it’s cheaper and less risky than physical warfare and has no geographical borders. Every new device connected to the Internet – from fridges to thermostats to cars to airplanes – becomes a potential target for cyberattack.

Earlier in 2016, President Barack Obama unveiled the Cybersecurity National Action Plan, reinforcing the White House’s role in partnering with private industry to improve cybersecurity and allocating $19 billion for cybersecurity in the 2017 Budget, a 35 percent increase over 2016. The upcoming Presidential Debates represent a fantastic opportunity for both candidates to discuss cybersecurity, clarify their policies and comment on the plan and whether they would continue to support it. More importantly, the debates represent an opportunity for voters like you to engage the candidates on cybersecurity, ask the tough questions and seek specific answers. Because while Donald Trump and Secretary Hillary Clinton may want to avoid addressing the elephant in the room, President Trump or President Clinton will not have that same luxury.

[Alex Manea is director of BlackBerry Security]