President Obama extends cyber sanctions power

President Barack Obama expanded upon his statement that the rising number of cyberattacks on the US constitutes a national emergency. “These significant malicious cyber-enabled activities continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States,” President Obama wrote in a notice. The President initially made the declaration on April 1, 2015, as part of an executive order that empowered the Treasury Department to levy sanctions on individuals or entities behind cyberattacks and cyber espionage. The move was an attempt to impose costs on foreign hackers who have peppered the US with cyberattacks for years with few repercussions. The sanctions would effectively freeze targets's assets when they pass through the US financial system and prohibit them from transacting with American companies. President Obama said Treasury would retain these powers for at least another year, given the pervasive cyber threat that remains. “The measures adopted on that date to deal with that emergency, must continue in effect beyond April 1, 2016,” he said.