US cyber plans ruffle feathers at home and abroad

When it comes to securing cyberspace, the Obama Administration is working hard on the soft sell. The administration has put forward two proposals in recent weeks — one an international plan for securing the Internet and the other a strategy for protecting the nation’s critical infrastructure.

Any U.S. government plan inevitably involves crossing boundaries — boundaries between the United States and other countries and between government and private industry. And unfortunately, when crossing boundaries, it's all too easy to step on toes. But the administration is doing its best to tread lightly. The International Strategy for Cyberspace is an attempt to define how countries worldwide could collaborate on security without compromising their individual sovereignty. That represents a decided shift in U.S. policy, observers say. The plan “follows the U.S. decision last summer to change its position on cybersecurity, agreeing to work with other nations to reduce threats to computer networks,” writes Ellen Nakashima in the Washington Post. “Previously, the United States resisted proposals limiting possible military use of cyberspace.” However, there’s no getting around the fact that the United States is operating from a position of power, which puts some countries on edge. But it's a position the Obama Administration is not about to give up.