House approves CISPA despite last-minute push by opponents

A last-minute push by critics of a bill that would allow Internet companies to open their networks to the Feds didn't work. The House approved CISPA by a 248-168 vote.


The U.S. House of Representatives today approved a controversial Internet surveillance bill , rejecting increasingly vocal arguments from critics that it would do more to endanger Americans' privacy than aid cybersecurity.

By a vote of 248 to 168, a bipartisan majority approved the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act, or CISPA, which would permit Internet companies to hand over confidential customer records and communications to the National Security Agency and other portions of the U.S. government.


CISPA would "waive every single privacy law ever enacted in the name of cybersecurity," said Rep. Jared Polis, a Colorado Democrat, during today's marathon floor debate. "Allowing the military and NSA to spy on Americans on American soil goes against every principle this country was founded on."

Americans' confidential information that could legally provided to the feds would "include health records, it can include firearm registration information, it can include credit card information," warned Polis, a former Web entrepreneur who was a leader in opposing the Stop Online Piracy Act as well.

CISPA wouldn't formally grant the NSA or Homeland Security any additional surveillance authority. (A proposed amendment that would have veered in that direction was withdrawn .)


CISPA Excerpts

Excerpts from the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act:



That prompted some politicians, including House Intelligence Committee member Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), to reluctantly oppose the bill. Schiff said that because his proposed amendments were rejected, he had to vote against CISPA "due to my concerns about civil liberties and the privacy of Americans."

What made CISPA so controversial is a section saying that, "notwithstanding any other provision of law," companies may share information with Homeland Security, the IRS, the NSA, or other agencies. By including the word "notwithstanding," CISPA's drafters intended to make their legislation trump all existing federal and state laws, including ones dealing with wiretaps, educational records, medical privacy, and more.

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, had predicted earlier in the week he had the votes. And it turned out he did, despite a last-minute surge of opposition that included Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul warning that "CISPA is Big Brother writ large," a White House veto threat , and 18 Democratic House members saying it "does not include necessary safeguards."

CISPA is "needed to stop the Chinese government from stealing our stuff," Rogers said. They're "stealing the value and prosperity of America."

Rogers' position paper on CISPA said the bill is necessary to deal with threats from China and Russia, and that it "protects privacy by prohibiting the government from requiring private sector entities to provide information." During today's floor debate, Rogers repeatedly referred to the need for the Feds to share attack signatures with the private sector -- but never addressed the privacy criticisms directly, except to say they were invalid.



The bill now heads to the Senate, where related cybersecurity legislation has been stalled for years, and the threat of a presidential veto makes speedy approval unlikely.

"Once the government gets expansive national security authorities, there's no going back," Michelle Richardson, ACLU legislative counsel, said after the House vote. "We encourage the Senate to let this horrible bill fade into obscurity."


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