Citation[]
President's Commission on Critical Infrastructure Protection, Critical Foundations: Protecting America's Infrastructures (Oct. 1997) (full-text).
Overview[]
In October 1997, the President's Commission on Critical Infrastructure Protection issued this report, which described the potentially devastating implications of poor information security for the nation. The report concluded that the United States was so dependent on these its critical infrastructures that the government had to view them through the lens of a "national security focus," since serious consequences for the entire nation were to be expected if these elements were unavailable for any significant amount of time.
The report recommended measures to achieve a higher level of critical infrastructure protection that included industry cooperation and information sharing, a national organization structure, a revised program of research and development, a broad program of awareness and education, and a reconsideration of related laws.
It further stated that a comprehensive effort would need to "include a system of surveillance, assessment, early warning, and response mechanisms to mitigate the potential for cyberthreats." The report also urged the FBI to continue its efforts to develop warning and threat analysis capabilities, which would enable it to serve as the preliminary national warning center for infrastructure attacks and to provide law enforcement, intelligence, and other information needed to ensure the highest quality analysis possible.