by Alexander Southwell, Stephenie Gosnell Handler, and Eric Hornbeck
From left to right: Alexander Southwell, Stephenie Gosnell Handler, and Eric Hornbeck (photos courtesy of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP)
The Biden administration has been steadily evolving its views of national security risks and priorities—and what measures the executive branch will take to mitigate those risks. Last fall’s National Security Strategy called out critical technology and cybersecurity as key national security concerns. This focus sharpened with the release of the National Cybersecurity Strategy last month. And, most recently, the administration has submitted a $3.1 billion budget request for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), a 22 percent increase from its request last year, to implement that strategy and fund other initiatives. While strategy is not policy, and budget proposals are not appropriations, these are strong signals of the shifting winds of the administration regarding the tools and incentives the administration will deploy to mitigate cybersecurity risks.