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Security, Privacy and the Law

Security and privacy issues encountered by businesses often require immediate and discreet solutions. We cover topics that arise from guiding our clients through the process of complying with the ever-growing number of state, federal and international laws governing information security, identity theft, surveillance and other privacy issues.

Security, Privacy and the Law
CISA, FBI, and DOE Release Joint Cybersecurity Advisory in Light of Increased Threats to Energy Sector's Cybersecurity
Blog April 21, 2022
On March 24, 2022, the Department of Justice unsealed two indictments charging four Russian government employees in two hacking campaigns that targeted critical infrastructure in the energy sector.  We cover these indictments in depth here.  Concurrently, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Department of Energy (DOE) jointly published a Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) relating to the hacks…
US, UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand Issue Advisory on Russian State-Sponsored and Criminal Cyber Threats to Critical Infrastructure
Blog April 21, 2022
The cybersecurity authorities of the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom have released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) to warn organizations that Russia's invasion of Ukraine could expose organizations both within and beyond the region to increased malicious cyber activity from Russian state-sponsored cyber actors or Russian-aligned cybercrime groups. Joint CSA: Russian State-Sponsored and Criminal Cyber Threats to Critical Infrastructure…
Preparing for and Mitigating Foreign Influence Operations Targeting Critical Infrastructure (i.e., Dealing with the Fallout from Russias Invasion of Ukraine)
Blog February 22, 2022
The Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has just released CISA Insights: Preparing for and Mitigating Foreign Influence Operations Targeting Critical Infrastructure, which provides proactive steps organizations can take to assess and mitigate risks from information manipulation. Malicious actors (i.e., Russia) may use tactics—such as misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation—to shape public opinion, undermine trust, and amplify division, which can lead to impacts……
Cybersecurity 2022 – The Year in Preview: Continued Threats to Nation's Energy Supply as Regulators Race to Keep Up
Blog February 02, 2022
Continued Threats of Ransomware Attacks As we reported in our 2021 Year in Preview series, we began 2021 anticipating that ransomware would be a serious threat to critical energy infrastructure.  These concerns were realized in May 2021 when the Colonial Pipeline Company's (“Colonial”) entire 5,500-mile pipeline system carrying liquid fuels was shut down due to a ransomware attack by DarkSide, a hacking group that allegedly has loose ties to the Russian government…
CISA on Russia, Ukraine and Ransomware
Blog January 30, 2022
According to the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the potential hostilities between Russia and Ukraine are likely to spill over into cyber warfare.  In this months CISA Insights: Every organization in the United States is at risk from cyber threats that can disrupt essential services and potentially result in impacts to public safety. Over the past year, cyber incidents have impacted many companies…
Biden Administration Focus on Cybercrime Continues with Israeli Companies Added to Entity List, New Export Controls, and Cryptocurrency Sanctions
Blog November 12, 2021
On November 3, 2021, the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) added two Israeli entities to the Entity List due to malicious cyber activities. In its press release, BIS stated that the designation of Israeli companies NSO Group and Candiru was based on evidence that these entities developed and supplied spyware to foreign governments, which was then used for malicious surveillance…
Colonial Pipeline Cyberattack Highlights Vulnerability of Nation's Energy Sector
Blog May 13, 2021
This post is a follow up from our recent discussion of the cyberattack that took the 5,500-mile Colonial Pipeline offline last week and the growing threat ransomware poses to our nation's energy system.  On May 10, 2021, a group called DarkSide took responsibility for the ransomware and the FBI has since confirmed the group's involvement.  DarkSide indicated that the attack was financially, not politically, motivated. DarkSide…

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The Foley Hoag Security, Privacy and the Law Blog focuses on the security and privacy issues encountered by businesses that often require immediate and discreet solutions. Here we cover topics that arise from guiding our clients through the process of complying with the ever-growing number of state, federal and international laws governing information security, identity theft, surveillance and other privacy issues.

Our lawyers assist clients with questions on how to legally and ethically investigate abusive e-mail, take down infringing Web sites, maintain surveillance of company facilities and information systems, and remediate breaches of security. We work with clients to ensure the legality and success of existing security policies and protocols and help them develop new programs when necessary. Our lawyers have managed unexpected crises ranging from surprise inspections by government investigators to obtaining emergency court orders needed to secure stolen company computers from rogue insiders.

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