Norma Torres: “Before I begin, I want to thank the chairman and also Ranking Member Thompson and Ranking Member Vela and all of their…”

“Before I begin, I want to thank the chairman and also Ranking Member Thompson and Ranking Member Vela and all of their committee staff for their great work and support of this very important legislation. We would not be here today without their commitment to keeping our ports safe. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, you can't turn on the television or visit your favorite website without seeing cyber threats dominating the news. All industries, including our own Federal agencies, have been targets, costing our economy dearly and exposing the personal information of hundreds of millions of employees. This is a growing problem that is not going away. Rather, these threats are becoming more common and more severe. From the interference in our elections to attacks on government workers, email hacks, and the theft of credit card information, cyber threats are everywhere, and it is time that we modernize the Federal Government's planning and response to these threats. In June, a Danish shipping company was infected with malware that affected 17 of its shipping container terminals worldwide. The virus spread to 2 million computers within a 2-hour period. As a result, the largest terminal at the Port of Los Angeles shut down for 4 days from the cyber attack. A recent study estimated the cost of a shutdown of the Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach at $1 billion per day to the local economy.…”