Joaquin Castro: “First, I would like to thank my colleague and fellow Texan, Chairman McCaul, and Ranking Member Bennie Thompson of the…”

“First, I would like to thank my colleague and fellow Texan, Chairman McCaul, and Ranking Member Bennie Thompson of the House Homeland Security Committee for bringing up my amendment for consideration to H.R. 1731. This amendment supports small businesses across the Nation at no cost to taxpayers. My amendment would make self-assessment tools available to small- and medium-sized businesses so they can determine their level of cybersecurity readiness. Oftentimes, medium-sized and small businesses don't have the framework or capability in place to protect against cybersecurity threats. In 2014, for example, 31 percent of all cyber attacks were directed not at large businesses but at businesses with less than 250 employees. This is a 4 percent increase from 2013. As the chairman knows, Texas is home to many small companies in so many critical industries: biomed and pharmaceuticals, energy, manufacturing, and many more. Some of these businesses employ as few as 5 to 10 people, and their technology is unprotected, vulnerable to cyber attacks. Today most small businesses use the Internet, collect customers' information, and store sensitive information on business computers. Yet many of these same companies don't have the readily available information to self-assess their ability to defend their digital assets. They lack the tools necessary for determining cybersecurity readiness.…”