Cyber Letters of Marque and Reprisal Act
Sponsored By: Representative Burchett, Tim [R-TN-2]
Introduced
Summary
This bill would authorize the President to issue cyber letters of marque that commission private persons and companies to carry out offensive cyber operations to disrupt, seize, and repatriate assets from designated foreign cyberthreats. It sets limits, recordkeeping, and financial rules for those private operations.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 2 mixed.
Ban on targeting U.S. persons
This bill would prohibit anyone holding a cyber letter from knowingly carrying out operations against any United States citizen or U.S. entity. That prohibition would protect U.S. households and domestic businesses from being targeted by authorized cyber letter operations.
New authority for private cyber operators
This bill would let the President or a designated senior official commission private people and companies with cyber letters to carry out offensive cyber operations outside U.S. territory. Holders would be allowed to use limited offensive tools, including malware, to disrupt, seize, or repatriate foreign digital assets when necessary. Holders would have to post a security bond in an amount the President sets and keep a log of all activities and seized assets for at least five years; the bond could be partly or fully forfeited for violations. Holders would be immune from civil lawsuits for acts that are expressly authorized by their cyber letter.
Recovered funds pay bounties and rewards
This bill would let the government use assets recovered through authorized cyber operations to fund a bounty program. Holders could be required to forfeit up to 15% of the assets they recover to fund those bounties. People or companies without a cyber letter who provide information that leads to a recovery could get up to 5% of the recovered assets as a reward. Any recovered funds not spent on bounties or rewards would be deposited into the Crime Victims Fund.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Burchett, Tim [R-TN-2]
TN • R
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov