Where do the presidential candidates stand on cybersecurity?

More than just red or blue

One of the things that makes America great is the freedom to vote any which way you want. I may not be crazy about who you cast your ballot for, but at least you can do so without worrying about getting your arm chopped off or worse.

Whether you like Donald Trump because of his performance on The Apprentice or you like Hillary Clinton because of her tenor, you need to care and understand their respective agendas.

Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has generally favored continuing policies from the Obama administration, from the current President’s policies on encryption to his national cybersecurity plan, while Republican nominee Donald Trump has said that the current administration has left the country vulnerable to digital and terror attacks, and proposed ramping up cyber warfare and digital surveillance as part of a solution.

Is Big Brother watching?

The candidates’ takes on cybersecurity should be a concern no matter who you vote for because this particular area affects us on any number of levels.

According to FastCo, the Clinton campaign has said she’d “build on the Cybersecurity National Action Plan announced by the Obama administration in February.” This plan called for the appointment of a federal chief information security officer to bolster government network security and collaborations with private industry to keep internet users safe through techniques like two-factor authentication.

Trump, on the other hand said recently that he would “use military, cyber, and financial warfare to fight terrorism.”

In the past, Trump has said he would go further than Obama, aiming to take terrorist groups like ISIS off of the internet entirely.

That could include disrupting digital communications in areas where the group holds power, he said in a December Republican primary debate.

Give and take

Clinton, for her part, recently proposed a “cyber-intelligence surge to help combat terrorism.”

In fact, she has repeatedly urged tech companies to do more to help the government track and stop suspicious activities online.

FastCo points out that “both candidates have expressed a willingness to use cyber-attacks as part of U.S. military strategy,” continuing down a path blazed by Obama and former President George W. Bush.

Both major party candidates have called for the U.S. to do more to protect itself against digital attacks and to use digital tools to thwart extremist activity and digital communications. The minutiae remains unseen and how this plays out will become apparent soon enough. It is critical that as a nation, we stay informed and understand the bigger picture.

Stay tuned.

#Cybersecurity