Washington, D.C. – Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Cory Gardner (R-CO) reintroduced the bipartisan Cyber League of Indo-Pacific States (CLIPS) Act, which would establish a cyber community of regional allies and partners to combat cyberattacks that threaten the U.S. economy. The legislation would further the robust cybersecurity cooperation called for in the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act.

“The increasing use of cyber attacks and cyber crime to steal information, influence populations, and attack infrastructure requires a global solution,” said Senator Coons. “I am proud to introduce this resolution to urge the Administration to work with our partners in the Indo-Pacific to ensure a free and open Internet safe from economically crippling cyberattacks.”

“Estimates put losses from cybercrime at $600 billion annually and growing, impacting companies from Wall Street to Main Street, as well as the infrastructure supporting the entire U.S. economy,” said Senator Gardner. “This bipartisan legislation would unite like-minded countries to address the fundamentally unfair competition when other countries support or directly engage in cyber theft.”

CLIPS Treaty member countries would agree to:

  • Create an Information Sharing and Analysis Center
  • Consult on emerging cyber threats
  • Pledge not to conduct or support theft of intellectual property
  • Introduce and enforce minimum criminal punishment for cyber theft
  • Extradite cyber thieves 
  • Enforce laws protecting intellectual property, including patents
  • Ensure government agencies comply with software license terms
  • Minimize data localization requirements consistent with the United States- Mexico-Canada Agreement
  • Seek cooperation with respect to standards
  • Provide for public input when devising legislation on cybersecurity
  • Cooperate on the attribution of cyberattacks and impose appropriate consequences

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