By Christopher Bing
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House is hosting an event on Wednesday that will bring together America’s largest technology companies for a discussion about cybersecurity challenges following a raft of high-profile hacking incidents earlier this year, people familiar with the event told Reuters.
The event comes as Congress weighs new legislation concerning data breach notification laws and cybersecurity insurance industry regulation, historically viewed as two of the most consequential policy areas within the field.
The guest list includes Amazon.com Inc CEO Andy Jassy, Apple Inc CEO Tim Cook, Microsoft Corp CEO Satya Nadella and IBM’s chief executive, Arvind Krishna, according to two people familiar with the event.
Another said the topics of discussion will include ransomware, critical infrastructure, supply chain security, cybersecurity education and data breach insurance policy.
Executives for energy utility firm Southern Co and financial giant JPMorgan Chase & Co are also expected to attend the event, Bloomberg previously reported.
One of the people familiar with the event said they expect the participating companies to make public commitments toward better IT security measures and for additional workforce training.
The event will feature top cybersecurity officials from the Biden administration, including the recently confirmed National Cybersecurity Director Chris Inglis, as well as Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, to lead different conversations with industry representatives.
While the White House has continuously engaged the private sector for months over potential new cybersecurity rules, Wednesday’s planned event is unique in its inclusion of the insurance industry, according to three people familiar with the event.
The CEO of property and casualty insurer Travelers Companies Inc, Alan Schnitzer, will attend.
Insurance companies play an important part in covering damages associated with big data breaches. Experts contend that influencing the insurance market’s policies around cyberattacks could bring widespread improvements to cyber defense frameworks throughout private industry.
(Reporting by Christopher Bing in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
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