Cybersecurity

Trump admin to reveal rules on cyber vulnerabilities: report

The Trump administration is set to make public on Wednesday its rules for deciding whether to disclose cyber vulnerabilities or keep them under wraps, according to a Reuters report.

The revised rules are intended to shed light on how the government determines whether to reveal cybersecurity flaws so that manufacturers can patch holes in computer systems.

The government has faced criticism that it often fails to warn manufacturers about cyber vulnerabilities, so as to exploit such gaps to launch its own cyberattacks.

{mosads}

By publishing the rules, the Trump administration is hoping to make its process for making such determinations more transparent, according to Reuters.

A breach earlier this year allowed a mysterious group called the Shadow Brokers to obtain a hacking tool created by the National Security Agency. That tool took advantage of a vulnerability in Microsoft Windows software.

Hackers used that tool to unleash a massive ransomware attack, known as WannaCry, that affected computer systems around the world, including in many hospitals.

According to Reuters, the rules set for release on Wednesday will identify the government agencies involved in current review processes for making determinations about revealing cyber vulnerabilities.