| A LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: A pair of lawmakers is looking to attach an amendment to a bill reauthorizing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that would help states bolster the cybersecurity of their election infrastructure. At a recent meeting of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) said she hopes to introduce additional amendments to the bill that address cyber-related issues at the department, including one that implements "bipartisan election security measures to modernize election cybersecurity across America and protect against foreign interference on future elections." Harris said she is working with Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) on such an amendment to the DHS reauthorization bill, which passed the House last year and is now moving through the upper chamber. "If we have been attacked once, we should assume that is the first of many and we should have our guard up," Lankford said at the Senate panel meeting Wednesday. Harris also said she hopes to introduce an amendment that provides "new solutions that get top private sector talent to help the federal government address cybersecurity challenges." The House-passed Homeland Security reauthorization bill includes a number of operational reforms, including some that are related to the department's cybersecurity efforts. Among its vast responsibilities, Homeland Security is taking the lead on protecting federal networks and critical infrastructure from cyber threats. The bill would authorize Homeland Security for the first time since it was established following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. A REPORT IN FOCUS: RUSSIA LOOKED TO SOCIAL MEDIA TO DISRUPT US ENERGY MARKETS: Russia used several American social media accounts in an attempt to disrupt U.S. energy markets, according to a House committee report released Thursday. The report from the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology concluded that Russia exploited social media platforms Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to influence the United States' domestic energy policies, sometimes taking conservative positions to stir up tensions. Looking at information provided to them by U.S. social media companies, the committee found that between 2015 and 2017 there were about 9,097 Russian posts or tweets about U.S. energy policy and events on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. During the same time period, the report found an estimated 4,334 accounts linked to the Internet Research Agency (IRA), a company established by the Russian government that engages in online influence operations for the Russian government and businesses. The Internet Research Agency posts and tweets specifically targeted pipelines, fossil fuels and climate change, the report found. The committee surmised that the disinformation campaign on social media is connected to Russian fears that a strong U.S. energy economy could negatively impact Russia's oil and natural gas economy. Eastern and central European countries currently get about 75 percent of their natural gas from Russia, with southeastern European countries receiving nearly all of their natural gas from Moscow. However, those numbers are slowly changing. For example, Poland recently signed a five-year deal with the U.S. to import liquefied natural gas to decrease dependency on Russian energy supplies, according to the report. "Russia benefits from stirring up controversy about U.S. energy production. U.S. energy exports to European countries are increasing, which means they will have less reason to rely upon Russia for their energy needs. This, in turn, will reduce Russia's influence on Europe to Russia's detriment and Europe's benefit," the committee's chairman, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), said in a statement. "That's why Russian agents attempted to manipulate Americans' opinions about pipelines, fossil fuels, fracking and climate change. The American people deserve to know if what they see on social media is the creation of a foreign power seeking to undermine our domestic energy policy." To read the rest of our piece, click here. A LIGHTER CLICK: Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) talks 'Russia' and 'memos' with Stephen Colbert on upcoming 'Late Show.' WHAT'S IN THE SPOTLIGHT: ENERGY SECTOR CYBER THREATS: Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee lawmakers on Thursday hosted a hearing with experts and officials to address cyber issues facing the energy sector, including threats and possible future solutions. Senators largely sought to learn more about the Department of Energy's new cybersecurity office, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER), which Energy Secretary Rick Perry launched last month. The committee questioned DOE's Assistant Secretary Bruce Walker about the plans for the office. Walker said it would address industry sector threats and help evolve the critical grid infrastructure. Walker emphasized the department's plan to work "diligently to mitigate" threats facing the energy sector and increase alignment of cybersecurity preparedness across local, state, and federal levels. "I would like to highlight that the risk of physical and cyber threats is continuously being exacerbated by a set of circumstances that are increasing the interdependence of the various energy systems throughout the nation," Walker told the committee in his opening remarks. "The creation of the CESER office will build on all that we do today and elevate the department's focus on energy infrastructure protection and will enable more coordinated preparedness and response to cyber and physical threats and natural disasters," he continued. Robert M. Lee, the CEO of industrial cybersecurity firm Dragos, advised that the CESER office should work on "de-duplicating overlap with the private sector" and recognize that the best intelligence is in the "communities and companies being targeted." Lee also expressed concern that the government appears better equipped to handle a major attack than it is to recover from smaller scale attack. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Links from our blog, The Hill, and around the Web. Dems press Trump on response to Russian cyber threat. (The Hill) Grassley intensifies probe into Russian oligarch. (The Hill) Frustrated Dems demand contempt action against Bannon. (The Hill) IBM urges lawmakers to crack down on internet platforms. (The Hill) A data breach at Marine Corps Forces Reserve impacted over 20,000 people. (Marine Corps Times) Senate Intelligence Committee members concluded that House Republicans leaked Warner's texts. (The New York Times) A trio of new reports from cyber firm Dragos examine threats to and vulnerabilities of industrial control systems. (Dragos) The European Union tells tech companies to remove terrorist content within one hour. (Bloomberg) GDPR is going to impact how companies work with third-party cloud providers. (CyberScoop) The latest on the cyberattack that hit German government computer systems. (The Telegraph) If you'd like to receive our newsletter in your inbox, please sign up here. | 
