Cybersecurity

Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a security measure that requires two separate forms of identification in order to access something. The first factor is typically a password while the second can be a code sent to the user’s phone or tablet or biometrics using their fingerprint, face, or retina 2FA combines two of the following: something you know (password), something you are (your fingerprint, face, or retina), and something you have (a phone or tablet).

Cybersecurity describes the collective measures to protect internet-connected devices, networks, and data, from unauthorized access and criminal use. Cybersecurity seeks to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data over its entire life cycle. Cybersecurity protects both software and hardware. It can be used to protect everything from personal information to complex government systems.

According to the 2022 Global Cyber Threat Report by SonicWall, a cybersecurity company, governments around the world saw a 1,885% increase in cyber attacks in 2021. The Chair of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell in the U.S. also expressed concern over the state of cybersecurity. In February 2020, Powell stated that cybersecurity is the greatest risk facing the financial system.

Aaron’s Law is a bill introduced to the U.S. Congress in 2014 Representative Zoe Lofgren of California. The bill was named after Aaron Swartz, an early internet innovator and activist who committed suicide while facing a potential 35-year prison sentence for illegally downloading millions of academic articles that were only available via a subscription service. The bill did not pass, but is still used in legal discussions about internet privacy.