FEB 09, 2017 | US
BSA Applauds Bipartisan House Letter Urging Trump Admin to Renegotiate the Wassenaar Arrangement
Washington – February 10, 2017 – BSA | The Software Alliance applauds Congressmen Jim Langevin (D-RI), Michael McCaul (R-TX), John Ratcliffe (R-TX), Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Cedric Richmond (D-LA), Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), and Will Hurd (R-TX) for their letter to National Security Advisor Michael Flynn urging the Trump Administration to renegotiate provisions of the Wassenaar Arrangement that threaten to undermine US cybersecurity. The Wassenaar Arrangement is a 41-country international export control agreement. The Congressmen flagged concerns about the 2013 addition of “intrusion software” controls to the Wassenaar Arrangement’s list of dual use technologies that members must subject to export controls. While well intentioned, the provisions were imprecisely drafted and would subject core defensive technologies to onerous licensing requirements that would advantage our adversaries by grinding much-needed cybersecurity activity to a halt. We urge the Trump Administration to take seriously the concerns raised in today’s letter and commit to renegotiating the flawed provisions to ensure that US cybersecurity is not put at risk.
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BSA | The Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the leading advocate for the global software industry before governments and in the international marketplace. Its members are among the world’s most innovative companies, creating software solutions that help businesses of all sizes in every part of the economy to modernize and grow.
With headquarters in Washington, DC, and operations in more than 30 countries, BSA pioneers compliance programs that promote legal software use and advocates for public policies that foster technology innovation and drive growth in the digital economy.