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Holland Sentinel: Peters introduces local cybersecurity bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, co-sponsored legislation that targets increasing cybersecurity for local government units to secure residents’ information.

The DOTGOV Online Trust in Government Act of 2019 would provide local government units, like cities, townships and counties, with resources to transition to websites using .gov domains. The city of Holland and Ottawa County, for example, use a .com and a .org domain, respectively.

Peters, along with Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, Ron Johnson, D-Wisconsin, and James Lankford, R-Oklahoma, believe that by introducing additional resources to local units, sensitive information from residents can be better protected.

“Local governments are responsible for safeguarding citizens’ personal data, from social security numbers and credit card information to detailed medical records,” Peters said in a statement. “This important legislation will help protect the personal information of people in Michigan and across the country from hackers looking to take advantage of gaps in our cybersecurity defenses.”

The legislators also believe that by insuring a .gov address, site users can be sure that they are visiting a verified government website.