Trump administration takes aim at Biden and Obama cybersecurity rules | TechCrunch
Jun 07, 2025 - techcrunch.com
President Donald Trump signed an executive order that revises and rolls back cybersecurity policies established by former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden. The order eliminates Biden's encouragement for agencies to accept digital identity documents for public benefit programs, citing concerns about illegal immigrants accessing benefits. It also removes Biden's AI-related requirements, such as testing AI for energy infrastructure defense and funding AI security research, shifting the focus to managing vulnerabilities instead of censorship. Additionally, Trump’s order repeals Obama-era sanctions for cybersecurity attacks, limiting them to foreign actors to prevent misuse against domestic political opponents.
The executive order also removes mandates for agencies to adopt quantum-resistant encryption and for federal contractors to attest to their software security, which the White House describes as burdensome and compliance-focused rather than security-focused. The administration argues that these changes will streamline cybersecurity policies and prevent the inclusion of what it views as distracting issues. Critics, however, express concern that these rollbacks prioritize immigration issues over proven cybersecurity benefits.
Key takeaways:
President Trump signed an executive order rolling back cybersecurity policies from the Obama and Biden administrations.
The order removes Biden's encouragement for agencies to accept digital identity documents for public benefits, citing risks of abuse by illegal immigrants.
Trump's order eliminates Biden's AI and quantum-resistant encryption requirements, refocusing on managing vulnerabilities rather than perceived censorship.
Obama-era sanctions for cybersecurity attacks are repealed, limiting sanctions to foreign actors and excluding election-related activities.
