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Title II — Promoting regional security and digital security, and protecting human rights in the Americas

S. 4528 · 116th Congress · Aug 13, 2020 · Lineage

II Promoting regional security and digital security, and protecting human rights in the Americas

Sec. 201 Ensuring the integrity of telecom and data networks and critical infrastructure

(a)
Sense of Congress— It is the sense of Congress that—
(1)
allegations of espionage, intellectual property theft, hacking, and unscrupulous business practices often accompany the entrance of Chinese companies into a region;
(2)
the United States Government should assist Latin American and Caribbean governments and businesses in developing their own digital telecommunications networks to render them less susceptible to Chinese malfeasance; and
(3)
strengthening and implementing intellectual property and cyber governance laws will boost innovation in the Latin America and the Caribbean.
(b)
Technical assistance— The Secretary of State, working through the Office of the Coordinator for Cyber Issues of the Department of State, and in consultation with the Attorney General, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Chief of the International Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission shall offer to provide technical assistance to partner governments in Latin America and the Caribbean to strengthen their capacity to promote digital security, including—
(1)
defending the integrity of digital infrastructure and digital assets, including data storage systems, such as Cloud computing, proprietary data, personal information, and proprietary technologies;
(2)
detecting, identifying, and investigating cybercrimes, including the collection of digital forensic evidence;
(3)
developing appropriate enforcement mechanisms for cybercrimes;
(4)
detecting and identifying perpetrators; and
(5)
prosecuting cybercrimes and holding perpetrators accountable for such crimes.
(c)
Prioritization— The Secretary of State, in providing the technical assistance described in subsection (b), shall prioritize working with national and regional law enforcement entities, including—
(1)
police forces;
(2)
public prosecutors;
(3)
attorneys general
(4)
courts; and
(5)
other law enforcement and civilian intelligence entities, as appropriate.
(d)
Cyber defense assistance— The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Commander of the United States Cyber Command and the Director of National Intelligence, shall offer to provide technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of partner governments in Latin America and the Caribbean—
(1)
to protect the integrity of their telecom and data networks and their critical infrastructure;
(2)
to build and monitor secure telecom and data networks;
(3)
to identify cyber threats and detect and deter cyber attacks;
(4)
to investigate cyber crimes, including the collection of digital forensic evidence;
(5)
to protect the integrity of digital infrastructure and digital assets, including data storage systems (including Cloud computing), proprietary data, personal information, and proprietary technologies;
(6)
to plan maintenance, improvements, and modernization in a coordinated and regular fashion so as to ensure continuity and safety; and
(7)
to protect the digital systems that manage roads, bridges, ports, and transportation hubs.
(e)
Briefing requirement— Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter, the Secretary of State shall provide a briefing regarding the technical assistance described in subsection (b) and (d) to—
(1)
the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;
(2)
the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
(3)
the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate;
(4)
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives;
(5)
the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives; and
(6)
the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives.

Sec. 202 Addressing the risks that pervasive surveillance and monitoring technologies pose to human rights

(a)
Findings— Congress makes the following findings:
(1)
According to a 2018 report by Freedom House—
(A)
China has stepped up efforts to use digital media to increase its own power, both inside and outside of China;
(B)
in 2018, for the second year in a row, China was the worst abuser of internet freedom, and during that year, the Government of China hosted media officials from dozens of countries for 2- and 3-week seminars on its sprawling system of censorship and surveillance;
(C)
Chinese companies have supplied telecommunications hardware, advanced facial-recognition technology, and data analytics tools to a variety of governments with poor human rights records, which could benefit Chinese intelligence services and repressive local authorities; and
(D)
China’s Belt and Road Initiative includes a “Digital Silk Road” of Chinese-built fiber-optic networks that could expose internet traffic to greater monitoring by local and Chinese intelligence agencies, given that China is determined to set the technical standards for how the next generation of traffic is coded and transmitted.
(2)
As part of its engagement with Latin American and Caribbean governments, China has begun promoting the installation of pervasive surveillance camera systems, under the pretext of citizen security, in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, to be financed, designed, installed, and maintained by companies linked to the Government of China.
(b)
Sense of Congress— It is the sense of Congress that—
(1)
China is exporting its model for internal security and state control of society through advanced technology and artificial intelligence; and
(2)
the adoption of surveillance systems can lead to breaches of citizens’ private information, increased censorship, violations of civil rights, and harassment of political opponents.
(c)
Diplomatic engagement— The Secretary of State shall conduct diplomatic engagement with governments in Latin America and the Caribbean—
(1)
to help officials identify and mitigate the risks to civil liberties posed by pervasive surveillance and monitoring technologies; and
(2)
to offer recommendations on ways to mitigate such risks.
(d)
Internet freedom programs— The Chief Executive Officer of the United States Agency for Global Media, working through the Open Technology Fund, and the Secretary of State, working through the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor’s office of Internet Freedom and Business and Human Rights, shall expand and prioritize efforts to provide anti-censorship technology and services to journalists and citizens in Latin America, in order to enhance their ability to safely access or share digital news and information without fear of repercussions or surveillance.
(e)
Support for civil society— The Secretary of State, acting through the Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, and in coordination with the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, shall work through nongovernmental organizations—
(1)
to support and promote programs that support internet freedom and the free flow of information online in Latin America and the Caribbean;
(2)
to protect open, secure, and reliable access to the internet in Latin America and the Caribbean;
(3)
to provide integrated support to civil society for technology, digital safety, policy and advocacy, and applied research programs in Latin America and the Caribbean;
(4)
to train journalists and civil society leaders in Latin America and the Caribbean on investigative techniques necessary to ensure public accountability and prevent government overreach in the digital sphere; and
(5)
to assist independent media outlets and journalists in Latin America and the Caribbean to build their own capacity and develop high-impact, in-depth news reports covering governance and human rights topics.
(f)
Briefing requirement— Not more than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter, the Secretary of State, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the Chief Executive Officer of the United States Agency for Global Media shall provide a briefing regarding the efforts described in subsections (c), (d), and (e) to—
(1)
the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;
(2)
the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
(3)
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; and
(4)
the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
(g)
Authorization of appropriations—
(1)
In general— There are authorized to be appropriated $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2021 to carry out the activities set forth in subsection (e).
(2)
Notification requirements— Amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1) are subject to the notification requirements applicable to expenditures from—
(A)
the Economic Support Fund under section 531(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2346(c)); and
(B)
the Development Assistance Fund under section 653(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2413(a)).

Sec. 203 Revitalizing bilateral and multilateral military education programs

(a)
In general— The Secretary of State shall dedicate not less than 17 percent of the amounts appropriated to bilateral and multilateral military education programs, such as the International Military Education and Training program, for Latin America and the Caribbean during the 5-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b)
Modernization— The Secretary of State shall take steps to modernize and strengthen the programs receiving funding under subsection (a)—
(1)
to ensure that such programs are vigorous, substantive, and the preeminent choice for international military education and training for Latin American and Caribbean partners.
(c)
Required elements— The programs referred to under subsection (a) shall—
(1)
provide training and capacity-building opportunities to Latin American and Caribbean security services;
(2)
provide practical skills and frameworks for—
(A)
improving the functioning and organization of security services in Latin America and the Caribbean;
(B)
creating a better understanding of the United States and its values; and
(C)
using technology for maximum efficiency and organization; and
(3)
promote and ensure that security services in Latin America and the Caribbean operate in compliance with international norms, standards, and rules of engagement, including a respect for human rights, democracy, and civilian control.
(d)
Limitation— Security assistance under this section is subject to the limitations set forth in section 620M of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2378d).