Small businesses are more likely to lack resources to build robust cybersecurity capabilities, but Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., are looking to address that challenge with their recently introduced Small Business Cybersecurity Assistance Act.
The bill would help educate small businesses on cybersecurity practices at Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), which would provide counselors and resources through grant funding from the Small Business Administration (SBA).
“The bill directs the [SBA] to become a cybersecurity clearinghouse by consolidating and managing federal government cybersecurity materials so small businesses can easily access information in one place,” stated a press release from Sen. Rubio.
The legislation also would call upon the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to train SBDC counselors on “higher-level cybersecurity information,” and develop cybersecurity tools to provide for small businesses.
Sen. Peters said that cybersecurity breaches of small companies not only hurt those businesses, but that they also act as “the doorway” for breaches at larger organizations. He said that since small businesses are the backbone…
