New York State Wants To Ban Government Agencies From Paying Ransomware Demands

Two New York state senators proposed two bills last week to ban local municipalities and other government entities from using taxpayer money for paying ransomware demands. From a report: The first bill (S7246) was proposed by Republican NY Senator Phil Boyle on January 14. The second bill (S7289) was introduced by Democrat NY Senator David Carlucci, two days later, on January 16. Both bills are under discussion in committee, and is unclear which will move forward to a vote on the Senate floor. Both S7246 and S7289 have similar texts. The only difference between the two is that S7246 also proposes the creation of a state fund to help local municipalities improve their cyber-security posture. “The Cyber Security Enhancement Fund that will make available grants and financial assistance to villages, towns, and cities with a population of one million or less for the purpose of upgrading the cyber security of their local government,” the text of the S746 bill reads.