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“PROTECTING DIPLOMATS FROM SURVEILLANCE THROUGH CONSUMER DEVICES ACT” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H6319-H6320 on July 17, 2018.
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The publication is reproduced in full below:
PROTECTING DIPLOMATS FROM SURVEILLANCE THROUGH CONSUMER DEVICES ACT
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4989) to require the Department of State to establish a policy regarding the use of location-tracking consumer devices by employees at diplomatic and consular facilities, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 4989
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Diplomats from Surveillance Through Consumer Devices Act''.
SEC. 2. SECURE UNITED STATES DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR
FACILITIES AGAINST CYBERSURVEILLANCE.
(a) Policy on Location-Tracking Consumer Devices.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall establish a policy on the use of location-tracking consumer devices, including GPS-enabled devices, at United States diplomatic and consular facilities by United States Government employees, contractors, locally employed staff and members of other agencies deployed to or stationed at such facilities.
(b) Security Briefing.--Existing and new employees at United States diplomatic and consular facilities, including contractors, locally employed staff, and members of other agencies deployed to or stationed at such facilities, shall, as a part of the security briefings provided to such employees, be informed of the policy described in subsection
(a) and given instructions on the use of location-tracking consumer devices both on and off the premises of such facilities.
(c) Coordination.--The Secretary of State may coordinate with the heads of any other agencies whose employees are deployed to or stationed at United States diplomatic and consular facilities in the formulation of the policy described in subsection (a) and the dissemination of such policy pursuant to subsection (b).
(d) Report.--Not later than 30 days after the formulation of the policy described in subsection (a), the Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report on the details of such policy.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Sherman) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce).
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
First, I thank Mr. Castro and Mr. McCaul, the co-authors of this legislation. I know Mr. McCaul knows some of the dangers that our diplomats face overseas. In his past service to the United States, he has been in parts of this dangerous world, and this is what our diplomats face. As they work to prevent armed conflict, there are armed combatants on the other side of those issues. As they try to combat terrorism, as they are working out there to empower women or to open new markets for U.S. exports, they are in tough environments. In turn, it is our job to ensure that our diplomats have the information and resources they need to stay safe while they serve our country overseas.
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Now more than ever, everyday devices such as smartphones include location tracking capabilities. While these are enormously useful tools, they also, obviously, present security concerns as users' locations can then be tracked by others, by hostiles.
For the thousands of State Department employees who work overseas, this is a real concern. It is a real security risk.
While the State Department has longstanding and thorough policies on the use of these devices while in embassies and in consulates, the Department has no such policy to guide personnel outside Department grounds. And that is where we send them, outside the Department grounds.
So the bill before us today addresses this security gap. It mandates that the State Department develop a comprehensive, modernized policy on devices that contain tracking capability. It also requires that all current and future diplomatic staff be briefed on the new policy and current best practices for using devices that are enabled with local tracking features. The objective is to build in a culture of safety and self-awareness.
Technology is advancing every day, and we must not allow our agencies to expose personnel to new risks.
I urge my colleagues to support this act, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise in support of H.R. 4989, the Protecting Diplomats from Surveillance Through Consumer Devices Act. This bill, again, passed our committee by unanimous, bipartisan voice vote.
I want to begin by thanking Mr. Castro, and also others, for introducing this legislation. I am pleased to be one of the cosponsors.
This bill aims to ensure the Department of State has policies in place to prevent our adversaries from tracking the locations of our Foreign Service officers through their electronic devices.
From fitness trackers, to smartwatches, to phones, most of us have at least one device that could be used to track us with the right technology that has GPS capacities. Many of us would literally be lost without these devices, but they could pose a security risk. This is especially true for our diplomats overseas whose locations and travels can reveal sensitive information sources. Location information is a potential gold mine to our adversaries.
This commonsense measure would make sure that the Secretary of State has a policy in place on the safe use of consumer electronic devices by our diplomatic and consular facilities and personnel. It would require proper training for employees and contractors, and ensure that the policy is coordinated across all parts of our government that use our diplomatic and consular facilities.
This bill would also improve congressional oversight of this policy.
This bill will reduce the security risks associated with GPS devices and other consumer electronic device.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul), chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, a senior member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and the coauthor of this measure.
Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this bill, the Protecting Diplomats from Surveillance Through Consumer Devices Act.
Earlier this year, a private sector analysis revealed the risks of using wearable technologies, such as Fitbits and Apple Watches, which use GPS tracking. As the report stated, researchers were able to track the movements of the deployed troops in overseas locations.
This, obviously, poses an enormous national security risk for our soldiers serving abroad. Enemies could track patrol routes or discover the locations of secret foreign installments.
This exposure puts our diplomats at risk as well. We have men and women engaging in diplomatic efforts all over the world, often in sensitive and high-risk areas. We must not make it easier for our enemies to track their movements.
As such, our bill requires the Department of State to establish a policy on use of location-tracking devices by diplomats at U.S. facilities around the world.
As the chairman said, many of us here have been to these hot spots--
Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Egypt, Tunisia. I got briefed by the Libyan team in exile after Benghazi. And they deserve to be protected. This bill will do just that.
I would like to thank my good friend Congressman Castro for his friendship and leadership on this issue, as well as Chairman Royce and Ranking Member Engel on this important legislation.
Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Castro), the author of the bill.
Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Royce, Ranking Member Engel, subcommittee Ranking Member Sherman, also my colleague from Texas and the coauthor, Representative McCaul. I thank them for all of their hard work on this.
Every day, diplomats work to advance the interests of the United States, often at embassies and consulates in the most dangerous pockets of the world. They risk their lives to be our Nation's frontline civilians and are faced with having to adapt to changing technologies that often come with security risks.
As Members of Congress, and especially those who conduct oversight of the United States State Department, we must protect our diplomats who serve our Nation from any threats posed by evolving technology, including fitness trackers, for example, that expose location.
That is why I joined my fellow Texan, Chairman Michael McCaul, to introduce the Protecting Diplomats from Surveillance Through Consumer Devices Act. This bill requires the State Department to account for these devices in the security policies of U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide and update embassy and consulate security policies by addressing vulnerabilities associated with location-tracking consumer devices worn by diplomatic personnel.
These frontline civilians risk their lives in service to the United States. As lawmakers, we have a responsibility to ensure these brave diplomats and development workers have the protections they deserve.
I am glad to see this bill being considered on the House floor today, and I request and urge the support of all of my colleagues.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
H.R. 4989 is commonsense legislation that will improve the safety of U.S. personnel overseas. I want to commend the chair and the ranking member for bringing this through our committee, and commend Mr. Castro of Texas and Mr. McCaul of Texas for their hard work in creating this legislation.
This bill will ensure that the State Department is addressing the risks associated with consumer devices that can be used, in some cases, to track the locations of those who own them.
This bill passed with a unanimous, bipartisan voice vote in our committee. I commend it to my colleagues. I will support this measure. I urge my colleagues to do the same.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Our diplomats serve in some of the most dangerous parts of the world. They advance U.S. interests overseas, and while they serve our Nation overseas, it is our job here to ensure that they have the information and resources that they need to stay safe. So I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this timely bill.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4989, Protecting Diplomats from Surveillance Through Consumer Devices Act.
H.R. 4989 directs the Department of State to: (1) establish a policy on the use of location-tracking consumer devices, including GPS-enabled devices, at U.S. diplomatic and consular facilities by U.S. government employees, contractors, locally employed staff, and members of other agencies deployed to or stationed at such facilities; and (2) submit a related report to Congress.
This bill states that existing and new employees at such facilities shall, as a part of their security briefings, be informed of such policy and given instructions on the use of location-tracking consumer devices on and off facility premises.
The State Department may coordinate policy formulation with other agencies whose employees are deployed to or stationed at U.S. diplomatic and consular facilities.
The public release earlier this year of GPS tracking data from the American fitness company Strava revealed highly sensitive information on U.S. activities abroad, such as military base locations, jogging paths of personnel located at these bases and, in many cases, also identified paths with individual accounts.
This data was collected from wearable electronic devices such as Fitbits and other technologies and presents a glaring security vulnerability that our adversaries may exploit to undermine our interests, thereby putting our personnel serving abroad at extreme risk.
While the issue has most seriously affected U.S. military installations, in lieu of a policy on the use of these devices, State Department personnel remain at risk as well.
As such, H.R. 4989 requires the Department of State to establish and disseminate a policy on the use of location-tracking consumer devices by diplomats and other employees at U.S. embassies and consular facilities outside the United States.
This is a commonsense step to ensure we are doing all we can to protect our diplomatic personnel serving our nation abroad.
Our enemies and adversaries work around the clock to undermine our interests.
We should not make it any easier for them.
I thank my colleague and good friend, Congressman Joaquin Castro, for introducing this important legislation.
By passing H.R. 4989, we can help ensure the safety of our nation's dutiful diplomats.
I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for H.R. 4989.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Poe of Texas). The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4989.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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