Adam Golodner Describes Importance of Cybersecurity Information Sharing in Global Competition Review

Global Competition Review reports that Assistant Attorney General William Baer and Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Edith Ramirez recently issued a joint policy statement on antitrust issues related to the sharing of cybersecurity information. Baer and Ramirez stated that companies that share cyber threat information with each other in order to maintain security measures will not be seen as violating antitrust laws, as long as they avoid discussing sensitive competition-related topics in the process.

The statement has been welcomed by many, including Kaye Scholer Partner Adam Golodner, Leader of the firm’s Global Cybersecurity & Privacy Group, who said that information sharing may be the “single most important thing” companies can do to protect themselves and their customers from cybersecurity threats.

Golodner continued, “Antitrust enforcement over the years, however, may well have conditioned these companies to be wary of talking to competitors about sensitive issues, even if on the face of it the potential for competitive harm is low.” He added, “Today’s policy statement makes great strides in bringing helpful clarity to the process. With this move, Justice and the FTC have taken significant steps to reduce barriers to information sharing that will help to make critical infrastructure and information more secure.”