Exec Order Could Force Software Vendors to Disclose Breaches to Federal Gov't Customers

Months after the headline-making SolarWinds hack that impacted several government agencies and Fortune 500 companies, the White House is prepping an executive order to require software vendors to notify federal government customers if they experience a breach.

Reuters is reporting the news after reviewing a draft of the order. If approved, it would impact major software companies that sell to the government, like Microsoft or Salesforce.

A National Security Council spokeswoman said a decision on the order is still forthcoming, according to Reuters.

News of an executive order on software security was first reported in February. At that time, White House officials said the order would encourage software developers to build more security into their products.

The proposal on the table contains several recommendations, including the notification requirements for service providers. Vendors would still be required to preserve digital records for investigating hacks and work with the FBI and the Homeland Security Department's Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) when responding to incidents.

Congress has tried unsuccessfully in the past to pass a national data breach notification law.

Read more here.