Gavarone bill would deploy state computer warriors against hackers

SANDUSKY — State Sen. Theresa Gavarone, R-Bowling Green, has filed a bill to create the Ohio Cyber Reserve, a unit within the Ohio National Guard, which would consist of civilians who are cybersecurity experts, according to a news release issued by her office."The Ohio Cyber Reserve will maintain regional Cyber Response Teams (CRT) capable of deterring, mitigating, and remedying cyber-attacks against our local governments, local agencies, election systems and community partners," the release says.The text of the bill says the cyber reserve would be a civilian unit and that members would not be called up for service in the U.S. military, although the governor could call the new cyber warriors to "state active duty."The bill, Senate Bill 52, also includes a provision to guard election results from hackers.It would require election boards to conduct an audit after every election to make sure ballots had been counted correctly. Under current law, audits only are carried out only when the secretary of state asks for one and only in even-numbered election years.The bill says that when the audit is being carried out, members of the general public and members of the news media may watch as observers.The bill also requires the secretary of state, the state's top elections official, to appoint a "chief information security officer" to provide advice on information security.Gavarone told the Register she decided to author the bill after a conversation with Frank LaRose, Ohio's new secretary of state.SB 52 is so new, it hasn't been assigned to a committee yet, according to the Senate's website.Sen. Theresa Gavarone talks with reporter Tom Jackson during "Between the Lines" on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019.