US, Israel team up to fight ‘bad actors’ in cyberspace

They signed a cybersecurity agreement that includes partnering on defense and research and development.

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JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel and the United States signed a new bilateral cybersecurity partnership agreement.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump’s Homeland Security adviser, Thomas Bossert, signed the agreement Monday following a meeting Monday that also included White House cybersecurity adviser Rob Joyce. Bossert is in Israel for the annual Cyber Week Conference held at Tel Aviv University.

Under the agreement, the countries will establish joint working groups on international cyber policy, infrastructure defense, research and development, and human capital development.

Netanyahu and Trump had discussed cybersecurity issues when they met last month in Jerusalem.

Bossert told the conference in a speech Monday evening that the partnership is aimed at “stopping adversaries in networks and identifying ways to hold bad actors responsible.”

Netanyahu also spoke at the conference.

“We are experiencing every month dozens of cyber attacks on the national level,” he said. “At any given moment, including right now, there are probably three to five attacks on the national level that emanate from various sources.”

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