The White House will meet executives from main tech corporations, together with Alphabet-owned Google, Apple, and Amazon, on Thursday to debate software program safety after the United States suffered a number of main cyberattacks final 12 months.

In December, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan despatched a letter to chief executives of tech corporations after the invention of a safety vulnerability in open-source software program known as Log4j that organisations world wide use to log knowledge of their purposes.

In the letter, Sullivan famous that such open supply software program is broadly used and maintained by volunteers and is a ” key national security concern.”

Thursday’s assembly, which will likely be hosted by deputy nationwide safety advisor for cyber & rising expertise, Anne Neuberger, will talk about issues across the safety of open-source software program and the way it may be improved, the White House mentioned in a press release.

Other prime tech corporations in attendance on the assembly will embody IBM, Microsoft, Meta Platforms which owns Facebook and Oracle. Government companies, together with the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense and the Commerce Department, may also be in attendance.

Cybersecurity has been a prime precedence for the Biden administration after a number of main cyberattacks final 12 months, which uncovered 1000’s of information held by corporations and authorities companies to hackers.

One hack, which the US authorities has mentioned was probably orchestrated by Russia, breached software program made by SolarWinds and gave hackers entry to 1000’s of corporations and authorities workplaces that used its merchandise. The hackers obtained entry to emails on the US Treasury, Justice and Commerce departments, and different companies.

The rising frequency and influence of such assaults prompted the administration to subject an government order final 12 months that created a overview board and new software program requirements for presidency companies.

© Thomson Reuters 2022