Cybercrime has been a threat not only to the United States but also many countries around the world. Various countries have put different measures in place so as to ensure to ensure that their cyberspace is protected. The passing of this crucial bill by Washington sets an optimistic future for the internal Revenue Authority but there are few things that are worth noting, especially when looking at the effects of this legislation of the IRS. One important thing to understand is that excessive involvement of government into some of the crucial facets of society like the ability to protect email and the use of this mandate to prevent threats to the State can often be abused. Lawmakers should be aware that this legislation is likely to be a threat to the very liberty that these law makers are seeking to address through the passing of this legislation. Considering this in mind it is important to look at some of the important effects that this legislation might have on the IRS.
First of all, it is important to realize that this insecurity within the nation-state has shifted from the traditional concept which argued that the main threats were from one state to another. It is essential to note that in the traditional setup, the state was meant to protect and empower the individual form the aggression that might be subjected to them by enemy nation-states. However, the conceptualization of security has in the recent past changed such that the very individual that the nation-state was seeking to protect has become a threat to the state. Some of the key things that are worthy remembering are that the advancement of technology both in terms of communication and in transport has made the securitization process a difficult task by various governments. The passing of this cybercrime legislation by the Obama administration illustrates the fact that the United States as a nation-state can no longer trust the individual. The United States is protecting itself from the very individual that it supposed to protect. This legislation is likely to put the IRS under more responsibility in making sure that the US cyberspace is protected. The IRS as an entity will be faced with the challenge of making sure that the securitization process that is adopted does not infringe on the liberty and the freedom that the individual as an important part of the state deserves.
Second, it is essential to remember that this legislation also puts the IRS in a position that this entity has to meet the social contract that is granted to the US government by the electorate to be able to protect that and make sure that their privacy and other information is kept private. One thing to remember is that the Obama administration is dependent on the electorate and therefore the IRS must work and demonstrate the ability to do so in a manner that the general public builds more confidence in them. As a matter of facts, the inability of the IRS in addressing its tasks adequately might put the Obama administration when it comes to electioneering process. It is also fundamental to realize that the protection of cyberspace also make sure that the federal documents are secure (Schmidt, 2012, p.1). This means that the IRS is not only accountable to the individual but also to the US government as a national entity.
In conclusion, the passing of this cybercrime legislation by the Obama administration puts the IRS to task in seeing to it that both the security of the individual and that of the state relative to the state and non-state aggression are preserved. In addition, this is going to improve the security of the federal documents and networks meant for security.
References
Schmidt, H. A. (2012). The White House Blog [The Administration Unveils its
Cybersecurity Legislative Proposal]. Retrieved from
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/05/12/
administration-unveils-its-cybersecurity-legislative-proposal
