Software industry awaits details on Biden’s order to report hacks

President Biden’s executive order on Wednesday to shore up U.S. cybersecurity will force many companies selling software to the government to report attacks on their systems, sharing information that officials and cyber experts say is increasingly important to U.S. security.

The obligations represent a shift for the private sector, which has resisted such requirements for fear of financial and reputational damage resulting from the release of sensitive information about breaches.

The government still is determining which vendors the new rules will cover, what data about threats they will require and how quickly companies will need to report. Regulators’ approach to specific rules in the coming months will determine the order’s full impact on the private sector, cybersecurity experts and software industry lobbyists say.