President Trump today signed an executive order directing federal agencies to take steps to counter the potential cybersecurity threats posed by artificial intelligence, including by giving community banks the tools they need to protect themselves.
Trump originally was scheduled to issue an order on AI last month. It was delayed after tech executives reportedly raised several concerns about some of the provisions. The order issued today directs agencies to establish or expand federal programs and cybersecurity services that enhance AI-enabled defensive tools. It also directs agencies to facilitate access to those tools to critical infrastructure, such as community banks, rural hospitals and local utilities.
In addition, the order directs federal agencies to develop a voluntary framework in which developers can submit their AI models for review up to 30 days before release to other parties. Among other things, the government would help developers select partners that would have early access to the models. The order also calls for the establishment of an “AI cybersecurity clearinghouse” that would coordinate scanning for software vulnerabilities and the distribution of vulnerability patches.
In a statement, American Bankers Association President and CEO Rob Nichols called the order a constructive step toward strengthening the nation’s approach to managing the cybersecurity risks and opportunities associated with advanced AI.
“Banks already invest heavily in protecting customers, safeguarding sensitive information, and defending against increasingly sophisticated fraud and cyber threats,” Nichols said. “We are particularly encouraged by the executive order’s direction to establish an AI cybersecurity clearinghouse to coordinate vulnerability discovery, validation, prioritization, and remediation across government, technology providers and critical infrastructure operators.
“Building on that foundation, successful implementation will depend on ensuring that organizations of all sizes, including community banks, have timely access to actionable threat intelligence, effective cybersecurity tools and practical mechanisms for coordinated response,” he added. “The clearinghouse has the potential to play an important role in ensuring that lessons learned from advanced AI cybersecurity capabilities, including validated vulnerabilities, mitigation strategies and other actionable defensive intelligence, can be shared broadly and translated into practical protections for community banks and other smaller critical infrastructure operators.”
