On February 12, 2013, President Barack Obama signed an ExecutiveOrder on cybersecurity designed to defend the nation's critical infrastructure. By passing Congress — which could not agree on a legislative proposal — the President justified his unilateral action to confront the "growing threat from cyber attacks."

"We know hackers steal people's identities and infiltrate private e-mail," he said. "We know foreign countries and companies swipe our corporate secrets. Now our enemies are also seeking the ability to sabotage our power grid, our financial institutions, and our air traffic control systems."