Google unveils a $10 billion initiative to fix US cybersecurity

Google and other companies pledged to help improve the nation’s cybersecurity.

What you need to know

• Google has announced a $10 billion commitment to improving U.S. cybersecurity.
• Google’s pledge includes training Americans in IT and Data analytics, expanding security programs, and enhancing open-source security.
• Other companies such as Apple and Microsoft have also pledged commitments to cybersecurity efforts.

Google has announced a $10 billion investment over the next five years towards cybersecurity improvements. The announcement comes just after several tech companies, including Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon, met with President Joe Biden to address U.S. cyber threats and commit to advancing cybersecurity efforts.

Kent Walker, senior vice president of Global Affairs at Google, lays out several initiatives that the company plans to implement to help the country’s efforts. That includes expanding zero-trust guidelines for high-level security within the federal government, pledging $100 million to support open-source security efforts from foundations like the Open Source Security Foundation (OpenSSF), and a commitment to training 100,000 Americans in IT Support and Data Analytics over the next three years.

Today’s meeting at the White House was both an acknowledgment of the threats we face and a call to action to address them. It emphasized cybersecurity as a global imperative and encouraged new ways of thinking and partnering across government, industry and academia.

The announcement comes after recent “high-profile cybersecurity incidents,” with Google using the Solarwinds attack as an example, saying that there is “no formal requirement or standard for maintaining the security of that software.”

Biden points out in a press statement that the companies involved with the efforts “have the power, capacity, and responsibility” to raise the bar on cybersecurity.

Recently, T-Mobile, the second-largest wireless carrier by subscribers and arguably one of the best U.S. wireless carriers, suffered a cyberattack that exposed the data of millions of customers. The investigation is still ongoing but further highlights the need for better and tighter security.