WASHINGTON, D.C.—On Monday, Dec. 16, Eastern Washington Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05), Republican Leader on the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce, passed the US SAFE WEB Extension Act (H.R. 4779) in the House to protect Americans from fraud, spam, and deception online. 

“Today, bad actors from around the world target and exploit Americans online. In order to keep people safe from criminals who wish to do them harm, we must have the tools we need to take action against foreign cyber threats,” said McMorris Rodgers. “That’s what this legislation provides. It enables the Federal Trade Commission to step in, address international threats online, and protect Americans’ sensitive or financial information. This bill is also essential to protecting cross-border data flows with foreign nations, which is critical to American technological innovation and maintaining our competitive advantage against authoritarian countries like China.” 

The Undertaking Spam, Spyware, And Fraud Enforcement With Enforcers beyond Borders Act of 2006 (U.S. SAFE WEB Act) gives the FTC critical powers to enhance cross-border cooperation on consumer protection investigations and fraud actions, as well as to support cross-border data transfer mechanisms like the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield.