Pratt’s Gov’t Contracting Law Report Publishes Akin Article on New Cybersecurity Rules and FCA Enforcement

“Government Contractors Beware: New Cybersecurity Rules and False Claims Act Enforcement Actions on the Rise,” an article by Akin cybersecurity, privacy & data protection practice co-heads Michelle Reed and Natasha Kohne, advisor Joseph Hold, government contracts practice head Michael Vernick and partner Angela styles, disputes & investigations partner Lizzy Scott, and health care & life sciences counsel Rachel Kurzweil has been published by Pratt’s Government Contracting Law Report.

The authors discuss recent upticks in enforcement and regulatory activity as it relates to cybersecurity. Mentioning the recent unsealing of a qui tam action under the False Claims Act (FCA) against Penn State University, “alleging the school failed to comply with the Department of Defense’s (DoD) cybersecurity requirements.”

The article highlights rising cyber-related FCA activity, and the authors note that government-contracted technology companies and other organizations who receive government funds, “must understand how regulators and private whistleblowers alike are using the FCA to enforce required cybersecurity standards.”

The authors note that the FCA is “the primary tool for combatting allegations of fraud in the government contracts space,” noting that since the Department of Justice introduced the Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative in October 2021, federal agencies “have continued to issue new cybersecurity requirements and reporting obligations in government contracts and funding agreements.”

The authors conclude that cybersecurity practice and policy will “only continue to grow in importance for organizations performing government contracts.”

To read the full article, click here.