2006年VOA标准英语-US Senate Ratifies Cybercrime Treaty; Assesses

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
04 August 2006

Among the last issues to come before the U.S. Senate before lawmakers began their August recess¹ were cybercrime and cybersecurity.  Senators ratified² an international treaty aimed at cracking down on crimes that are facilitated by the Internet, and they assessed how vulnerable U.S. government computer networks are to potential attack.

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The Senate ratified the Council of Europe's Convention on Cybercrime, which calls on signatories to share electronic information to boost efforts to combat crimes facilitated by the Internet.

In a written statement, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist noted³ that terrorists use computers to plan and carry out bombings and murder, and child predators⁴ use computers to commit a variety of crimes against children from kidnapping and murder to sex trafficking and child pornography.   He said the treaty will strengthen the ability of law enforcement and the intelligence community to prevent acts of terrorism and protect children around the world from predators.

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said the treaty is in full accord with all U.S. constitutional protections, such as free speech and other civil liberties, and will require no change to U.S. laws.

The accord has been signed by 38 European nations, as well as the United States, Canada, Japan and South Africa.

In a related move, lawmakers are assessing the vulnerability of U.S. government computer networks.

Tom Noonan, president of Internet Security Systems, which advises governments and private companies worldwide about protecting computer networks, told a Senate panel that U.S. government efforts are woefully inadequate⁵:

"We, as a nation, are not doing nearly enough to preempt⁶ the types of attacks that could debilitate⁷ our critical networked infrastructure⁸," he said.

Senator Tom Coburn, an Oklahoma Republican, echoed the concern.

"What would happen to this economy if you had a four-week disruption, interruption of the Internet?" he asked.  "We would be on our back, and everybody knows that.  And yet the urgency to make sure that that cannot happen or if it did happen, recover quickly, I do not see anywhere except the private sector⁹."

A new report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the congressional watchdog agency, criticizes the Department of Homeland Security for failing to prepare for a large-scale disruption of government networks.

Keith Rhodes is the GAO's chief technologist.

"DHS has developed high-level plans for infrastructure protection and a national disaster response, but components¹⁰ of these plans that are to address internet recovery are incomplete and inadequate," he said.

The Department of Homeland Security's Undersecretary of Preparedness, George Foresman, acknowledges more needs to be done, but says the situation is not as serious as the GAO's Rhodes suggests.

"I think his assessment¹¹ in terms of progress is much bleaker¹² than what is the actual progress to date," he noted.

Tom Noonan of Internet Security Systems suggests an assistant secretary of Homeland Security for Cyber Security be appointed to coordinate¹³ efforts with the private sector as a first step toward protecting the government's online infrastructure.

1 recess   

n.短期休息，壁凹（墙上装架子，柜子等凹处）

参考例句：

• The chairman of the meeting announced a ten-minute recess.会议主席宣布休会10分钟。
• Parliament was hastily recalled from recess.休会的议员被匆匆召回开会。

2 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 inadequate   

adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的

参考例句：

• The supply is inadequate to meet the demand.供不应求。
• She was inadequate to the demands that were made on her.她还无力满足对她提出的各项要求。

6 preempt   

v.先发制人；先取

参考例句：

• We arrived early at the theatre so as to preempt the front seats.我们早早来到剧院，以便捷足先登占到前排座位。
• He pre-empted any decision to sack him.他预先阻止了所有解雇他的决定。

7 debilitate   

v. 使衰弱

参考例句：

• Stewart took over yesterday when Russell was debilitated by a stomach virus.昨天拉塞尔因肠胃病毒感染身体不适，由斯图尔特暂时接手。
• Their efforts to debilitate the political will of the Western alliance came to nought.他们试图削弱西方联盟的政治决心的努力结果等于零。

8 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

9 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

10 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

11 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

12 bleaker   

阴冷的( bleak的比较级 )； （状况）无望的； 没有希望的； 光秃的

参考例句：

• Horoscopes are merely harmless escapism from an ever-bleaker world. 占星术只不过是让人逃避越发令人沮丧的世界的无害消遣罢了。
• On the ground the mood is bleaker. 具体形势更加严峻。

13 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。