Testimony Highlights Funding Gaps in the War on Ransomware Ransomware is now a national security threat, and states and municipalities require more resources to fight back effectively. A recent Congressional hearing looks to identify their financial and strategic needs. May 07, 2021 • Chris Krebs, former CISA director, answers questions during the virtual hearing Ransomware has risen as a national security threat, with attacks increasingly compromising critical services, experts and public officials say. Federal legislators now are looking to better understand how they can resource their states and local partners to fuel the fight. “As the ever-increasing number of ransomware attacks on state and local governments demonstrates, adequate investment in cybersecurity has been lacking,” said Yvette Clarke, chair of the U.S. Congress Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection and Innovation, during a recent virtual hearing.