Cyber Official Warns ‘American Way of Life’ at Risk From Hackers

A top U.S. cybersecurity official offered a dire warning to members of Congress on Wednesday, saying the “American way of life” faces serious risks amid the drumbeat of ransomware attacks and physical threats to the nation’s critical infrastructure.

Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, known as CISA, told the House Homeland Security Committee Wednesday that “ransomware has become a scourge on nearly every facet of our lives, and it’s a prime example of the vulnerabilities that are emerging as our digital and our physical infrastructure increasingly converge.”

Her appearance, aside National Cyber Director Chris Inglis, ...