Two new bodies to tackle foreign influence on US research

The United States Congress is set to approve a major defence bill that would establish two new high-level bodies aimed at preventing foreign governments from unfairly exploiting the US research enterprise, writes David Malakoff for Science.

One, based in the White House, would work to coordinate action by more than a dozen government agencies to protect federally funded research projects from cyber-attacks, theft and other foreign threats. The other group, a round-table run by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, will bring together officials from academia, government and industry to advise the government on ways to achieve national security without undermining valuable international collaborations.

The legislation, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), also includes a provision requiring the director of national intelligence to produce an annual report that identifies “sensitive research … that could affect national security” that is being conducted at US universities and that could be of interest to foreign entities.
Full report on the Science site