Amid increasing attacks in the digital space, the US government will be holding a meeting with several leaders of the private sector. It has been a landmark year in terms of the number and scale of cyberattacks.

Who all are invited?

Top bosses of several large tech companies, including Apple CEO Tim Cook and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella will be meeting President Joe Biden at the White House to discuss matters related to cybersecurity, reported Bloomberg and Reuters.

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna will reportedly attend the meeting for which Google CEO has also been invited. Others from outside the tech sector will also be present, including representatives from JP Morgan Chase. CEOs of Bank of America, Travelers, and PG&E are also expected to be in attendance.

Among government officials, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, Small Business Administrator Isabel Guzman and National Cyber Director Chris Inglis are going to be in attendance among other members of the Biden administration.

Several chiefs of educational institutions are also invited including those from the University of Texas, Girls Who Code and Code.org,

Also Read: US and allies openly accuse China of masterminding cyberattacks

The agenda for the meeting

The agenda for the meeting is expected to be around the ever-increasing cyberattacks on American tech firms. Health authorities and local municipalities have also been targeted in large numbers. 'Critical Infrastructure Resilience', 'Building Enduring Cybersecurity ' and 'Cybersecurity Workforce' will be the topics of discussion in the high-level meeting. The “root causes” of cyberattacks on US corporations will be discussed in great detail, according to a White House official.

The possible safeguards and measures to protect tech giants from future attacks may also be discussed.

Also Read: A look at the biggest data breaches in last 12 months

Year of cyberattacks

The current year itself has seen several large cyber security incidents like the Colonial Pipeline attack which crippled the East Coast fuel supplies for days, and the attack on the world's largest meat packer JBS.

Among the companies represented in the meeting, Microsoft was the victim of cyberattacks, including the Solar Winds Hack that affected several government agencies as well.

The meeting was announced by White House officials earlier in July, with Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying that it would be "a meeting with private sector leaders to discuss how we work together to collectively improve the nation's cybersecurity."

While the US has shown capabilities of responding to cyber security incidents, like retrieving the million dollars of ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline to hackers, more sophisticated systems and infrastructure are needed to prevent future critical situations. Plans are also in place to introduce a bill that would help private companies disclose attacks on their systems by working with government agencies.

(Edited by : Aditi Gautam)