How the 'Wild West' of the Internet Will Be Won

National defense is one of a government's core responsibilities. The pursuit traditionally has played out on land, over water and, since the 20th century, in air and space. But today, cyberspace is emerging as the latest theater of national defense as governments around the world take more of their critical functions and day-to-day operations online. And the internet is such a recent phenomenon that, unlike the other theaters of defense, it lacks international agreements and institutions to govern it. At least for now. To address the pitfalls in the current regulatory system (or lack thereof) New York State's Department of Financial Services will begin enforcing a new set of cybersecurity regulations Aug. 28. Financial services firms in New York by that time will have had 180 days to bring their operations into compliance with the new measures, which first took effect in March. The regulations are broad, requiring companies to have...