A long-anticipated program meant to encourage companies to provide the federal government with confidential information about vulnerabilities in critical systems took effect Friday, but critics worry that it may do more harm than good.

The so-called Protected Critical Infrastructure Information (PCII) program allows corporations who run key elements of U.S. infrastructure -- energy firms, telecommunications carriers, financial institutions, etc. -- to submit details about their physical and cyber vulnerabilities to a newly-formed office within the Department of Homeland Security, with legally-binding assurances that the information will not be used against them or released to the public.

By Kevin Poulsen at SecurityFocus.

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