When the House and Senate sit down next week to iron out differences in an annual must-pass defense bill, the fate of Chinese telecom ZTE may be a key wedge issue.

On Tuesday, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., suggested that the United States formally declare it will respond in cyberspace to foreign interference in American elections.

The judge also waved off Kaspersky's protests about its "right to sell to the government" as "worthless."

The House of Representatives on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a defense policy bill with several cybersecurity measures aimed at better securing Pentagon networks. The bill seeks closer collaboration between the departments of Defense and Homeland Security in defending against hackers, asks for quick notification of data breaches of military personnel, and continues to crack down on foreign-made telecom products that are deemed security threats.

Col. Tim Brooks, the mission assurance division chief in the Department of Army Management Office, said a lack of dialogue between contractors is causing headaches as the military looks to harden its systems.

“We can’t see…other nations attacking us,” the retired general and first head of U.S. Cyber Command said at a House Armed Services Committee hearing Wednesday.