Welcome to OVERNIGHT CYBERSECURITY, your daily rundown of the biggest news in the world of hacking and data privacy. We're here to connect the dots as leaders in government, policy and industry wrap their arms around cyberthreats. What lies ahead for Congress, the administration and the latest company under siege? Whether you're a consumer, a techie or a D.C. lifer, we're here to give you...

THE BIG STORIES:

--GET THE SUPREME COURT IN HERE: Thursday's appeals court ruling against the National Security Agency's (NSA) dragnet phone records collection program sets up constitutional questions the Supreme Court will have to eventually resolve. But that's unlikely to happen any time soon. Congress is currently grappling with whether to reauthorize the portion of the Patriot Act, Section 215, that allows the NSA phone records program. If lawmakers reform or kill that law in the next few weeks -- as is likely -- Thursday's ruling could be moot. "If Congress goes and amends the statute and makes it illegal and the program's gone, it's gone," said Laura Donohue, a law professor and director of Georgetown's Center on National Security and the Law. Still, the constitutional issues are likely to land before the Supreme Court at some point. To read our full piece, click here.

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While the appeals court ruling may soon become legally moot, it's likely to recast Congress's fight over whether to re-up Section 215, which expires June 1. The federal court decision could strengthen the hand of Capitol Hill's civil libertarians who are facing an uphill battle to make significant reforms the NSA's surveillance authority. The ruling "should help propel Congress to end the program as it is currently structured, and only allow the government to request data from the telephone companies after individualized court approval," Rep.(Calif.), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said in a statement on Thursday morning. "It also shows that a straight reauthorization is not only politically untenable but on shaky legal ground as well." To read more, click here

--BANKING CHARTER FOR BITCOIN OUTFIT: The U.S. now has its first bitcoin exchange that will be regulated as a bank. New York's top financial regulator on Thursday granted a charter to bitcoin exchange itBit, which gives people a platform to buy and sell bitcoins. It's the first virtual currency company to receive a charter from the New York Department of Financial Services, a significant win for bitcoin entrepreneurs looking to bring legitimacy to the digital currency. The charter will allow the company to expand its financial service operations. "We have sought to move quickly but carefully to put in place rules of the road to protect consumers and provide greater regulatory certainty for virtual currency entrepreneurs," said department head Benjamin Lawsky. To read our full piece, click here.

UPDATE ON CYBER POLICY:

--Will Congress's cyber threat-sharing bill actually prevent cyberattacks?

Andrea Castillo of George Mason University's Mercatus Center points out that the federal government already operates at least 20 offices to share cybersecurity information with the private sector, which has not stopped data breaches from taking place. Additionally, she argues, agencies that will be in charge of managing data shared under CISA -- the Senate's cyber info-sharing bill -- might not be well equipped, since they themselves have experienced cyber breaches.

"The federal government must get its own house in order before such comprehensive information sharing measures like CISA could be even technically feasible," Castillo writes for The Hill's Congress blog. "But CISA would be a failure even if managed by the most well-managed government systems because it seeks to impose a technocratic structure on a dynamic system." To read more, click here.

LIGHTER CLICK:

--Have you been tuning in to CSI: Cyber? We have not, but as fans of Vulture's show recaps, we think it's almost better to read about the episodes online. Presenting Thursday's edition, which taught us that the show is using fake terms like malvertisement and clickbaiting scheme in plots about ... evil pharmacists? Poker money laundering schemes? We give up. To read more, click here.

A REPORT IN FOCUS:

--Cyberattacks on healthcare organizations rose a staggering 125 percent in the last five years as hackers intensified their efforts to steal valuable medical data, according to a new study. With medical files worth up to $70 each on the black market, 45 percent of healthcare organizations reported they were victims of a deliberate cyberattack, according to the survey by the Ponemon Institute and ID Experts, released on Thursday. Criminal attacks are now the leading cause of healthcare data breaches, replacing lost computer hardware for the first time. More than 90 percent of healthcare entities reported a data breach in the past two years, along with 60 percent of claims processors and third-party billers. To read more, click here.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Links from our blog, The Hill, and around the Web.

California's Obamacare site was vulnerable to hackers, a watchdog found. (The Hill)

More than 70 million Americans reported that their personal information was compromised in 2014. (The Hill)

Santa Clara County is halting plans to approve the purchase of a stingray. (The Hill)

Rising cyberattacks are costing the healthcare system $6 billion every year. (Bloomberg)

China released a draft of its controversial counterterrorism laws, which include contested cybersecurity regulations. (South China Morning Post)

Some New Jersey banking customers saw extra money in their accounts as a result of a software snafu. (Wall Street Journal)

A look inside DARPA's Cyber Grand Challenge. (Slate)

Instagram's lack of encryption aided Iran in blocking only certain profiles. (Global Voices Advocacy)

A whistleblower accused cyber company Tiversa of extorting clients with fake hacks. (CNNMoney)

The governor of Rhode Island created the state's first cybersecurity commission. (Associated Press)

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