It has now been several years since former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman and other national security advocates first introduced legislation in the U.S. Congress to better protect the nation, its infrastructure and its financial institutions against cyber-attacks.

In the years since, the legislation has re-emerged several times, only to falter. While there have been various permutations, the basics have been the same. An effective national cyber security policy would require the government to set performance standards for companies responsible for critical infrastructure or involved with classified government operations. It would create a clearinghouse in which industries and government agencies could securely share information about cyber threats and the means of addressing them.

Opposition to such a policy has united U.S. corporations that fear sharing information could benefit competitors and invite government abuses, and civil libertarians who fear intertwining government more tightly into private cyber interactions will trample constitutional protections against government meddling.

However, doing nothing is not an option, or at least it should not be. Necessary is a common ground that better prepares the nation against cyber terrorism while having the necessary safeguards to protect proprietary information and civil rights.

How distressing then that this topic has received little attention in the opening months of the 2016 presidential election, with much of the conversation dominated instead by comparably trivial matters.

On Tuesday, the Southeast Connecticut World Affairs Council (SECWAC) presented a luncheon forum at the Mystic Marriott on the topic: “A Cyber Attack is on its Way — Are you Prepared?” Visit secwac.org to learn more about the organization. The Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut also assisted in the event.

Panelist William Barnes, whose responsibilities include operation and maintenance of Pfizer’s cyberspace defenses and threat detection, said he fears the necessary legislation will not win approval until a cyber-attack occurs that is serious enough to rattle the public and force elected leaders to act.

“It won’t happen until a catalytic event causes it to happen,” Mr. Barnes said in response to a question.

This assessment was eerily reminiscent of Sen. Lieberman’s characterization of the situation when he met with the Day’s Editorial Board in 2012, about 10 months before leaving office. He likened U.S. preparedness for a devastating cyber-attack equivalent to the airport security and intelligence gathering protections that were in place prior to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

“The question is whether (this time) we will confront this existential threat before it happens,” he said at the time.

So far the answer appears to be no.

Also participating in the expert panel put together by the local world affairs council was Donald L. Anderson, senior vice president in charge of business technology at the Boston Federal Reserve Bank, a job that includes oversight of cyber security.

Providing context for how much damage a sophisticated attack could accomplish, Mr. Anderson noted that $4.5 trillion per day is transacted through the Internet networks of the 12 Federal Reserve banks. If protections fail even a little, the result can be “a billion dollars walking out the door electronically,” he said.

Corporations and financial institutions still reluctant to share information about cyber threats and their preparation for them must realize “they’re all in this together,” said Mr. Anderson.

The three panelists agreed that cyber-attacks, whether on a grand scale or targeting the accounts of a private individual, will only increase and cannot be entirely stopped. The challenge will be trying to stay ahead of the technology and minimizing both risk and any resulting damage.

April Lorenzen, an Internet security researcher, pictured a world without passwords, with individuals utilizing coded wristbands to securely access information or using “special purposes devices” that cannot be reconfigured or updated, and so cannot be hacked, to access sensitive material.

In the meantime, Ms. Lorenzen urged computer users to treat passwords like underwear: “Change them often. Keep them private. And never share them with anyone.”

The Internet has changed the world. In doing so, it has left all of us who use it, and even those who don’t, more vulnerable. As a nation and as individuals, we all must better prepare.