Military leaders highlight progress in cyber domain during U.S. Senate hearing

As cyber threats to military networks become more persistent and sophisticated, military leaders provided an update to a U.S. Senate panel on Wednesday about recent efforts to bolster the military’s cybersecurity capabilities.

In testimony before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, cyber defense leaders of the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Military outlined how investments in talent management, partnerships, and emerging technologies have bolstered the military’s cyber defensive and offensive capabilities.

In terms of talent management, Navy Vice Adm. Michael Gilday, commander of the U.S. Fleet Cyber Command and U.S. 10th Fleet, said the Navy remains committed to growing its talent base, and all 40 of its cyber teams have reached full operational capability. The focus going forward, he added, is “sustaining a mission-ready force.”

Army Lt. Gen. Paul Nakasone, commander of U.S. Army Cyber Command, also testified that training, talent management, and partnerships are core components of making the Army’s networks more secure and dependable.

“We’re leveraging the private sector, the academic community, and the key allies to rapidly develop and deliver new capabilities to the joint force and our Army,” Nakasone said.

Marine Corps. Maj. Gen. Loretta Reynolds, commander of Marine Forces Cyberspace Command, noted that the creation of a cyberspace occupational field was just announced by the Marine Corps last week. This will enable the Marine Corps to “deliberately provide targeted incentives for recruiting and retention,” she said.

Air Force Maj. Gen. Christopher Weggeman, commander of the 24th Air Force and Air Forces Cyber, testified that talent management has also been a major focus of Navy cyber defense efforts. The 24th Air Force currently has more than 11,000 full-time and part-time reserve and guard personnel to support training, intelligence, command and control, capability development and full-spectrum intelligence, he said.

Investments in data sciences and emerging technologies were also identified by all four military leaders as focuses of efforts to grow cyber capabilities. Weggemen testified that the Air Force has invested in seven cyber weapons that are capable of providing “tired global defense” of the Air Force’s information network, defensive cyber maneuver forces, and offensive capabilities.

“Our adversaries are acting with precision and boldness, utilizing cyberspace to continuously challenge the United States below the threshold of armed conflict imposing great costs on our economy national unity and military advantage,” Weggemann said. “In this ever-shifting and competitive terrain, we must remain vigilant with cyber hygiene, cybersecurity, and threats-specific defensive operations in order to compete, deter and win.”

Gilday highlighted the Navy’s investments in science and technology during his testimony as well. These investments include transitioning to cloud-based technologies, improving situational awareness deep inside Navy networks, and leveraging machine learning, artificial intelligence, and other emerging technologies.

“Cyberspace intersects every one of our Navy’s missions and requires an adaptive approach to counter the threat,” Gilday said. “We are modernizing and defending our networks by implementing our cyber resilience strategy focused on hardening our network infrastructure and reducing its attack surface. (We’ve) extended our defensive posture to include deploying defensive cyber teams with our carrier strike groups and our amphibious readiness groups.”

Nakasone also identified sustained investments in science and technology as key prioritizes to capitalize on artificial intelligence and other innovative technologies. He added, “We also need to pursue force structure and capabilities at the Army corps level and below to ensure we have the tactical capabilities of our pilot initiatives have shown.”

Additionally, Reynolds testified that the Marine Corps has made “tremendous progress” in the cyber domain from a technology standpoint. The focus has shifted from building the command to operationalizing, sustaining and expanding its capabilities, she said.

“Moving forward and (in) response to the National Defense Strategy, we know we must be prepared to fight tonight,” Reynolds said. “We will build the objective network capable of fighting and winning against a peer adversary in a contested information environment.”