DoD’s role in foreign cyber threats

On January 5, Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Marcel Lettre and U.S. Cyber Command commander Navy Admiral Michael S. Rogers spoke before the Senate Armed Services Committee during a hearing on foreign cyber threats to the United States. There, the Pentagon officials discussed emerging cyber challenges and Department of Defense (DoD) plans to address them.

Lettre spoke of “challenges” faced by the DoD, including possible Russian aggression, and outlined efforts to counter North Korea and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Lettre went on to talk about DoD’s efforts to create cyber strategy and adapt to the changing cyber landscape. “We have built and continue to build the means and methods that will strengthen our relative position against each of these dimensions of the cyber threat,” said Lettre.

In his remarks, Lettre told of cyber’s reach and how addressing cyber threats requires both whole-of-government effort and private industry support. Rogers concurred, saying “Those who would seek to harm our fellow Americans and our nation utilize the same Internet, the same communications devices, and the same social media platforms that we, our families, and our friends here and around the world use. We must keep pace with such changes in order to provide policy makers and our operational commanders the intelligence and cyber capabilities they need to keep us safe.”

For more information about DoD’s cyber capabilities, please follow the links below.
Pentagon Officials Describe Ongoing Importance of Cyber Capabilities, DoD News
Foreign Cyber Threats to the United States, United States Senate Armed Services Committee