Army cyber force grows fast

Michael Peck

March 12, 2015 

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The Army's cyberwarfare chief says the Army's cyber force has grown "exponentially."

Since September 2013, 25 of 41 Cyber Mission Force (CMF) teams have achieved initial operational capability, Army Cyber Command (ARCYBER) chief Lt. Gen. Edward Cardon told House Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities last week, according to an Army news release.

"We are on track to have all 41 CMF teams established and operating by the end of fiscal year 2016," Cardon said. "However, they will not all be fully operationally capable until FY17."

ARCYBER is also creating 21 Army Reserve cyber teams, with the first activated in October 2014 and now on Title 10 active duty status. However, reserve cyber troops present legal challenges on active duty. "While Title 10 authorities are clear, Title 32 and state active duty require the application of varied state constitutional, legislative, and executive authorities and coordination with state agencies and officials."

With competition from the civilian sector fierce for talent, Army cyber recruiting is being boosted by encouraging West Point and ROTC cadets to choose the cyber field. "We will commission the first 30 Cyber Branch officers from both USMA and ROTC programs this summer," Cardon said. The Army also plans to create a cyber career management field for enlisted personnel by the end of this fiscal year. Cyber troops also will now get special-duty and incentive pay, as well as bonuses.

Cardon is concerned by the growing threat of hackers. "Electronic devices are increasingly embedded in everything from vehicles to guided missiles, and are often integrated into systems which are difficult and costly to update or upgrade as new threats or vulnerabilities are identified with increasing speed and widely ranging tempo."These factors represent malefactors impacting our warfighting systems."

Thus the U.S. military is pursuing the Joint Regional Security Stack initiative, a component of the Joint Information Environment (JIE), to secure disparate networks. "We have to modernize and get to the JIE as quickly as possible for improved mission effectiveness, enhanced security, and to increase efficiency," said Cardon.