Does the U.S. Need a Cyber Force? Takeaways from China's Latest Hack

The recent Chinese cyber-espionage attack on U.S. telecom networks has caught many in the US intelligence industry by surprise. Senator Mark Warner had a stark assessment: "...far and away the most serious telecom hack in our history." Even more concerning? "The barn door is still wide open."

This is 2024, and US cyber defenses have failed us in a major way. What's going on?

Here's the reality: while we've been busy creating a Space Force (cool, but...perhaps premature?), our cyber defense infrastructure has remained fragmented across multiple military branches. The U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM) was meant to be our answer to the growing threats we face from increasingly sophisticated state actors. However, despite its best efforts, it is trying to coordinate a cyber defense strategy across the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines, and not doing a particularly great job of it.

The Current State of Affairs: A Fragmented Defense

The current United States cyber defense strategy is:

• Fragmented recruitment across different military branches
• Inconsistent in its training practices
• Facing large talent shortages (in a country that leads the world in tech innovation!)
• Misaligned in its missions and priorities

Former CYBERCOM leader Army General Paul Nakasone put it bluntly: the current system is "unsustainable." When the person in charge tells you "all options are on the table, except the status quo," you know something's seriously wrong.

The Pentagon's Resistance

This has led Congress to investigate the creation of a new military branch, the Cyber Force. In Rep. Morgan Luttrell's words, “I am increasingly concerned that the United States is not postured to overwhelm and out maneuver our enemies in cyberspace.”

However, the Department of Defense is pushing back. Their argument is that the creation of a new force might "disrupt coordination" and "increase fragmentation." They asked Congress to reject the proposal. They are performing their own evaluation of whether or not a new force is necessary, which has been ongoing for some time.

The head of CYBERCOM, Gen. Timothy Haugh, hadd the following to say: “What I told each of those members of Congress when I spoke with them is just let us finish study one. Let us come tell you about it and then you can make a decision whether or not you need another study.”

The Bottom Line

It's clear something needs to change, and fast. The doors are wide open to cyber attacks, and our defenses are simply not there. A Space Force is cool, but in 2024, when Chinese hackers can potentially access presidential communications and we can't even tell if they're still in our systems, we may need to prioritize differently.

The tech talent exists in the U.S. - we're home to Silicon Valley, after all. However, the question remains: How can we create a structure that will attract, retain, and utilize that talent to defend ourselves in cyberspace? A dedicated Cyber Force may be the answer.