The United States Senate began to debate the provisions of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), and among those included are calls for the Department of Defense (DoD) to study the possibility of an independent Cyber Force.
The Senate Armed Services Committee’s markup of the bill noted, “Sec. 1608. Independent evaluation regarding potential establishment of United States Cyber Force and further evolution of current model for management and execution of cyber mission.”
It would serve as “a separate Armed Force commensurate with the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Space Force, for the purpose of organizing, training, and equipping the personnel required to enable and conduct operations in the cyber domain through positions aligned to the United States Cyber Command and the other unified combatant commands.”
It further called for studying how well the armed forces currently meet the cyber requirements of combatant commands, in addition to how the Pentagon currently recruits, organizes, trains, equips, and retains cyber operators. The study is meant to determine whether an independent cyber force would improve that performance.
Space Force as a Model?
As Air & Space Forces magazine reported, the provision could also analyze any tradeoffs of establishing a completely separate cyber force compared with standing one up within an existing military department – notably how the United States Space Force was stood up within the Department of the Air Force.
Though lawmakers and military officials have also supported the need for the military to take a more proactive approach in the cyber domain, there is also a concern that it could create more bureaucracy. It would also add an undue burden on the military already struggling to modernize while facing declining budgets.
Supporters have countered that America’s potential adversaries can utilize the cyber domain as a force multiplier even if they couldn’t possibly challenge the U.S. military on the traditional battlefield.
“Most important, the creation of a U.S. Cyber Force would move America beyond the current ‘pick-up team’ approach to cybersecurity, wherein each of the armed forces has a small number of cyber experts,” wrote retired Adm. James Stavridis, former Supreme Allied Commander Europe, in a March analysis for Bloomberg. He further argued that a cyber force could lead to greater advocacy for cyber needs on the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Do We Need a Seventh Branch of the Military?
At this point, it is unlikely that there will be a seventh branch of the military actually created anytime soon. This is still just a call for a study – one that could take time. There is a danger, however, that the DoD could move too slowly in fact.
“It’s great to elevate this as an issue, and forming an agency in the government, if you want more focus & budget, you need to create an entity. The legislation of the approach to threats, hacks & tech issues was always five years too late – look at encryption a few years back as an example,” explained Willy Leichter, VP at cybersecurity provider Cyware.
Leichter told ClearanceJobs that there is a need for the United States Cyber Force to counter potential threats from China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea – among others – but also warned that there could be inter-service rivalries. He further added that the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) already fills an important role.
“CISA now has been at the forefront of public-facing cybersecurity issues and has accomplished much in a short time,” added Leichter. “They’re focused and have a path to get things done. If this is the Federal equivalent, it’s a good move.”
CISA shouldn’t be just transformed into a brand of military.
“Giving a new agency a cool name is secondary. Making sure there are clear lines of responsibility, a clear mandate, and clear paths for data exchange. If properly empowered, this can be great – but rivalries must be resolved at the get-go,” Leichter continued. “And since the wheels of government turn slowly, let’s do this 15 years ago.”
