Lt. Gen. Paul Nakasone, head of the Army Cyber Command, has led a panel of U.S. Army cyber professionals to showcase the service branch’s cyber talent and operations.The panel at the Oct. 11 Association of the U.S. Army Annual Meeting and Exposition included specialists from cyber protection teams, the 780th Military Intelligence Brigade and the Cyber Protection Brigade, the Army said Monday.
The U.S. Cyber Command controls the operations of 41 Army active cyber protection teams, which generally consist of 80 percent military and 20 percent civilian members.
Nakasone said the Army plans to build 11 additional cyber protection teams from the Army National Guard and 10 from the Army Reserve to help boost Cybercom’s capacity.
He noted that the Army hires 20 percent of the cyber teams from its civilian workforce in an effort to recruit members that can stay in the position for longer periods and can handle the required work hours.
Maj. Josh Rykowski, a cyber protection team lead, said during the panel discussion that cyber protection teams carry tool kits designed to help mitigate online threats and adjust to adversaries’ unique characteristics.
1st Lt. Alvaro Luna, an Army tactical offensive cyber ops planner, stated that the top challenge facing cyber protection teams is the need to educate commanders on their capabilities to provide choices for battlefield operations.
Luna added that cyber ops planners must have a situational awareness of a particular location to understand certain threats.
