Latest news with #CyberCommand
Bloomberg
7 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
UK Taps Ukraine Lessons to Plow £1 Billion Into Warfare Systems
The UK will invest more than £1 billion ($1.4 billion) in a new digital targeting system to allow the country's armed forces to pinpoint and eliminate enemy targets more swiftly as part of a forthcoming revamp of Britain's defensive capabilities. In its strategic defense review, expected to be published in full next week, the UK will also set up a new Cyber and Electromagnetic Command to protect military networks against tens of thousands of cyber attacks a year and help coordinate Britain's own cyber operations, the Ministry of Defence said Thursday in a statement. The command will also lead operations to jam enemy signals to drones and missiles and help intercept military communications.
Telegraph
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Britain to unleash army of hackers on Putin
The British military is to spend more than £1 billion on artificial intelligence and a hacking attack team, the Defence Secretary has announced. John Healey vowed to give the Armed Forces more power online to target hostile states such as Vladimir Putin's Russia, as he warned that 'the keyboard has become a weapon of war'. The offensive operations will be conducted through a new Cyber and Electromagnetic Command, which will also oversee a £1 billion investment in upgraded targeting systems using an artificial intelligence 'kill web' that connects military systems. Mr Healey said that the command unit, which will be included in the Government's Strategic Defence Review (SDR) being published on Monday, would set 'new standards' in defence. When asked if the Ministry of Defence was increasing its capability to attack enemy states such as Russia and China, Mr Healey said: 'Yes. The Cyber Command is part of removing duplication, setting new standards, giving new authority behind defensive and offensive cyber.' The comments are the most explicit confirmation by any minister so far of Britain's appetite to carry out offensive hacks, in addition to defending its own interests against foreign cyber attacks. Speaking on Wednesday from MoD Corsham, the UK's military cyber HQ, Mr Healey said: 'We are under daily attack, increasing attacks, and this is the nerve centre of the UK's military that helps us defend against these attacks. The keyboard has become a weapon of war.' Mr Healey added that the SDR had recognised that the war in Ukraine had proved 'those that prevail will be those who are not just better equipped and better trained, but better connected and also capable of innovating ahead of adversaries'. He said: 'That's what our new cyber command will allow us to do.' For the last five years, the National Cyber Force has conducted hacking operations on behalf of the military, as part of a joint venture between GCHQ and the MoD. It will now coordinate offensive cyber capabilities with the new Cyber and Electromagnetic Command, which will fight enemies on the web and lead defensive operations. Details of Britain's offensive cyber capabilities are a secret. However, action by other countries has ranged from spying on officials to installing software that forces industrial machinery to break. Hostile countries, including Russia, China, as well as Iran and North Korea, are all deemed to have hackers who work in espionage with the aim of breaking into sensitive information online, or engaging in online ransomware attacks. In the last two years, the MoD has been subjected to 90,000 cyber attacks – double the number in 2023 – from hostile states including Russia and China. Mr Healey said: 'This is a level of cyber warfare that is continual and intensifying that requires us to step up our capacity to defend.' He added that, while previous governments had spoken of the importance of cyber, it had not been promoted in a way that integrated the efforts of the RAF, British Army and Royal Navy. 'You might have seen the talk, now you'll see the walk,' he said. Earlier this month, a report by the Commons public accounts committee warned that crumbling government computer systems have been outpaced by cyber criminals and that the Government is lacking experts with cyber skills. It found that more than a quarter of all public sector IT systems use vulnerable, older 'legacy' technology, which has led to a significant gap between the cyber threat and the Government's ability. It comes after a number of UK retailers suffered cyber attacks, including Marks & Spencer, Harrods and the Co-op. Richard Horne, the chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, told a cyber security conference at the start of this month that the number of 'nationally significant' cyber attacks targeting the UK had doubled in the past six months. As part of the new military command, more than £1 billion will be invested in a Digital Targeting Web that will come into action by 2027. The system – known colloquially as a 'kill web' – will operate by using AI and new software to better connect military weapons systems across all three forces, enabling quicker decisions to be made on the battlefield. This could be done by identifying a threat using a sensor on a ship or in space, before it is disabled by an F-35 aircraft, drone, or offensive cyber operation. The new command will also exploit the military's expertise in electromagnetic warfare, such as degrading the enemy's command and control, jamming signals to drones or missiles and intercepting an adversary's communications. The MoD likened it to how the Ukrainians were able to stop a Russian advance by using technology to find the enemy quickly and attack at scale. The new unit will sit under General Sir James Hockenhull's responsibilities. He is currently Commander of UK Strategic Command, which oversees operations across all three services and includes cyber and space. The MoD said that the SDR, which was announced by Labour last year to set out a path for defence over the next decade, would show how enhanced cyber defences will help bolster national security and support economic stability. Earlier this year, the MoD announced that military recruits would be fast-tracked into specialist roles to tackle the growing cyber threat to the UK through the Cyber Direct Entry programme. Mr Healey added: 'Ways of warfare are rapidly changing, with the UK facing daily cyber-attacks on this new front line. The hard-fought lessons from Putin's illegal war in Ukraine leave us under no illusions that future conflicts will be won through forces that are better connected, better equipped and innovating faster than their adversaries. 'We will give our Armed Forces the ability to act at speeds never seen before – connecting ships, aircraft, tanks and operators so they can share vital information instantly and strike further and faster. 'By attracting the best digital talent, and establishing a nerve centre for our cyber capability, we will harness the latest innovations, properly fund Britain's defences for the modern age and support the government's Plan for Change.'
CBS News
16-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
GOP congressman confirms Hegseth ordered pause in cyber operations against Russia, despite Pentagon denial
What we know about the U.S. pause on cyber operations against Russia Washington — Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska said the U.S. government halted cyber operations against Russia for one day in February as President Trump was trying to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, confirming CBS News reporting at the time and undercutting statements of denial from the Defense Department. "I actually dug into this whole matter. I just want to address it: It was a one-day pause, which is typical for negotiations," said Bacon, chair of the House Armed Services cyber subcommittee, during a hearing on Capitol Hill on Friday. "That's just about as much as I can say. It was a one-day pause." In March, multiple U.S. officials told CBS News that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had issued a directive to U.S. Cyber Command to pause cyber operations against Russia, including those that were the most provocative. At the time, the duration of the pause was unknown. In response to reports about the pause, the Pentagon's rapid response team posted on March 4 on X that Hegseth "has neither canceled nor delayed any cyber operations directed against malicious Russian targets and there has been no stand-down order whatsoever from that priority." Two sources familiar with Hegseth's order said the pause directive lacked specificity. It's not clear how the order about planning was interpreted. Multiple officials also told CBS News in March that strategizing for future operations was never paused and that U.S. cyber policy on Russia "is very much intact" and remains at the same level, one of the officials said. Bacon's remarks are the first on-the-record acknowledgment of the directive's existence, which was first reported in February by The Record, a cybersecurity news publication. It's not uncommon for certain military operations to be paused during sensitive negotiations between countries. Both Democratic and Republican administrations have halted operations to prevent U.S. intentions from being misconstrued and to keep diplomacy on track. In addition to the Pentagon's statement on X, the Trump administration stonewalled inquiries on the matter and continued to deny any pause was ordered. A senior U.S. defense official at the Defense Department declined to answer questions from CBS News at the time when asked about the reported pause. In Friday's House hearing, the statement from DOD Rapid Response was called out by Army veteran and Democratic Rep. Eugene Vindman, who accused the Pentagon of lying about the pause directive. "What I would like to do is basically point out that that statement by DOD Rapid Response was an outright lie," said the Virginia congressman. "It was at least misleading. And that is not what the American people deserve, and that will be something that I intend to follow up with the secretary when he actually shows up." The Pentagon created the DOD Rapid Response account in February, and it is overseen by conservative podcaster and Army veteran Graham Allen, who is now the Pentagon's digital media director. The account commonly attacks news publications and posts comments criticizing reporting about Hegseth and the Defense Department. The X account has omitted context from its statements, touting an increase in U.S. military recruiting numbers between February 2024 through February 2025, even though much of the period showing improved recruitment numbers occurred during the Biden administration, as CBS News' Confirmed team found. Trump administration officials have promised to run "the most transparent Defense Department in history," but to date, the Pentagon has held just one formal briefing. Instead of regular press engagements, the Pentagon's modus operandi for official Defense Department communications is often to bypass legacy news media outlets and attack their reporting. Questions to the Pentagon were referred to U.S. Cyber Command, which told CBS News Friday that "due to operational security concerns, we do not comment nor discuss cyber intelligence, plans, or operations." James LaPorta James LaPorta is a national security coordinating producer in CBS News' Washington bureau. He is a former U.S. Marine infantryman and veteran of the Afghanistan war. contributed to this report.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hegseth briefly paused cyber ops against Russia as part of negotiations, GOP Rep. Bacon says
U.S. Cyber Command paused offensive operations aimed at Russia for a day earlier this year as a negotiating tactic, House Armed Services Committee cyber subcommittee Chair Don Bacon (R-Neb.) confirmed Friday. During a subcommittee hearing on the Pentagon's cyber posture, Bacon referenced reports that emerged in late February suggesting that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had directed Cyber Command to stand down from planning on all matters regarding Russia, including offensive actions. The report sparked confusion and fury among Democratic lawmakers and European leaders, who viewed the move as a capitulation toward Russia during a time of tense negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. The Pentagon at the time denied that any stand-down order was made. 'I dug into this whole matter,' Bacon said. 'There was a one-day pause, which is typical for negotiations, that's about as much as I can say, a one-day pause.' While Bacon did not elaborate on the negotiations, the pause likely happened around the time Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was visiting the White House to negotiate a minerals deal with President Donald Trump — a deal that fell through after a contentious Oval Office meeting. Spokespersons for both the Pentagon and Cyber Command did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Bacon's claim. The Department of Defense Rapid Response account tweeted in early March that Hegseth had 'neither canceled nor delayed any cyber operations directed against malicious Russian targets and there has been no stand down order whatsoever from that priority.' Subcommittee member Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-Va.) pointed to this tweet during the hearing Friday, saying that in light of Bacon's comments, it was 'an outright lie.' 'That is not what the American people deserve, and that will be something I intend to follow up with the secretary when he actually shows up,' Vindman said. Bacon has emerged as a vocal critic of Hegseth, pushing back on the Pentagon chief's use of encrypted messaging app Signal to discuss sensitive military strikes in Yemen and calling for his dismissal last month. Bacon on Friday slammed Hegseth for the recent firing of Gen. Timothy Haugh, who ran both Cyber Command and the National Security Agency before being abruptly let go, reportedly due to allegations made against Haugh to Trump by far-right activist Laura Loomer. 'When the secretary of defense comes to the Armed Services Committee, he will have to answer for this,' Bacon said in reference to Haugh's dismissal.
Politico
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Politico
Hegseth briefly paused cyber ops against Russia as part of negotiations, GOP Rep. Bacon says
U.S. Cyber Command paused offensive operations aimed at Russia for a day earlier this year as a negotiating tactic, House Armed Services Committee cyber subcommittee Chair Don Bacon (R-Neb.) confirmed Friday. During a subcommittee hearing on the Pentagon's cyber posture, Bacon referenced reports that emerged in late February suggesting that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had directed Cyber Command to stand down from planning on all matters regarding Russia, including offensive actions. The report sparked confusion and fury among Democratic lawmakers and European leaders, who viewed the move as a capitulation toward Russia during a time of tense negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. The Pentagon at the time denied that any stand-down order was made. 'I dug into this whole matter,' Bacon said. 'There was a one-day pause, which is typical for negotiations, that's about as much as I can say, a one-day pause.' While Bacon did not elaborate on the negotiations, the pause likely happened around the time Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was visiting the White House to negotiate a minerals deal with President Donald Trump — a deal that fell through after a contentious Oval Office meeting. Spokespersons for both the Pentagon and Cyber Command did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Bacon's claim. The Department of Defense Rapid Response account tweeted in early March that Hegseth had 'neither canceled nor delayed any cyber operations directed against malicious Russian targets and there has been no stand down order whatsoever from that priority.' Subcommittee member Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-Va.) pointed to this tweet during the hearing Friday, saying that in light of Bacon's comments, it was 'an outright lie.' 'That is not what the American people deserve, and that will be something I intend to follow up with the secretary when he actually shows up,' Vindman said. Bacon has emerged as a vocal critic of Hegseth, pushing back on the Pentagon chief's use of encrypted messaging app Signal to discuss sensitive military strikes in Yemen and calling for his dismissal last month. Bacon on Friday slammed Hegseth for the recent firing of Gen. Timothy Haugh, who ran both Cyber Command and the National Security Agency before being abruptly let go, reportedly due to allegations made against Haugh to Trump by far-right activist Laura Loomer. 'When the secretary of defense comes to the Armed Services Committee, he will have to answer for this,' Bacon said in reference to Haugh's dismissal.
