SALON

Wednesday, Jul 25, 2012 11:45 PM UTC

Pentagon still grappling with rules of cyberwar

By

Topics: From the Wires,

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is still grappling with how to write the rules of cyberwarfare, such as when and how to fire back against a computer-based attack, senior military leaders told Congress Wednesday.

Four months ago the military’s top cyberwarrior predicted the rules would be ironed out in a “month or two” and sent to other federal agencies for discussion. But the complex world of cyberspace, which has no real boundaries and operates at the speed of light, has proven to be a difficult battlefield for the military to map out.

House members said that working out the rules of cyberwar is critical so that the military will be able to respond quickly when U.S. networks are attacked or threatened. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, told military leaders that there likely won’t be time for Congress to pass a declaration of war if or when a computer-based attack happens.

So, consultation with lawmakers beforehand would smooth things over, said Thornberry, chairman of the House Armed Services emerging threats subcommittee.

“The devil is in the details,” acknowledged Vice Adm. Michael Rogers, commander of the Navy’s Fleet Cyber Command. He said it has been an issue for some time, and that he expects there will be some developments “at some point in the near term.”

During hearings in March, members of Congress pressed Army Gen. Keith Alexander, head of U.S. Cyber Command, for details on the military rules of engagement for offensive cyberoperations, particularly so that U.S. forces have the proper authority to act quickly when an attack is discovered or a network is breached. Alexander, who also heads the secretive National Security Agency, said at the time that U.S. officials were reaching some agreement on the rules.

The military has longstanding rules of engagement for conventional warfare that lay out the appropriate response to a particular act or attack by another country or faction. And last year President Barack Obama signed execute orders that detailed how far military commanders around the globe can go in using cyberattacks against enemies and laid out when the military must seek presidential approval for a specific cyberassault.

The current ground rules for cyberoperations were written in 2005, but are not adequate for the current technologies. The new rules, said Alexander in March, would allow the military to stop breaches as they were happening and would detail the conditions necessary to take those actions.

Senior officers from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps who are responsible for cyberoperations testified before the subcommittee. They said that the armed services are using bonuses and other enticements to recruit and retain cyberwarriors, while competing with private industry for candidates.

But lawmakers wondered about funding shortfalls that could stifle the increase in cyberpersonnel the Pentagon is bringing on.

“We are facing significant fiscal challenges in the coming years,” said Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I. “Cyberrelated activities are faring reasonably well so far, but nothing is immune, and even noncyberspecific cuts could have an impact on your commands as personnel resources are reduced or research and development funding decreased.”

Rogers said that attracting and keeping his cyberworkforce is a “significant challenge, given the rapidly evolving nature of cyberspace and the intense competition from industry for top talent.”

And other said that dramatic budget cuts, which will become necessary early next year if Congress can’t agree on funding, would be a problem.

Maj. Gen. Suzanne Vautrinot, commander of Air Forces Cyber, said the cuts would be devastating and cause the Air Force to lose ground.

As to the size of their cyberworkforce, the Air Force has about 17,000, the Army has about 11,000; the Navy has about 14,000; and the Marines have about 700. Cyber has been one defense area where spending has increased, even as budget cuts hit other places.

Vautrinot also noted that the Air Force has been working to make sure that key drone operations are protected against cyberattacks, focusing on the highest priority missions. Last year, a computer virus infected the Pentagon’s drone program, but it did not get into flight controls.

___

Lolita C. Baldor can be followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lbaldor

More Lolita C. Baldor.

Next Article

Related Stories

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

The week in 10 pics

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11
  • Lisa Montgomery embraces her nephew Thursday after a tornado tore apart her home in Cleburne, Texas. The twister killed six people and destroyed entire swaths of the North Texas town.
    Credit: AP/LM Otero

  • Jack McMahon, the defense attorney for abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, speaks outside the Criminal Justice Center in Philadelphia Tuesday. His client was convicted of killing three babies in his clinic, and will serve multiple life sentences.
    Credit: AP/Matt Rourke

  • A photo taken Monday captures Vice President Joe Biden's response to a Milwaukee second-grader's innovative proposal to end America's epidemic of gun violence. This guy!
    Credit: AP/Jenny Aicher

  • Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., flanked by a grouper-eyed Michele Bachmann, addresses the IRS' admission that it targeted Tea Party groups in advance of the 2012 election. In an op-ed for CNN Thursday, the Kentucky senator slammed the president for his faux outrage.
    Credit: AP/Molly Riley

  • Ousted IRS chief Steven Miller is sworn in on Capitol Hill Friday. Miller testified before the House Ways and Means Committee on the extra scrutiny the agency gave conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status.
    Credit: AP/J. Scott Applewhite

  • Attorney General Eric Holder pauses as he testifies on Capitol Hill before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday. Holder is under fire, among other things, for the Justice Department's gathering of phone records at the Associated Press.
    Credit: AP/Carolyn Kaster

  • O.J. Simpson sits during an evidentiary hearing at Clark County District Court in Las Vegas, Nev., Thursday. Simpson, who is currently serving a nine-to-33-year sentence in state prison for armed robbery and kidnapping, is using a writ of habeas corpus to seek a new trial.
    Credit: AP/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Jeff Scheid

  • Major Tom to ground control: On Sunday astronaut Chris Hadfield recorded the first music video from space, a cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity."
    Credit: AP/NASA/Chris Hadfield

  • When it rains it pours. President Barack Obama speaks during a news conference Thursday with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, inexplicably inspiring an #umbrellagate Twitter meme.
    Credit: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

  • A smoke plume rises high above a road block at the intersection of County A and Ross Road east of Solon Springs, Wis., Tuesday. No injuries were reported, but the the wildfire caused evacuations across northwestern Wisconsin.
    Credit: AP/The Duluth News-Tribune/Clint Austin

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11

Related Videos

Comments

 0 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: So long, Sookie Stackhouse

Recommendations