Lawmakers outline cyber priorities for Pentagon
Summary
Lawmakers say addressing recruitment and retention challenges tied to the Pentagon’s cyber forces is among their top priorities within the military software and information technology landscape this Congress. Many of the issues on lawmakers’ radar are touched by Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, which has seen the deployment of dual-use technologies that have both commercial and military applications, as well as showcased the need for robust defensive and offensive capabilities to counter and deter cyberattacks. A returning member of the House’s cyber defense panel, Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., underscored the importance of shoring up the workforce in a recent interview, citing the “programs and projects that are just not reaching their full potential” because of retention difficulties. On the Senate side, Manchin is planning to focus on how the Pentagon manages its data, the Democratic aide said — a key enabler for training artificial intelligence systems, which require mounds of digitally stored, cleaned and labeled datasets. Domestically, Gallagher said the House cyber panel will “conduct oversight of the department’s numerous innovation efforts” while urging DOD forward on better leveraging “commercial technology to empower warfighters.” Gallagher has previously advocated for boosting funding for the Pentagon’s small-budget technology incubator, the Defense Innovation Unit, which last month reported that 17 projects went from prototype to production in fiscal 2022, with cyber and AI-related programs driving much of those capability transitions.