Category: US Department of Defense Information Network

Source: United States Department of Defense Information Network

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE  –   Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense Information Network and the Defense Information Systems Agency and are entering a new era of leadership, one that will aim to shape the future of cybersecurity and information technology across the United States Department of Defense.

In a ceremonial passing of the flags on Friday, Oct. 4, U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Paul T. Stanton assumed command and directorship, vowing to carry forward the momentum established by his predecessor, U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Robert J. Skinner.

Presided over by some of the department’s highest-ranking leaders – U.S. Air Force Gen. Timothy D. Haugh, commander of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency/chief of Central Security Service, and Leslie A. Beavers, acting DoD chief information officer – the ceremony marked a significant transition for both the command and agency.

“I leave this agency and command with a deep sense of humility, optimism, confidence and, most importantly, honor,” said Skinner in his farewell remarks. “I have truly been privileged to lead and be among our nation’s finest, working the most difficult problems, making the impossible possible. It is my hope today as I relinquish leadership of these two organizations, that I too have given more than I have received.”

Skinner, who served as the JFHQ-DODIN commander and DISA director since 2021, was recognized for his role in advancing the department’s digital transformation efforts, securing critical infrastructure, and fostering a culture of innovation.

Stanton, previously serving as the commanding general of the U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence at Fort Eisenhower, brings extensive experience in cyber operations and information warfare. He acknowledged Skinner’s substantial contributions and expressed his eagerness to build upon the strong foundation he established.

“Lt. Gen. Skinner has been a mentor of mine for years, providing valuable counsel and sage advice,” said Stanton. “I’m honored for the opportunity to join the amazing team in stride as we remain trusted to connect, protect and serve.”

Haugh emphasized the strategic importance of the leadership change, underscoring the critical roles DISA and JFHQ-DODIN have in defending the nation’s networks and ensuring freedom of action in cyberspace.

“This team, all of you, are engaged with our adversaries and our competitors on a daily basis, 24/7, and the very definition of success is nothing short of mission assurance for the joint force and for serving our nation’s decisive advantages,” said Haugh. “The mission has been accomplished by all of you over the past three years, enabled by Bob Skinner’s leadership. It is a fantastic way to wrap up a career of dedication serving our nation. JFHQ-DODIN and DISA will be in terrific and very capable hands with Lt. Gen. Paul Stanton at the helm and all of you working missions. Paul was built for this job.”

Beavers also highlighted the alignment of DISA and JFHQ-DODIN with the department’s overarching priorities for IT and cybersecurity, focusing on recent successes and the expectation moving forward.

“This transition means not only a change in leadership, but also a change in perspective,” said Beavers. “I can tell you [Skinner] was the right leader to take on the challenges that DISA faced coming out of COVID and setting a path for the future. It is going to take a warrior-scholar to take the handoff from Bob and move those and many other initiatives down range, and we found one. [Stanton] is the perfect person to take on this challenge.”

As Stanton assumed leadership, he laid out his vision for the future of the organizations, emphasizing the need to stay ahead of adversaries and continue providing exceptional support to the warfighter.

“We are in an unprecedented period of significant change in an unsettled world that has an insatiable appetite for data,” Stanton said. “At the core of our responsibilities, we must securely and reliably get the right data to the right place at the right time to make a better and faster decision than our enemies, period. This is our business. This is warfighting as it has been, it is today and will be in the future. This agency and command are critical to our nation’s warfighting success. Failure is not an option, and excellence is our standard.”

Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense information Network is the U.S. Cyber Command component that leads DoD’s unified force approach to network operations, security, and defense across the Department of Defense Information Network, commonly known as the DODIN. This global command and control responsibility underpinning all DoD missions works to ensure mission assurance and bolster DoD’s competitive advantage. The Command’s mission covers a broad range of activities on behalf of U.S. Cyber Command including proactive, threat-informed steps to reduce cyber risk across the DODIN, and leading response to attacks against the DODIN to ensure network operations remain agile and resilient. The JFHQ-DODIN commander, Lt. Gen Robert Skinner, is dual-hatted as the director of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA).

Source: United States Department of Defense Information Network

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE  –   Senior leaders and staff from over 35 commands converged on Fort Meade recently to participate in a Global Logistics Cyber Resiliency Summit hosted by U.S. Transportation Command, U.S. Cyber Command, and Joint Force Headquarters-Department of Defense Information Network.

Military operations are intricately reliant on logistics, where the effectiveness of supply chains and delivery can determine mission success or failure. The increase in digitization has made these logistics systems prime targets of cyber adversaries. Ensuring cyber resiliency is paramount for maintaining operational readiness and security. The summit was designed to discuss the top cyber challenges to the global logistics mission.

Army Lt. Gen. William J. Hartman, deputy commander of USCYBERCOM, said the summit brought together diverse and powerful organizations to address challenges to this critical capability.

“It is crucial that we dedicate ourselves to solving the cyber challenges to global logistics because it is one of our most critical and decisive capabilities. Global logistics enables power projection and what we were able to accomplish at this summit was fundamental to the security of our nation,” Hartman said.

Military logistics encompass the planning, implementation, and coordination of the movement and maintenance of forces. This includes the transportation of troops, equipment, supplies, and management of facilities. Modern military logistics systems leverage advanced technologies like the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics to optimize operations. However, the dependence on digital systems makes them susceptible to threats and cyberattacks which can disrupt supply lines, compromise sensitive information, and potentially lead to mission failure.

“Our collective success hinges on unity of effort in cyberspace,” said Army Lt. Gen. John P. Sullivan, deputy commander, USTRANSCOM. “Engagement across the Department of Defense, the interagency, and in concert with our mission partners, is vital.”

Air Force Lt. Gen. Robert J. Skinner, commander of JFHQ-DODIN, echoed these comments and added that the summit represented a significant step toward examining this complex and challenging problem set.

“Connectivity is the biggest single factor in the survivability of our global logistics networks. If we do not have resiliency, we cannot maintain the connectivity necessary for survivability,” Skinner added.

The summit concluded with closing comments from Air Force Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost, commander of USTRANSCOM, and Air Force Gen. Timothy D. Haugh, commander of USCYBERCOM.

“Events like this summit provide a forum where some of the smartest logisticians, mobility experts and cyber operators can share & expand perspectives, communicate priorities, build toward a common understanding of risk and discuss future requirements & capabilities,” Van Ovost, said. “We will continue to partner with CYBERCOM, JFHQ-DODIN and other mission partners to ensure we have a safe, secure, and reliable information environment available when and where needed.”

Haugh emphasized the collaboration necessary at the intersection of logistics and cyber problem sets.

“As we look at this through our lens, global logistics is fundamental to ensuring the success of our mission. This is our work, to get to unity of action. I am excited by what has been accomplished at the summit. Those participating are leading us down a path toward the synchronized, unified actions necessary to ensure the global command and control and data integrity of our global logistics systems,” Haugh said.

Enhancing the cyber resiliency of military global logistics systems is a continuous process that requires commitment, investment, and collaboration. As adversaries evolve their tactics, the military and its partners must stay ahead with innovative solutions. It is not just a technical challenge, but rather a strategic security imperative. Resiliency ensures that military logistics systems can endure and rapidly recover from cyber incidents, safeguarding national security and enabling military operations across the globe.

Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense Information Network is the U.S. Cyber Command component that leads DoD’s unified force approach to network operations, security, and defense across the Department of Defense Information Network, commonly known as the DODIN. This global command and control responsibility underpinning all DoD missions works to ensure mission assurance and bolster DoD’s competitive advantage. The command’s mission covers a broad range of activities on behalf of U.S. Cyber Command including proactive, threat-informed steps to reduce cyber risk across the DODIN, and leading response to attacks against the DODIN to ensure network operations remain agile and resilient. The JFHQ-DODIN commander, Lt. Gen Robert Skinner, is dual-hatted as the director of the Defense Information Systems Agency.

Source: United States Department of Defense Information Network

The Mission Is A Go!

Time on Target (ToT) is set for 0300 Zulu Time somewhere in a remote area of the world. The operator team is not alone. They are tracked by a U.S. Navy warship far from the coast with communication and surveillance systems supporting the mission. In the air, F-22 Raptors remain out of radar detection ready to provide close-air support. A carrier strike group has an Army Ranger company and a Special Operations aviation regiment detachment embarked who are in constant communication with the mothership and have access to immediate satellite coverage.

Thirty minutes before ToT, the operators conduct final checks on all systems. They ensure the mothership can communicate with them and coordinate with the F22s in the air. All supporting forces are on standby if the mission requires it.

At 0300 Zulu Time, ToT, the operators hit the objective. The mothership follows the team on the ground with uninterrupted real-time satellite footage, the F-22s are ready to dominate the air above the objective, and SOF medics, Army Rangers, and U.S. Marines are ready to support in a moment’s notice. The operators confidently execute their assigned tasks knowing that a full array of specialized units would be available if called upon. They complete their mission and call for extraction as planned. Mission accomplished.

To the operators, this level of dynamic coordination underpins mission assurance. The key enabler that allows for this coordination and mission assurance is the Department of Defense Information Network (DODIN). As one of DoD’s most vital assets, the DODIN is a technological federated environment composed of 45 independent areas of operation. This network of networks, systems, and data is also known as cyber terrain and is DoD’s cyberspace battlefield. Protecting the DODIN to ensure warfighters and others have the access they need, when they need it, requires a unified force approach which is led by Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense Information Network (JFHQ-DODIN).

Who We Are And “What We Are For”

As a component command of U.S. Cyber Command, JFHQ-DODIN’s global responsibility is to provide the command and control for unified action in DODIN operations, security, and defense. Its task is formidable, given that cyberspace is a human-made environment in a constant state of flux. What is key terrain today might not hold the same status tomorrow. Despite cyberspace being declared an operational warfighting domain more than a decade ago, the secure, operate, and defend the DODIN mission was not fully realized until the Secretary of Defense’s Direction in November 2014. In that year, JFHQ-DODIN emerged to unite the actions for the entirety of the DoD’s layered construct used to safeguard DoD networks, information, and weapon systems. Without the unwavering C2 capabilities of JFHQ-DODIN, our network would be vulnerable to the probing of our adversaries. Consequently, our warfighters would be unable to harmonize their efforts, as demonstrated in the previous example.

While dealing with an ever-changing operational environment, threats, and constant requirements, JFHQ-DODIN achieved initial operational capability in 2015 and full operation capability on January 22, 2018. Although a small command under U.S. Cyber Command, JFHQ-DODIN, at the speed of relevance, protects the DoD Information Network. That protection is critical because of the DODIN’s importance as a warfighting capability and its role related to risk to mission, risk to forces, and operational outcomes. Without a committed group of men and women enabling the defense of the network 24/7, our forces could not operate effectively.

JFHQ-DODIN And the Way We Fight

The world knows how the American Military fights. First, we build a significant amount of combat power, which we then project using the concept of a Combined Arms Maneuver. The logistical move and the decisive nature of combined arms maneuvers require an impressive amount of coordination. A commander assembling tons of military equipment and thousands of personnel to then maneuver elements simultaneously in the land, sea, air, cyber, and space domains, requires a connectivity network to shoot, move, and communicate at a large scale. The DODIN provides such a connectivity network that is critical for all operations, conventional or non-conventional. Without JFHQ-DODIN and the operational C2 it provides to secure, operate, and defend our cyberspace battlefield, a commander’s ability to mass forces and maneuver them to accomplish the mission is severely depleted, potentially putting the lives of thousands of Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen, and Guardians in severe danger, and our operational advantage is denied.

JFHQ-DODIN’s posture includes but is not exclusive to computer network defense, information assurance, inspections, and other activities. Without JFHQ-DODIN proactively directing, synchronizing, and integrating global operations, security, and multi-layered defense actions across the network, the enemy would have the proverbial green light to conduct asymmetric attacks to disrupt, deny, and destroy our DODIN-enabled capabilities to corrupt, distort, or steal sensitive data and information.

Conclusion

JFHQ-DODIN combats threats to the DODIN 24/7 and evolves at the speed of relevance against multiple adversaries simultaneously in an ever-changing operational environment. We utilize the concept of aggressive action, meaning we impose a cost on the adversary each time it probes our network. We rely on a vast network and evolving technology to outpace our opponents and think, adapt, and anticipate better than they ever could. However, none of our equipment or capabilities are as important as our team of dedicated men and women standing watch day and night, holding the line, and telling our adversaries, “No, you move.”

Alex Aguilastratt is a contributing author to JFHQ-DODIN Public Affairs. He currently serves as the JFHQ-DODIN Strategy and Policy Branch Chief, J542. In this role, he analyzes and evaluates substantive, mission-oriented programs including long-range planning and strategy, goals and objectives, and milestones regarding the coordination and synchronization of DODIN Operations and DCO-IDM planning. Additionally, he provides professional guidance, and assistance to a wide range of personnel, organizations, and components engaged in one or more phases of information systems plans, programs, designs, developments, and procedures.

Source: United States Department of Defense Information Network

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, Md.  –   Following a successful nine-month pilot, Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense Information Network (JFHQ-DODIN) will officially launch its Cyber Operational Readiness Assessment program March 1.

Over the past four years, JFHQ-DODIN has made significant changes to the Department of Defense Command Cyber Readiness Inspection (CCRI) program, transforming from an inspection compliance mindset to an operational readiness mindset underpinning mission assurance. To enunciate this significant shift, the program has been renamed to the Cyber Operational Readiness Assessment (CORA).

According to Lt. Gen. Robert Skinner, commander of JFHQ-DODIN, CORA is one of the most critical components of the DoD’s cyber security strategy and lays a strong cornerstone to support the command’s goal of continuous holistic assessments. The new processes help strengthen the posture and resiliency of the Department of Defense Information Network (DODIN) by supporting DODIN Areas of Operation (DAO) commanders and directors in efforts to harden their information systems, reduce the attack surface of their cyber terrain, and enhance a more proactive defense. These are the foundational cybersecurity principles measured by the CORA program.

“CORA is a vital aspect of continually understanding our cyber readiness through fusing many risk factors including access control, detecting anomalies, adjusting to adversary threat information, and executing cyber orders,” Skinner said. “Ultimately, the assessment provides commanders and directors a more precise understanding of their high-priority cyber terrain and their overall cyber security and defensive posture enabling greater command and control and enhancing decision making.”

John Porter, JFHQ-DODIN’s acting director of DODIN Readiness and Security Inspections directorate, said “CORA represents a consolidated look at threat, vulnerability, and impact designed to give DAO commanders and directors relevant information for making decisions about cyber terrain, forces, and other resources”.

“CORA prioritizes MITRE ATT&CK mitigations to minimize adversarial risk to the Department of Defense Information Networks (DODIN) through JFHQ-DODIN’s risk-based metrics. The command created risk-based metrics after analyzing MITRE ATT&CK tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) for initial access, persistence, privilege escalation, lateral movement, and exfiltration,” Porter said.

MITRE ATT&CK is a knowledge base of adversarial TTPs utilized by cyber defenders world-wide to protect and defend information systems and networks and hunt malicious actors.

Porter said “the JFHQ-DODIN CORA team developed key indicators of risk from the risk-based metrics to ensure alignment with JFHQ-DODIN cybersecurity priorities and to direct focus onto the most critical areas of remediation.”  This, in turn, allows organizations to focus their mitigation efforts on risk and exposure to common adversarial TTPs. “Focusing on these essential remediation points allows DoD Components to concentrate limited resources and staffing on correcting high-risk areas,” Porter said. JFHQ-DODIN risk-based metrics and CORA key indicators of risk are adjusted as the MITRE ATT&CK TTPs and mitigations priorities shift, enabling the CORA program to keep pace with the rapidly changing cyber domain.

In addition to the key indicators of risk, Porter said “CORA is hyper-focused on securing the boundary.” The boundary consists of network perimeter devices, public and DoD facing assets servicing the public or external DoD components and any information systems with a direct interface to an external information system. The boundary reviews measure the cyber-hardening risk of information systems exposed to the public internet and the possibility that the malicious activity could spread to other DoD Components if an information system is compromised.

The Cyber Operational Readiness Assessment has become a more agile process encouraging and enabling adjustments in strides. The assessment can be adjusted as new orders, policies or directives are issued, add new assessed technology if Security Technical Implementation Guides exist, and adjust key risk indicators as the threat landscape changes.

The program will help ensure a strong cybersecurity foundation for all DoD networks. It will help DAO commanders and directors better understand the status of their high-priority terrain and their overall cyber security readiness and defensive posture and provide them with relevant information for making decisions about terrain, forces, and other resources. At the same time, it will provide the USCYBERCOM and JFHQ-DODIN commanders a greater understanding of level of risk to the DODIN. CORA is crucial for validating current, future, and emerging technologies that will help the DOD continuously monitor and assess terrain to assess and mitigate risk across the DODIN.

Joint Force Headquarters – Department of Defense information Network is the U.S. Cyber Command component that leads DoD’s unified force approach to network operations, security, and defense across the Department of Defense Information Network, commonly known as the DODIN. This global command and control responsibility underpinning all DoD missions works to ensure mission assurance and bolster DoD’s competitive advantage. The Command’s mission covers a broad range of activities on behalf of U.S. Cyber Command including proactive, threat-informed steps to reduce cyber risk across the DODIN, and leading response to attacks against the DODIN to ensure network operations remain agile and resilient. Lt. Gen. Robert J. Skinner is dual-hatted as the commander of JFHQ-DODIN and the director of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA).