Cybersecurity Policy Report, Expert Group to Study Formation of U.S. Cyber Force at DoD, (Aug 4, 2025)
Organizations Mentioned:U.S. Cyber Command
A group of military and cyber defense experts will study and offer advice on the establishment of a stand-alone U.S. Cyber Force within the Department of Defense, the Center for Strategic and International Studies announced today.
The Commission on Cyber Force Generation is a joint project of CSIS and the Cyber Solarium Commission 2.0 (CSC 2.0) project at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, CSIS said in a news release.
CSIS noted that the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act required DoD to study the efficacy of establishing a sixth uniformed service to consolidate the work of U.S. Cyber Command and other DoD cyber efforts (CPR, Dec. 9, 2024).
Support for a U.S. Cyber Force has been fueled by flaws in how cyber personnel are chosen and trained at DoD. “Given the well-documented shortcomings in current force generation and readiness models to organize, train, and equip for military cyber operations, momentum is building for a dedicated Cyber Force,” CSIS said.
The 17-member commission created by CSIS and CSC 2.0 will not engage in “litigating” policy decisions about establishing a cyber force, CSIS said, but will instead address “the critical—and often overlooked—questions of implementation.”
“The Commission will concentrate on the foundational details: the organizational structure, core functions, roles and responsibilities, and necessary authorities of a Cyber Force. By outlining these issues in advance, this effort seeks to accelerate execution, reduce transition risk, and ensure that policy decisions are translated into operational advantage,” it said.
“This debate of a military service aligned to the cyber domain has percolated for more than a decade,” said Josh Stiefel, the commission’s co-chair and a former counsel to the House Armed Services Committee.
“The issue remains unresolved precisely because there’s a clear recognition that, as a country, we are not militarily meeting our potential, and the trajectory isn’t ‘good enough.’ Regardless of which side of the debate you sit on, if a service is to happen, everyone should agree that it is better to be prepared ahead of that moment, instead of reacting after the fact,” Mr. Stiefel said.
“Having supported multiple organizational transformations within the Department of Defense, the most consequential phase begins after a decision is made—implementation,” said Ed Cardon, the commission’s other co-chair and a former Army general assigned to Cyber Command.
“When this phase is neglected or rushed, the result is enduring organizational friction with inefficiencies, confusion that can persist for years, and degraded mission effectiveness,” Mr. Cardon added.
The commission will be formally launched at a CSIS event scheduled for Sept. 16. It will convene a variety of stakeholders, CSIS said, including current and former government officials, independent experts, industry, and civil society, to gather input as it develops recommendations for DoD and the White House.
News: FederalLegislation DataSecurity