The Department of Defense unveiled its new plan to bolster the entire nation’s cybersecurity defenses with its new Cyber Range — the newest of several developmental test facilities around the nation.
On Oct.16, the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) leaders, several executives, and other important figures gathered together at the National Cyber Range at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River to cut the ribbon on the new base.
A cyber range is the modern-day equivalent of a training field, where researchers can test battling threats, like complex malware, in a live virtual environment. It offers live feedback for your network security, the ability to respond to threats, and helps researchers come up with a plan of action in real situations.
The new base, while improving security, is also expected to bring in at least 20 M in revenue and a slew of new jobs for St. Mary’s County. The range will require jobs ranging from computer engineers to cybersecurity professionals, to new scientists.
“On top of being the most capable, defense technology is also required to be cyber resilient,” the NAWCAD’s National Cyber Range Deputy Director, John Ross stated.
“We harden warfighter systems by performing vulnerability assessments and recommending mitigations — ultimately preventing adversaries from stealing our data or defeating our technology.”
They go on to explain that testing will be focused on training initiatives for their subsystems, aircraft, and supportive technologies, to ensure their networks are airtight against all types of attacks.
The new base is one of four cybersecurity bases built around the country to improve the nation’s defenses. As data breaches and international hacker groups become an increasingly larger problem, with large-scale data breaches happening nearly every day, the Department of Justice has committed to increasing America’s security.
“This wide-reaching investment protects warfighters from increasingly advanced cyber enemies—something we can all feel proud of,” says NAWCAD Executive Director, Steve Cricchi.