The U.S. Army is reaching out to the public in an attempt to acquire state-of-the-art cyberattack tools. The move comes just weeks after the Pentagon released its updated cyberstrategy detailing its intent to shift to a more offensive cyberapproach which relies on hacking utilities as a major tool in its arsenal.
The Army posted the four-page request last week seeking "potential sources for the procurement of cyber capabilities." The solicitation, posted on the government's federal business opportunities website, expresses interest in "existing technical capabilities to deliver cyber effects with robust and mature capabilities" that can target "telecommunications, networking, components, and protocols," reported Defense One.
A cyber effect "can cause damage by manipulating, disrupting, denying, degrading or destroying computers, information or communications systems, networks, or physical or virtual infrastructure controlled by computers or information systems, or the data on such systems," according to the Department of Defense.
"A cyber effect could cause damage to an adversary's network or to a hospital next door," explained Frank Pound, program manager at the DOD's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). "We want to make sure when we deploy a cyber effect at an adversary that there's no collateral damage. Right now, that [capability] really doesn't exist, except in small enclaves."
Interested parties have until June 15 to submit white papers explaining the technical aspects of their hacking wares.
Last week, the Navy also announced plans to begin more regularly integrating hacking tools into its operations.
"The Navy as a whole must understand and embrace cyber and space effects as an integral component of our arsenal," the five-year Navy Fleet Cyber Command strategic plan says. One of five focus areas is to help "commanders put cyber effects on the table while they craft operational plans."
The number of cyberattacks against the U.S. military are dramatically increasing in frequency and sophistication, occuring every day, Dan Kaufman, head of DARPA's Information Innovation Office, warned in February, saying it's more important than ever to stay ahead of adversaries.
"The sophistication of the attacks is increasing. ... My job is not to wait for something catastrophic to happen and then say, 'Oh, goodness, we should do something.' My job is to say, 'Hmm. I see this trend line going. I want to be way ahead of this line,' " Kaufman said, according to The Hill.
An Office of Budget and Management report released in March found that attacks against the federal government hit a record high in fiscal 2014, up 15 percent from the previous year.
