DoD Network Defense Headquarters reaches full operational capability
NewsFebruary 01, 2018
FORT MEADE, Md. The Joint Force Headquarters Department of Defense Information Network (JFHQ-DoDIN) -- the U.S. cybercommand component responsible for securing, operating, and defending the Defense Department?s (DoD's) complex infrastructure -- reports that it has achieved full operational capability.
According to DoD reports, the JFHQ-DoDIN reached the operational milestone --counting roughly 15,000 networks with 3 million users -- following three years of building capacity and capability to secure, operate, and defend the DoDIN, a global network enabling military operations across all warfighting domains.
To reach full operational capability, JFHQ-DoDIN participated in a number of service, Joint Staff, cybercom, and additional combatant command exercises in support of mission outcomes; it also managed daily operations that searched for and countered significant actual cyberthreats. The headquarters also sent out its six cyberprotection teams to support various high-priority military operations.
All 133 Cyber Mission Force teams are on track to achieve full operational capability by September, cybercom officials said.
One signal of the command’s growing importance, explained DoD officials, is the implementation of Operation Gladiator Shield (OGS), which organizes the DoDIN into operational areas and designates certain DoD commanders and directors to be responsible for the operation and defense of each named area. OGS is a fundamental shift in the way DdD defends its network holistically, the officials added, calling it a "cultural shift" that transforms defensive cyberspace forces into a cohesive and unified capability in defense of the wider DoDIN.
