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Increased Cyber Funding Will Come at a Cost

Most defense experts foresee that funding for cyber activities either will increase or, at worst, remain flat when the upcoming fiscal crisis hits. However, that growth in funding will draw money from other defense areas, according to a group of cyber leaders.

A panel on cybersecurity offered several perspectives on the issue of cost versus risk at the West conference on Wednesday. Terry Halvorsen, chief information officer (CIO) for the Department of the Navy, declared plainly that there is no new money; there is less. If the services spend more on cyber, then it will have to come from somewhere else.

Robert J. Carey, deputy Defense Department CIO, said that the budget effects will be severe. He noted that the standup of the Cyber Command incorporated personnel from all of the services, and cyber defense and offense are a nascent capability that continues to grow in leaps and bounds.

Halvorsen added that the Navy will need to make decisions in the short term that will not be good in the long term. Addressing industry, he asked, “How can you help me make the least-dumb decisions quicker?”