Army Leaders: Embrace the Network as the Priority

The U.S. Army, known for its land force, maneuvers and kinetic strikes, needs to embrace a new reality. The digital network is the priority for the kind of warfare that tomorrow brings, top Army leaders said at TechNet Cyber 2025 in Baltimore.

That view includes a highly sensored battlefield, said Lt. Gen. Jeth B. Rey, USA, deputy chief of staff, G-6.

“The network is the number one transformation priority,” Rey noted. “We should be all proud of that. In 41 years, I am so proud that they are talking about that, not just bullets, not just UAS [unmanned aerial vehicles], for those to work, we need the network in place.”

For Lt. Gen. David (Todd) Isaacson, USA, J-6, it also means a data-centric pivot, the idea that information is more valuable than before.

“One of the areas that we are most concerned about is the idea of information advantage, leading to decision advantage,” Isaacson noted. “This is, I think, the strategic imperative. The [fact that the] Army is modernizing and unifying the network reflects the broader understanding that the cognitive decision space is becoming more and more valuable.”

In addition, machine-assisted decision-making will be a part of the battlefield.

“It is the idea of structuring and defending and orienting decisions that are factual and informed fully, through machine-enabled decision-making and artificial intelligence that land decision support, that ultimately put the leaders in the most informed decision space in which to operate,” Isaacson explained.

And for defensive cyber warriors, the future will look different as well, the Army J-6 continued.

“I think if you're a cyber defender, the key terrain has shifted," Isaacson stated. “It is a recognition of where the key terrain is and the techniques by which the defense ought to be implemented.”

Cyber warriors will need to move to being more data-centric, and the principles of zero trust and identity, credentialing and access management (ICAM) will all reshape the key terrain, he said.

For industry, Rey asked for solutions to support a DDIL environment—disrupted, degraded, intermittent and low-bandwidth conditions—such as the ability to repair an underwater cable cut by an adversary.

He also said he would like to see attributable ICAM, or identity, credentialing, access management, such as seen in the financial industry, where users can have secure access across different devices, locations or platforms. Moreover, companies should be able to be integrated to that ICAM, not build their own, and focus on other parts of their solutions.

Also, for managing data access for U.S. allies, industry should “flip the triangle.” Instead of starting with Impact Level (IL) 5 or 6—or the top of the triangle—they should start with sharing from the broader base of IL 2, for example, Rey offered.

Sharing data also means making sure the United States has access.

“This door swings both ways,” Isaacson said.

TechNet Cyber is organized by AFCEA International. SIGNAL Media is the official media of AFCEA International.