Pentagon moves to protect weapons from hackers

Weapons bought by the U.S. military will soon have stronger defenses against hackers, defense officials said.

The Pentagon is preparing to release new rules governing weapons purchases that will place a greater emphasis on cybersecurity. Officials are also producing a guidebook to help managers structure new weapons programs at a time of rising threats online.

The department is expected to release both documents by Sept. 30 after a review to ensure that neither points to vulnerabilities in current weapons systems, Assistant Secretary of Defense Katrina McFarland told Reuters.

The new regulations follow growing discussion of U.S. weapons’ vulnerability to cyberattacks, which is often related to the patchwork of different software products serving the systems.

The topic has earned attention from lawmakers in hearings on Capitol Hill this year, where defense officials have said they are giving serious attention to weapons’ security.

The classified and unclassified networks used to communicate about defense acquisitions are already subject to a set of security standards online.

Contractors are also required to report any successful cyberattacks on those systems, which are under constant threat from nation-states desiring intelligence about the Pentagon’s equipment.

The Pentagon is also taking steps to guard against insider threats to weapons, Reuters reported.