Trump signs defense bill allocating millions for Cyber Command mandating Pentagon phone security The Record from Recorded Future News
pppLeadershipppCybercrimeppNationstatepp Influence Operations ppTechnologyppCyber DailyppClick Here Podcastpp Free Newsletterpp President Donald Trump signed a 901 billion Pentagon policy bill on Thursday night that features a slew of key cybersecurity provisions pp The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act passed with bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate The compromise measure authorizes Defense Department policies and unprecedented spending levels for national security programs pp The bill includes language that effectively preserves the dualhat leadership structure of US Cyber Command and the National Security Agency by prohibiting the use of any Pentagon funds to reduce or diminish the responsibilities authorities or organizational oversight of the Commander of United States Cyber Command pp The bill serves as an extra layer of protection for keeping the leadership arrangement which has been debated ever since Cyber Command was established in 2010 in place against Trump and his allies pp Trump nearly severed the relationship in the final days of his first term but was rebuffed by military brass The idea was renewed during the last presidential transition but was dropped informally earlier this year after senior national security officials concluded a split would prove too timeconsuming and costly pp The president on Thursday formally nominated Army Lt Gen Joshua Rudd to be the next head of the Cyber Command and the NSA pp The bill provides Cyber Command roughly 73 million for digital operations an additional 30 million for unspecified activities and 314 million for operations and maintenance at its headquarters at Fort Meade Maryland pp The final NDAA requires the Defense secretary to ensure DOD senior leaders are provided mobile phones with enhanced cybersecurity protections including data encryption pp Earlier this month the Pentagons inspector general issued a report that found Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth broke existing DOD rules for handling sensitive information and potentially put troops in danger when he used the commercial messaging app Signal to discuss a thenpending US military strike in Yemen pp The watchdog office released a separate report that concluded the department lacks a secure messaging platform that could help coordinate sensitive operations pp The latest NDAA gives the department about a year to list all critical infrastructure that relies on materials or components with origins tied to any foreign entity of concern pp The bipartisan measure also orders the department to harmonize its own cybersecurity requirements by next June A push to cut through such digital red tape is slated to be a pillar of the national cybersecurity strategy the Trump administration intends to release next month ppMartin Matishakppis the senior cybersecurity reporter for The Record Prior to joining Recorded Future News in 2021 he spent more than five years at Politico where he covered digital and national security developments across Capitol Hill the Pentagon and the US intelligence community He previously was a reporter at The Hill National Journal Group and Inside Washington PublishersppPrivacyppAboutppContact Uspp Copyright 2025 The Record from Recorded Future Newsp
