DoD expects to conduct a 90-day pilot of the system with around 30 defense companies, James Miller, principal deputy under secretary of defense for policy, told a House Armed Services Committee (HASC) panel. The system would be similar to the Einstein 3 system being developed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for the federal government, he said.
This active network defense system pilot could be expanded in the future if Congress provides DoD with additional authority over private sector networks, Miller told the House panel, according to a report by Fierce Government IT.
The proposed legislation would address "what set of authorities may be necessary or changes may be necessary for the Department of Defense to assist [DHS] in providing that prevention as opposed to solely focusing on response," Miller said.
In his written testimony, Miller told the HASC subcommittee on emerging threats and capabilities that DoD was requesting $113 million to expand an existing three-year pilot with the defense industry to increase information sharing about cybersecurity threats between DoD and 36 defense firms.
Miller said that DoD is also requesting $500 million for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to develop cybersecurity technologies in the areas of cloud computing, virtualization, and advanced encryption.