The chief of the Army’s Cyberspace and Information Operations Division said the new cyber branch would give soldiers in that field an identity, while striking an ominous tone in warning that in the next war “someone’s screens are going to go blank, and we don’t want it to be ours.”
Creating a new branch will also formalize the necessary training and education track in the career path, said Col. Carmine Cicalese, adding, “It is something that you do your whole career, not just for one or two tours, and then go back to what you do.”
Col. Cicalese also noted that training is intense and highly competitive with a higher failure rate than in many other technical fields.
He also noted the importance of good cyber hygiene, specifically admonishing soldiers from posting mission details on social media, such as an image following an attack with location and date-time details. “The adversary now knows the location of you and your unit, when the attack occurred, and its impact,” he said. “Now the enemy can react off of that.”
