US Air Force Sets Up Cyber Defense Office to Protect Weapons Systems

The US Air Force created the Cyber Resiliency Office for Weapons Systems (CROWS) to maintain mission-effective capabilities during a cyber attack, the military service said in a press release on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The CROWS is aimed at tackling cyber threats that could undermine the Air Force’s ability to fly, fight and win in air, according to the statement.

"The cyber threat is more than just network intrusion or traditional malware — it also affects our weapon systems and presents a clear and present danger to successful mission assurance,” CROWS director Dennis Miller explained in the release. “The Air Force’s ability to fly, fight and win in air, space and cyberspace is threatened by increasing competent adversaries in the cyberspace domain.”

When vulnerabilities, external factors and adversary tactics are combined, they create a set of complex interdependencies that must be worked in a systematic and integrated manner to reduce risk, he added.

“To effectively and efficiently combat the cyber threat, we must horizontally integrate within and across our weapon systems, working together across our Air Force and partnership communities to securely design and operate systems, conduct missions and sustain capabilities,” Air Force cyber technical director Daniel Holtzman said in the release.

CROWS will be based in the US state of Massachusetts at Hanscom Air Force Base but will draw on personnel from across the US. It reached initial operating capability on December 21.

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