Pentagon Orders Cyber and Intelligence Forces to Guard U.S. Midterms

Overview

• The Defense Department issued a memorandum in late September directing the Pentagon to use Cyber Command, the NSA and Defense Intelligence Agency assets to identify, interrupt and neutralize foreign interference in the November midterm elections.
• The memo instructs military cyber and intelligence units to collect and produce threat intelligence and to employ advanced cyber capabilities while requiring all actions to comply with law, presidential determinations and Defense Department rules.
• Pentagon officials said the effort will work with federal, state and local authorities to expose foreign influence and protect voters’ freedoms during voting and counting.
• Security experts and former officials warned the mobilization may have limited near-term effect because election security work normally needs months of planning and because civilian election‑security capacity was reduced earlier this year.
• The move builds on U.S. practices since 2016 that pair military cyber support with civilian agencies to protect elections, and the directive could test legal limits and interagency coordination ahead of the November 3 vote.