DoD, Industry Sparring Over New Cyber Rules, Ellen Lord Says

The Defense Department is working on a “do not buy” list of software vendors who may have been compromised by foreign governments, but is still in the early stages of formulating a plan to ensure the defense industry follows suit.

Ellen Lord, the Pentagon’s chief weapons buyer, says that her office is trying to put rules in place to protect against buying “software that has Russian or Chinese provenance, for instance, and quite often that’s difficult to tell at first glance because of holding companies.” The plan, “Deliver Uncompromised,” is looking for ways the Pentagon can work with the defense industry to toughen up security, adding counterintelligence assets to the acquisition process.

The concern over compromised technology has been heightened after a series of high-profile hacking incidents where U.S. shipbuilding plans and other programs have been compromised by Chinese hackers.