Pentagon bolstering cybersecurity demands for future contracts

The Pentagon failed to make cybersecurity for its multibillion-dollar weapons systems a major focus until recently despite years of warnings, Congress

The Pentagon’s top weapons buyer has issued new language applying to future contracts that’s intended to put companies on notice that they must elevate cybersecurity protection.

“We are coming out with standard contract language that all the services will use,” Ellen Lord, the under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said in an interview. “We’ve just sent out our first formal communication” that says “we are going to do it and providing standard language that can be tailored as needed.”