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US Navy Training a Group of "Ethical Hacking" Sailors

US Navy follows in the Army's footsteps with similar program

May 23, 2016 12:40 GMT  ·  By
Operations Specialist 2nd Class Nanci Reyes and Boatswain’s Mate Seaman Velena Taylor monitor outbound merchant traffic aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Cole (DDG 67) as they enter Constanta, Romania for a scheduled port visit
   Operations Specialist 2nd Class Nanci Reyes and Boatswain’s Mate Seaman Velena Taylor monitor outbound merchant traffic aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Cole (DDG 67) as they enter Constanta, Romania for a scheduled port visit

The US Navy has put out an ad soliciting bids for an educational program aimed at training sailors in ethical hacking techniques.

The first round of this training program is scheduled to take place between June 6 and 10, in San Diego, California, and will include a class of 34 participants.

The Navy is looking for instructors certified by the International Council of Electronic Commerce Consultants or its authorized partners.

US Navy launches Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) program

According to the government's solicitation request, Navy servicemen are to be taught from a curriculum of 20 Critical Security Controls of the Risk Management Framework.

The Navy intends to train its personnel on the basics of offensive hacking techniques, which are to be used to obtain the necessary know-how to understand how foreign cyber-attackers might be thinking.

These skills will be needed in order to protect critical US equipment and forces, and to counteract any enemy operations on battlefields across the globe. The Navy describes the Certified Ethical Hacker program as such:

“  The Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) program certifies individuals in the specific network security discipline of Ethical Hacking from a vendor-neutral perspective. A Certified Ethical Hacker is a skilled professional who understands and knows how to look for the weaknesses and vulnerabilities in networks and/or computer systems and uses the same knowledge and tools as a malicious hacker upon request from an organization. The certification is for individuals who are responsible for securing (or testing the security of) computer networks. The CEH is appropriate for security officers, auditors, security professionals, site administrators, and others who may be concerned about the integrity of their organizations network infrastructure. Applicants must have a minimum of two years of security related work experience.  ”

US Army running a similar program

The US Army has been running a similar ethical hacking program for its servicemen for many months, the NextGov reports.

Additionally, the US Marines, a sub-division of the US Navy, announced at the end of March the creation of a new unit called Marine Corps Cyberspace Warfare Group (MCCYWG), also aimed at providing cyber-support for its operatives.

Cyber skills are in high demand in the US armed forces, with the US Air Force announcing increased pay for cyber-warfare specialists at the end of 2015.