{"id":13802,"date":"2019-05-28T18:06:39","date_gmt":"2019-05-28T18:06:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/uncategorized\/2019\/05\/28\/nato-to-integrate-offensive-cyber-capabilities-of-individual-members\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T17:49:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T17:49:03","slug":"nato-to-integrate-offensive-cyber-capabilities-of-individual-members","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/cyber\/2019\/05\/28\/nato-to-integrate-offensive-cyber-capabilities-of-individual-members\/","title":{"rendered":"NATO to integrate offensive cyber capabilities of individual members"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A relative latecomer to the cyber game, NATO is beginning to \u201coperationalize\u201d cyber capabilities into its overall structure by integrating those tools of member nations, said the alliance\u2019s secretary general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are tackling increasingly complex cyberthreats faster and more efficiently. And we are more aware of the threats, more resilient to incidents,\u201d Jens Stoltenberg said May 23 at the Cyber Defense Pledge Conference in London<\/a>. \u201cWe also need to consider how we can deter attacks in cyberspace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top NATO officials have long maintained that the 29-nation alliance is defensive in nature with a mission of deterrence, implying that the body itself doesn\u2019t engage in offensive maneuvers, including in cyberspace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As such, Stoltenberg noted that part of deterring cyberattacks is attribution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCyber attackers must know that they will be exposed,\u201d he said, citing a thwarted attempt by Russian intelligence operatives to hack the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons<\/a> in the Hague in October.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conversely, Stoltenberg said, NATO must be ready to use cyber capabilities to fight enemies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NATO has walked a fine line as a defensive organization, relying on the individual capabilities of member states. As an example, Stoltenberg pointed to allies conducting cyber operations against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy using national cyber effects, or offensive cyber, they suppressed ISIS propaganda, degraded their ability to coordinate attacks and disrupted their recruitment of foreign fighters,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have agreed to integrate national cyber capabilities or offensive cyber into alliance operations and missions. All of this has made NATO more effective in cyberspace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several experts have said members states that are both willing and capable of offensive operations number about a half dozen. Without a NATO-owned offensive capability, officials have noted that contesting adversaries in cyberspace is no simple endeavor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The challenge is making sure cyber capabilities are available as much as those of other domains, according to Maj. Gen. Wolfgang Renner, the deputy chief of staff for cyberspace at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\t