Military Networks 'Not Defensible,' Says General Who Defends Them. The Defense Department’s networks, as currently configured, are “not defensible,” according to the general in charge of protecting those networks.
And if there’s a major electronic attack on this country, there may not be much he and his men can legally do to stop it in advance. Gen. Keith Alexander, head of both the secretive National Security Agency and the military’s new U.S. Cyber Command, has tens of thousands of hackers, cryptologists, and system administrators serving under him. But at the moment, their ability to protect the Defense Department’s information infrastructure — let alone the broader civilian internet — is limited. Welcome to the National Security Agency. National Security Agency. The National Security Agency (NSA) is a U.S. intelligence agency responsible for providing the United States government with encrypted communications (information assurance) and the reading of encrypted communications (signals intelligence) of other nations.
The NSA also creates and maintains secure computer network operations for the U.S. Government and prepares for network warfare.[8] Originating as a unit to decipher code communications in World War II, it was officially formed as the NSA by President Truman in 1952. Since then, it has become one of the largest of U.S. intelligence organizations in terms of personnel and budget,[6][9] operating under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense and reporting to the Director of National Intelligence. The NSA has been a matter of political controversy on several occasions in its short history.