Brad D. Williams

Reporter, Cyber and Networks, Breaking Defense

Brad D. Williams covers cyber, networks, and emerging tech. He has worked as a journalist and tech writer for 20 years, much of that time focusing on cybersecurity. He began his career on the night desk at a daily newspaper and then spent a decade as a senior tech writer in security operations centers, on cyber red teams, and embedded with engineers building tech for the public and private sectors. In 2015, Brad started a business specializing in cybersecurity content strategy and development. He joined Fifth Domain: Cyber at the publication’s launch in 2017 and developed an enterprise beat covering cybersecurity strategy, policy, operations, and emerging tech. Brad holds a master's degree in English and technical cybersecurity certification. Outside of work, Brad is a member of the United States Chess Federation and writes literature. bwilliams@breakingmedia.com

Stories by Brad D. Williams

‘The game has changed’: VMware exec says defense industry faces destructive cyberattacks, belligerent foes

‘The game has changed’: VMware exec says defense industry faces destructive cyberattacks, belligerent foes
‘The game has changed’: VMware exec says defense industry faces destructive cyberattacks, belligerent foes

VMware’s Tom Kellermann linked increasingly aggressive attacks to geopolitical tensions with Russia and Belarus.

US needs ‘manufacturing renaissance’ to compete with China: Report

US needs ‘manufacturing renaissance’ to compete with China: Report
US needs ‘manufacturing renaissance’ to compete with China: Report

Reagan Institute warns of “inadequate” investments, “exceedingly fragile” supply chains, and “insufficient” accountability of government officials, among other US weaknesses.

DoD issues cloud solicitations to AWS, Google, Microsoft, and Oracle

DoD issues cloud solicitations to AWS, Google, Microsoft, and Oracle
DoD issues cloud solicitations to AWS, Google, Microsoft, and Oracle

Google’s addition is somewhat surprising since, in recent years, the company has pulled away from DoD work due to internal pressure on executives from its workforce. The apparent omission of IBM is also notable.

DIA details push to modernize top-secret network amid 150% uptick in cyber threats

DIA details push to modernize top-secret network amid 150% uptick in cyber threats
DIA details push to modernize top-secret network amid 150% uptick in cyber threats

“I hear more about IT revolution than evolution these days, but I think IT is more evolution,” DIA CIO Doug Cossa said.

Former CISA head warns of rivals’ ‘destructive’ cyber capabilities

Former CISA head warns of rivals’ ‘destructive’ cyber capabilities
Former CISA head warns of rivals’ ‘destructive’ cyber capabilities

“There’s one line [in the notice] that should scare the hell out of everyone everywhere,” Chris Krebs said.

CYBERCOM has conducted ‘hunt-forward’ ops in 14 countries, deputy says

CYBERCOM has conducted ‘hunt-forward’ ops in 14 countries, deputy says
CYBERCOM has conducted ‘hunt-forward’ ops in 14 countries, deputy says

Lt. Gen. Moore didn’t provide details, but later said, “China is the number one priority for DoD. Therefore, it’s [CYBERCOM chief] Gen. Nakasone’s number one priority.”

Pentagon rolls out v2.0 of controversial CMMC program

Pentagon rolls out v2.0 of controversial CMMC program
Pentagon rolls out v2.0 of controversial CMMC program

DoD said it will be “increas[ing] oversight of professional and ethical standards of third-party assessors.”

Nakasone: Cold War-style deterrence ‘does not comport to cyberspace’

Nakasone: Cold War-style deterrence ‘does not comport to cyberspace’
Nakasone: Cold War-style deterrence ‘does not comport to cyberspace’

“Strategic competition is alive and well in cyberspace, and we’re doing it every day with persistent engagement,” the CYBERCOM and NSA leader said.

Army CIO: ‘Going Digital Is A Mindset; It’s A Culture Change’

Army CIO: ‘Going Digital Is A Mindset; It’s A Culture Change’
Army CIO: ‘Going Digital Is A Mindset; It’s A Culture Change’

Prior to the Army Digital Transformation Strategy, “What we lacked in the Army was an integrator… a unity of effort to modernize. That’s what the DTS is about,” CIO Raj Iyer said.

Towards Zero-Trust: Forescout To Help DISA Scale Comply-to-Connect

Towards Zero-Trust: Forescout To Help DISA Scale Comply-to-Connect
Towards Zero-Trust: Forescout To Help DISA Scale Comply-to-Connect

“The ultimate goal is understanding exactly what is happening on the network, who is connecting, what is connected, and what are those devices and users doing on the network so you can make sure that, where connection is necessary for a mission, it’s available but also that it’s secure,” Forescout’s Dean Hullings said.

Peraton Developing ‘Single-Pane-Of-Glass’ Visibility Across Army’s Unified Network

Peraton Developing ‘Single-Pane-Of-Glass’ Visibility Across Army’s Unified Network
Peraton Developing ‘Single-Pane-Of-Glass’ Visibility Across Army’s Unified Network

“If there’s one thing DoD and industry have done, it’s try a whole bunch of different tools over the last 10 to 12 years. What we have to do now is string them all together to show which ones work best for the capabilities the Army needs today and divest the ones that they don’t need,” Peraton VP Jennifer Napper said.

Northrop Grumman Eyes Next-Gen SIGINT For Army

Northrop Grumman Eyes Next-Gen SIGINT For Army
Northrop Grumman Eyes Next-Gen SIGINT For Army

“So I think [the concept of integration is] so simple and yet so hard to achieve,” Northrop VP Walsmith said. “You need to be able to integrate applications, whether they’re your own or someone else’s, with ease and simplicity. It is easy to say. It’s very hard to engineer.”

‘Global By Nature’: Generals Say Unified Network Is ‘Operational Imperative’

‘Global By Nature’: Generals Say Unified Network Is ‘Operational Imperative’
‘Global By Nature’: Generals Say Unified Network Is ‘Operational Imperative’

“I will offer you there will be no sanctuary in the next fight. We have to have a resilient network,” Lt. Gen. John Morrison said.

DISA Head: DoD Working To Modernize ICAM, C2, Data Use

DISA Head: DoD Working To Modernize ICAM, C2, Data Use
DISA Head: DoD Working To Modernize ICAM, C2, Data Use

“I have a mantra of ‘I want to kill to the [Common Access Card] as the primary authentication mechanism for the department’,” Lt. Gen. Robert Skinner said. “Industry has better authentication, and it’s not just two-factor, it’s truly multi-factor authentication.”

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